O'LEARY HOME INSPECTIONS

I am so happy I chose Mr. O'Leary for my home inspection. It was easy to schedule with him, he arrived on time, and was very professional. Additionally, he is very responsive to questions before and after the inspection and welcomed any questions I would have in the future. Not only was he very thorough and provided images of readings and existing conditions, he did a wonderful job of explaining his findings to me while onsite. Many of the homes in my neighborhood are over 100 years old (including mine) and he was extremely knowledgable about the building materials and processes of old style home construction. I am grateful for the crash course in sandstone foundations that I received so that I do not make the mistake of trying to finish the basement. He also provided great detail and recommendations for what would be on the report. He also was very welcoming to my parents and my boyfriend (an architect) who joined me since this is my first house and I wanted to make sure that I didn't miss any questions. I really like the report he provided. In addition to the details, his color coding system was very easy for me to review his findings and prioritize the results. He also delivered the report the next day, ahead of his anticipated time. I am very confident in his abilities and as I have a number of friends who are considering purchasing homes soon, I will be strongly recommending his services. If you are reading this, I also recommend that you check out his website and give him a call. Note that the cost below includes the home inspection, pest, and radon. And his pest and radon teams were great. Also arrived on time and provided quick and thorough reports as well.

Tim Was excellent. He didn't miss an inch of our house and he took the time to explain every detail to me so I knew the true gravity of what I was getting in to. We had him complete two home inspections! He welcomed any questions I had and thoroughly explained them. I knew absolutely nothing about houses before and after having Tim do two home inspections for me I can say I know a lot more! He's knowledgeable and polite. His reports are detailed and easy to understand. Tim also takes care of the pest inspection, it's so easy!

Mostly good. Tim is a very personable guy, and was up-front and honest with us about what he found. He actually convinced us to withdraw an offer on a home based on several issues he found, and gave us a discount for that inspection. My only complaint about Tim was that he did not find a few issues with our home which were discovered after our purchase. For example, the hot water tank was not venting properly, and CO was escaping into the basement. Another issue was that the interior walls of our home were made of styrofoam insulation, not drywall. This would have been nice to discover before we bought the house. Overall, I recommend Tim O'Leary.

It went very well. We found out what we needed to know.

What a great guy! Very thorough, super nice, and wasn't bothered by my husband following him around asking questions (on the contrary, he was more than happy to chat)! We learned a lot about our future house and got some great information. His report was very thorough and easy to read. I will highly recommend Tim to anyone I know in the process of buying a home.

Not very thorough. He states in his report that most inspectors include 50 pages and his are a short 12-15. I just didn't feel that he was thorough enough.

Tim is professional and extremely knowledgeable. He responded to my request for an inspection on the first call and we scheduled inspections immediately. He worked around our schedule, which was really generous. He arrived on time and was very thorough. He talked us through everything, which was great since we are first time home buyers. We also had nebby family members there asking questions and he was very patient. The cost of the services are very reasonable. The reports he provided were very easy to understand and they were given to us the next day, which was a Sunday! I would definitely use him again in the future, I might even call him for advice!

I found Tim online and checked out his websight. I was very impressed with what I saw so I decided to give him a try.I contacted him by e-mail and he was quick to respond. He was busy but agreed to do a home inspection on a saturday at noon. I arrived about 15 min early and Tim was already there . I had many questions and he took the time to explain and answer everyone. He worked with a pest inspector named Joel , who was also very informative. Tim spent about 2 hours ,going over every inch of this house. I was VERY IMPRESSED with his work. I have since moved on from that house and located another. I immediately contacted Tim and set up another home inspection. This time we scheduled on a Thursday at noon and I arrived early and Tim was already there , doing his thing. This time the pest inspecter was Mario. I had many questions for him and he took the time to answer everyone. Since I was a repeat customer ,Tim gave me a substantial discount even though the price was already a bargain. If you need a home and pest inspection, done by some honest down to earth good people ,then give Tim a call.

