Level Headed Home Inspections

I met my agent and Tom, the inspector, at the property; everyone was there five minutes before the scheduled time. Tom gave me his card and showed me his license information. He went over his work history, education and experience and then explained the process. Then my agent and I followed as he went about the inspection. He tried every door, cupboard, closet and window to make sure they functioned properly. He tested every electrical outlet with a device that showed whether or not there was the correct amount of power. He turned on all of the lighting fixtures that were wired to a wall switch. He turned on each faucet in the bathroom and kitchen as well as flushed the toilet and ran the shower. He turned on the furnace and ran a gas detecting meter along the entire utility closet (the home does not have a basement so the hot water heater and furnace are in a closet of the utility room), the gas range and all exposed gas lines. He turned on the stove, oven, range top, microwave and also ran a full cycle of the dishwasher; these are the appliances included in the sale and he explained he wanted to make sure that they were in good working condition. He brought a ladder, which he used to inspect the crawlspace above the house as well as the exterior siding and roof of both the house and garage. He inspected the inside of the fireplace, flue and chimney. He removed the front of the circuit breaker box to inspect the wiring and explained to me what each breaker was for. He also showed me where there was extra capacity on breakers that were currently not being used, in case I wanted to have a dedicated circuit for my office or wanted to wire the enclosed patio room in the future. Outside, in addition to inspecting the siding, windows and roof on both house and garage, he made a thorough inspection of the rain gutters, sidewalks, driveway, garage slab, patio slabs and foundation of the house. All through the inspection, he was explaining everything he was doing and why. I had several questions throughout the inspection and he answered them all in an easy to understand manner. Upon completing the inspection, he wrote up the report in a spiral bound booklet. The pages were quadruple copies with tear outs for his records and for my agent's records; the booklet was for me to keep and still had one more tear out set of pages in case the lender needed copies. He asked if I had any other questions and reiterated that I shouldn't hesitate to call him if I think of any other questions or if any other issues arise. About two weeks after his inspection, the lender's appraisal turned up a concern about settlement in the driveway. I called Tom, explained what the appraisal found and not only did he write an addendum addressing their concerns but hand-delivered it to me less than 24 hours after I spoke with him. When the appraiser returned with additional question about the garage the week after that, all it took was an email to Tom and again, within a day's time, he returned to the property to re-inspect and take measurements all around the garage and faxed my agent the second addendum to the inspection to provide to the lender. Throughout the process, Tom has not only been extremely professional and quick to respond but he is a very personable man and his demeanor and willingness to help (at no additional charge) has made this part of the process a dream. I HIGHLY recommend him for anyone in need of a home inspection.