HOUSEMASTER HOME INSPECTION

All easy to set up, good paperwork and follow through.  I was buying a home and did not yet live in the area  Heard they were good, so had to rely in absence on this being true.  I let them know the foundation was of utmost importance to me.  It was a house I planned to renovate, so was aware of several issues, but as long as the foundation was fine, I could live with it.  Had them back out questioning specifically foundation after closing.  At one corner in particular, they told me (both local franchise owner and inspector came out) the brick only needed repointing.  So far, I've had to replace 2 sides of my foundation due to below grade rotting wood easily visible from basement or crawl space.  That corner I was concerned about is really going to be an expensive repair.  Still have more to go.  And they gave my entire foundation a good score both the first time and second.  Said the addition was "Done right".  That's a joke.  If he had looked at all in the crawlspace, wood was at surface and rotten. For the addition, foundation was posts set on top of the ground in the concrete footers you buy at Lowes.  And living space built above that.   As the house had no gutters when I bought it, roof rain run off had spilled into the ground at the front corner of this and would have soon caved in bringing the front corner of the house along with it.  All in all it has cost me many thousands on foundation repairs and I anticipate thousands more to repair a house I would never have purchased had they given me a competent and accurate inspection report. No, I could not recommend them at all.

Arrived right on time and performed a very comprehensive inspection. The written report was well organized, easy to understand and very thorough. We would definitely recommend them.

The inspection was thorough and very professional. Jim arrived early and was already looking over the property when I got there. He took the time to walk through the house and point out features and locations for items such as water shut-off valves, all the grounding outlets, insulation or lack thereof, grade of the back yard for water flow, etc. He inspected both the roof and the crawl space, which is not always standard with a home inspector. He took lots of pictures and notes and explained some of the more practical aspects of the house. For example, the grounding outlets for the master bath were located in the guest bathroom. To reset the circuit for power in my bathroom, I will need to press the switch in the other bathroom. This was a great experience. I am a first time home buyer so I had lots of questions and he was very knowledgeable and patient in explaining building codes, types of construction, and building materials. He also gave me some advice on questions I might want to ask the builder about as the house is still under construction and not quite finished. Sometimes it's all about knowing the right questions to ask!

I wasn't there, but I was told he was very thorough, on time, and very pleasant.

Mr Jim Hinkle showed up a few minutes early for our inspection. In fact he was already checking the outside of the property when we arrived. He allowed me to follow him around the house as he inspected all of the areas inside & out. He explained in detail what he was looking for and even took pictures to document all aspects of the inspection process. He went in the attic and also went down in the crawl space. Even though the house was only one year old, I'm glad we had it inspected. Jim found a few things that needed to be fixed.

The inspector arrived on time. He was very through, professional, and personable. He did not mind my watching as he worked, and also answered my questions and made recommendations as we went along. I felt that he did a very thorough work on the job, taking the time to look the 80+ year old house over from top to bottom, leaving no stone unturned. He also put together a fantastic report, complete with detailed photos that document everything that we had discussed and observed on site. Overall, this guy was great, and I would recommend him to friends, family, and colleagues.