Tim did a great job..... He seemed to have a good working knowledge about all aspects of the house, from roof to basement. He took time to answer all of our questions, and we had quite a few.  We are not particularly familiar with the ins and outs of home construction,  and all the mechanicals (furnace-electric-etc) but his explanations were clear.....plain english. He discovered a few things that we hadn't seen, and we were able to negotiate the repair costs with the seller. overall..... a good experience, money well spent

From start to finish dealing with Tim O'Leary was great.  He answered and scheduled the inspection on the first phone call and sent a confirmation email afterwards.  When I arrived Tim had the ladder out and was already checking out the exterior.  He was very friendly and informative.  I tagged along during the entire inspection and he was patient enough to answer every little question and gave useful advice.  His report took only a day to be emailed to me and it was comprehensive yet understandable.  His professionalism was reassuring and eased the relative chaos of being a first time home buyer.  Muchos Buenos.

Mr. O'Leary clearly has, in my opinion, a firm grasp of construction methods and materials, and the durability of those materials over time.



I have worked in the building industry for a long time, but did not want my enthusiasm for the home I was planning to purchase, overwhelm my objectivity - Mr. O'Leary was a perfect fit.



He was thorough, inspecting all the important components of a dwelling and the systems, was clear about what he could and could not do, without creating liability issues (like bleeding radiators which might not stop leaking once opened).  He was clear about what was working and what needed attention by contractors specializing in the relevant trade (Masonry work required to address water infiltration), and even offered experience about what not to expect to repair back to original conditions (old, leaded window)s.  His report was succinct, both myself and the insurance company (who had reservations about certain custom-built elements) were able to rely on the report for our respective needs.



I had some concerns about hiring a home inspector, after a previous experience with a highly rated contractor were less than ideal.  I would recommend Mr. O'Leary without reservation.

It's been 3 months since the inspection. Tim's report was comprehensive and clear; to date he only missed two things that I can think of: one, the incoming water pressure is overly high; two, there was some exposed plumbing in the attic that needs insulation. Neither of these problems would have had a material impact on my purchase.  Tim was a good source of advice on who to call based on his years of experience in the trades.
Tim was also quite helpful with follow-up in this inspection, quickly responding to emailed questions I had. His report is our maintenance checklist for the house.
In a previous attempted purchase, Tim's forthrightness was essential in my avoiding a very costly mistake related to a house with poor foundation. I was very grateful for his honesty and expertise in explaining why this was not a fixable problem.
I would recommend Tim whole-heartedly.

He was on time, friendly and very understanding and took a great deal of time to explain everything to me.

I am currently in the process of purchasing a home and hired O'Leary Home Inspections to perform an
inspection on the home I am purchasing.    Tim O'Leary was also punctual.  I had arrived 15 minutes before our scheduled time and Tim was already there and had already put up a ladder to inspect the roof and gutters as best he could, as it is February.   Tim was very down to earth and took the time to explain how certain items worked and in some cases how easily certain items could or could not be repaired.  The inspection took place on an older home, roughly 60 years old, so I asked quite a few questions.  He was very patient and took the time to answer my questions in plain English, which possibly lead to the inspection taking longer than usual.   I believe his inspection was very though, as was his inspection report.  I would like to point out that I did receive the report via email the next morning, and the report was not a one size fits all checklists.  Rather the report was written in plain English making each section (electrical, plumbing, heating, masonry, etc.) very easy to read.  I also had a radon test and a pest inspection performed as well.  Time mentioned in advance that these services would be performed by others, but were included in the price he quoted me of $475.  He also arranged to have the radon test started 48 hours before the home inspection took place, so the radon test would be finished and incorporated in to his report.
During the course of the inspection, I learned from our conversation that Tim was a retired contractor.  I found him good to work with, and I would use services if I find that I need them again.  

My wife and I were in the house the entire time Tim was conducting his inspection. He did a great job pointing things out and explaining anything we had a question about. His report was easy to read and complete.  I like how in the report he pointed out issues that needed immediate attention and also issue that were less of a priority.  He was very knowledgeable about every aspect of the inspection due to his extensive background as a contractor.  After we purchased the house we found a slight issue in a room which we did not see before since that area had a carpet over it and a table over the carpet. I contacted Tim and he came out to check it out a few days later when I was available to meet with him.  He documented the issue and because of his help we were able to get the sellers to cover the cost of the repair.  I would highly recommend Tim and will be using him again.

