DAYSTAR INSPECTIONS

"I inspected two homes for [the Member] on 10/30/10. The first house was a 2979 square foot 2-story home with a sprinkler system. My normal price for that home was $414. I charged him only $329 (including termite inspection). The second home was a 3480 square foot 2-story home with a pool, hot tub, and lawn sprinkler system. My normal price for this home was $500. I charged him only $379 (including termite inspection) for that inspection. The Angie’s List discount for my customers is $20 per home. However, I gave him a total discount of $206. During our phone conversation, [the Member] told me he needed the inspections to be done on that Saturday (10/30/10). My schedule was completely full on that day. So, I totally changed my schedule to accommodate him. I arrived at the appointment five minutes early. I worked diligently and professionally for nine continuous hours. I politely and patiently answered all his questions. During the inspection, I showed him several areas of slab cracks, brick cracks, and sheetrock cracks. I normally wait until the end of the inspections to verbally explain to the buyers this very important point: That even though we were seeing all those cracks, it did not mean that the homes have foundation failure. The structural engineer and the foundation company used an instrument called a “Compu-level” to analyze the foundation of the homes. A Compu-level is an electronic instrument that determines “elevation” at various points throughout the home. When Compu-levels are used, most people only take 2 or 3 elevation readings per room. If they do not take 6 to 8 elevation readings per room, they will not see the same sloping in rooms that I see. I used a 4 foot hand level at numerous areas in each room (checking for north/south and east/west sloping). The rooms were definitely sloping exactly as my report states. I always wait until the end of the inspection to verbally describe my conclusions to the buyers. At the end of the inspection, I was ready to explain to him that the homes were experiencing settlement and that he should seek a second opinion from a structural engineer. I planned to tell him that settlement does not mean “foundation failure”. But, when I looked for [the Member] I realized that he had “left” the home. He was gone for the day, and I could not give him my summary. [The Member] apparently does not understand that it is perfectly normal for inspectors to defer to the expertise of specialists in certain areas. Inspectors are not specialists in every category. [The Member] also neglected to acknowledge that I successfully inspected several hundred other items in other categories, and that I found numerous other items that needed repair. After reading his comments, it sounds like the only thing important to him in this inspection was the foundation. If that is true, then he should have hired a structural engineer from the very beginning. [The Member] also never asked for a refund. It is regrettable that he does not have a high opinion of my inspection abilities. I have inspected approximately 10,000 homes in 27 years. I definitely know what I am doing."

"I inspected this home for the Member on 11/21/09. The price of $329 was a very good price for a 3500 square foot 2-story home. (My normal price was $389). During that time period, there were over 900 licensed home inspectors in the greater Houston area. Only a small handfull of those inspectors are "certified code inspectors". The Member did not ask for a certified code inspector. She simply asked for a warranty home inspection on the home she had previously purchased. I did exactly what she asked me to do. Also, I definitely do roof inspections. I have been performing home inspections for 27 years. I have performed approx. 10,000 inspections. For the first 15 years, I always climbed on the roof of every inspection. However, I learned that many times I "caused damage" on the roofs when I walked on them. The roofs were in fairly good condition, until I walked-around on the roof. It causes the "aggregate" (gravel coating) to release from the shingle. This causes the membrane to deteriorate prematurely because it is exposed to the ultraviolet rays in the sunlight. I explained this to the Member, but she failed to place that note in her "comment" section. I use a 150 watt spotlight in the attic and comprehensively search for leak stains and rot. I then turn the light "off" and look for evidence of sunlight penetrating into the attic--These are areas that will certainly allow for rainwater penetration. I also visually inspect the shingles, flashing, roof jacks, roof vents, and chimney stack with binoculars from ground level."