Best Home Inspections

Fred does not seem to do detailed inspections. During the inspection of my first home, he looked at the A/C condenser in the backyard and assured me that it was in fact a heat pump that would cool and heat my house. There was also a old gas furnace in the basement, but he said that I could just throw it away since it was no longer needed. He never tested to see if it even turned on. Fast forward to move-in day in November, and I am trying to heat my house with a A/C unit… luckily I was able to get the furnace running, but how could any inspector make such a mistake? You don’t need to be an HVAC specialist to read the sticker on the condenser which indicted it was an AC unit. I would not have bought this house if I had known I will have to make a costly heat upgrade in the near future. Other than that, Fred missed several other issues, including the fact that my chimneys had no crowns or caps on them (although I’m not even sure he looked at the roof), that there was a giant hole in the kitchen cabinets where you could see the home exterior (and feel cold wind come through in the winter), that there was no fan in a basement bathroom with no windows, and that the AC ductwork was so badly installed and leaky that the attic is cool and breezy in the summer.

Do not Use this firm. Fred arrived early, broke into the home and performed the inspection without us present. We relied on his inspection which estimated about $2000 in minor fixes. He missed three huge foundation cracks that were visible from the outside and will cost us over $60,000 to fix. Tried reaching out for refund of fee for failure to perform the services in the agreement and unresponsive. Do not use this company.

Fantastic! The inspector, Fred Strahley, has some kind of super power ability to look at a house and zero in on problem areas. We received detailed email reports with the findings quickly. This company deserves a higher rating than "A".

This inspector was working closely with my agent Browning Homes Group|Keller Williams. It did not go well.

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Fred Strahley was fantastic. He performed the inspection on a house my wife and I are buying. The inspection was scheduled for a Saturday morning at 9:00 a.m. -- he showed up early and looked at the outside of the house thoroughly before we tackled the inside. He did a very in-depth review of the whole house, including all utility systems, mechanical systems, appliances, electrical work, frame, etc. He pointed out items of note as we went as well as items that would probably need some work. Afterward, Fred and Lisa went to work preparing a very thorough report and sent it to me the next day. The report included all of Fred's notes on the house's condition and also included a number of repair/improvement suggestions for when we move in.
All in all, this company was fantastic. They definitely live up to the name of and quot;Bestand quot; Home Inspections!

Fred and Lisa were extremely friendly and responsive. We needed the inspection quickly due to contract contingencies, and ran into issues with scheduling with other inspectors due to an inspectors' conference that week. Fred worked us into his schedule quickly, and Lisa e-mailed the report to us late the same night. I saw earlier reviews that indicated that their reports did not include photos. They have since updated their system, and the report included an up front summary of critical items and photos of these were attached. Overall, the report was not as narrative as I expected, but this could be a difference in VA state reporting requirements (previous home inspection report I saw was in GA). We were not able to attend the inspection as we live out of state, but this was not an issue. Fred was very thorough and inspected the home as if he were purchasing it himself. I e-mailed him a list of our concerns prior to the inspection, and he called us from the house during the inspection with some early feedback. Once we reviewed the report, he quickly responded to any questions, allowing us to submit our repair requests to the sellers within the inspection contingency period. He also quickly responded over the Easter holiday weekend and helped us interpret a report from the seller's engineer so we could close all inspection contingencies and move forward with the contract. We had a great experience, and I would recommend Best Home Inspections to others.

Fred is amazing. He is a honest man who runs his company the same way. He worked with me on the date and time for the inspection and even did it on a Sunday so I did not have to take off work. He explained all the issues to me to present to the builder and detailed them in his report, which I received the same day. I have hired him to do the final walk-through inspection as well.

Every thing is always wonderful, I have used them several times and will continue too.

The inspector did a very thorough inspection of the condo that I am about to purchase. He walked and talked me through everything that he was looking for during inspection as a first time home buyer I thought that this was incredibly helpful. The inspector was very knowledgeable, as he owns a construction company, and was able to answer all of my questions about renovations/updates that I am considering. And, he arrived on time!! As compared to the other inspectors that gave me estimates, he was by far the most reasonable (about $125 less than the others). I would definitely recommend him to people looking for a pre-purchase inspection.

Prompt, knowledgeable and thorough.

Fred was very prompt for our appointment. He was very friendly, courteous, and answered my questions. Actually, he gave me some info about a problem other than insulation and what to do about it. He also gave me information on how to correct an insulation problem I didn't know I had, plus who to contact about installing insulation. I was very happy with the various pieces of information he gave me. I definitely recommend anyone to use this company. Fred also builds homes for anyone interested in that category.

I WOULD GIVE THEM AN A+ IF I COULD. HE WAS JUST AWESOME. HE GAVE ME A 21 PAGE LIST OF ALL THE PROBLEMS. WE RECOMMENDED HIM TO ALL OF OUR FRIENDS! HE WAS A MASTER BUILDER BEFORE HE WAS AN INSPECTOR, SO HE REALLY KNOWS WHAT HE IS DOING.