'This is what I have had to have work completed since moving in. Roof leaks in the front and rear of home.The drip edges on the side of garage and house are missing so the water goes behind the gutters when it rains. The roof shingles are not properly installed above the garage,they are cut too short. I had a wall built and and door raised because I had mud and water in a bedroom downstairs because there was nothing to stop the water and mud from flowing over rocks in the lower porch.Both the front and master bedroom doors were taken off and adjusted because they would not close properly. A heating vent was installed in the living room to furnish heat. There were none.The garage door on the side of the house stopped working because it was improperly installed.It was repaired.The step flashing on the upper roof had cracks that were repaired.I have called the company the has a home owner warranty on the home that was included with the purchase. When I called with the roof issues, they sent a repairman out and they denied repair because the roof flashing was installed over the shingles.They also denied a leak in the shower due to improper installation.The warranty company will not pay for any roof issues because in their words It was not installed properly. I have spent thousands of dollars on repairs that had to be completed . Today it rained and I have leaks. I would not bought the home had I known the roof alone would not be approved for repairs by the home warranty company.


Update: Mr. O'Leary wrote a detailed reply in it he said no one in 2012 or 2013 said anything about the condition of my roof. In 2012 I wrote that the house had leaks in the front and rear of the house, when I called the company that the home warranty on the homewas with about the problems with the roof, they sent a roofer out, he said the roof was not installed correctly, even the flashing was installed wrong, thus the warranty to do any repair work on the roof was void. No one influenced or put pressure on me to install a new roof. There were just too many problems, and we were fortunate to find the problem that needed a beam to support the garage, and install new plywood were soft spots existed in the roof. This was not a 2 year delay in reporting roof issues with this home. The home was inspected in 2012, and I wrote of problems with the roof in 2012. I just want the correct information to be documented.

The worker was very informative and knowledgeable. He was very good at what he did. He was also punctual.

Overall we are very satisfied with the service we received.  We were also please that he had his photo on his website (we knew who to expect) as were the prices (we knew what we would be paying before we even got there).  The inspection seemed very thorough and he did not seem to be in a rush.  He was also very patient explaining things to us as we toured the house w/ him.

Arrived punctually. The price was good and the report had an appropriate level of detail. Mr. O'Leary had lockbox access so my agent didn't have to make the drive to the property. Provided report promptly by email and was available for questions by telephone. Of the three Pittsburgh home inspectors I have used, Mr. O'Leary was the one I was most satisfied with.

Mr. O'Leary was courteous, extremely professional, and very helpful. He encouraged any and all questions during the process, explained all of the areas that he was looking at in Layman's terms, and clarified every issue that was discovered. Mr. O'Leary was also unbelieveably thorough leaving no stone unturned (and being a stone house, that can be taken literally!) I wouldn't hesistate to employ his services again and I would highly recommend Mr. O'Leary to anyone looking for a home inspector. I did give him a 'B' for pricing only because there were several other inspectors with slightly lower rates. However, given the extreme level of detail in his proceedings and in the report, Mr. O'Leary is well worth the price and with this knowledge, I would have gladly paid a higher price for this level of professionalism

Tim was easy to work with and pretty thorough in his inspection. I was the home seller getting a pre-inspection so I opted for the standard inspection report. For buyers I would recommend the enhanced inspection report which documents more.

I started my search for a home inspector on the National Association of Home Inspectors web site then cross referenced their list with Angie's List. After looking at Tim's website I chose him to do my inspection. I called him on a Tuesday and we scheduled him to come out the Wednesday of the following week to perform the inspection. I wanted an inspection of the house I am currently living in and am not planning on selling because I wanted to know how to prioritize any work that needs to be done. He emailed me the inspection report the day following the inspection. Items that need work were highlighted in two colors, one for items that should be taken care of soon and the other for items that can wait. He was very friendly and pointed out to me all the items that would be included in the report and answered all my questions regarding them. He also indicated that if I ever have any other questions that I could call him, even if it's a year from now.

Tim is a local business man who answers his own phone. He is available 7 days a wk (our appt was for 4 P.M on a Saturday & lasted 2 hours). He arrived at the home early & started a walk-around inspection of the home. Once we arrived, he showed us exactly the type of thing that would be on the home inspection report & he told us how to fix it. He answered all of my husband's detailed questions & he showed us examples of anything "questionable" that he was going to put in the report. The price was great- our home is 2500 square feet and the cost was $420 (this included pest inspection and radon testing) but you can just order a general home inspection for $250. Our report was emailed to us in 24 hours and there were no "surprises" as we had discussed all issues with Tim after the inspection.