not really. i think a good inspector will catch the same things for HO or investor. a bad one will miss-inform both types of clients. just watch Homes Inspection and you will see crazy stuff inspectors miss.
having said that, i never hire an inspector. i know more about houses and home improvement than 90% of them. by the time i place and offer i have already inspected the house. i put "no inspection required" and they think i am nuts. one more way to sweeten their "deal" and make them accept my offer.
I've had several different companies over the last several months, it looks like they are coming in around $330-350.
A few of the things I look for:
- Education: I like to work with inspectors who help educate me on maintenance-related issues. I want them to point out issues that may be a health hazard or a long-term repair that may need to be addressed.
- Paperwork: I prefer inspectors who provide their report and suggestions in a nice organized folder. I know this sounds minor, but it is really nice to have a folder with all the information spelled out neatly and well organized. The last company I used basically used a generic word doc and it wasn't a very helpful reference.
I'm not sure if that was what you were looking for.
not really. i think a good inspector will catch the same things for HO or investor. a bad one will miss-inform both types of clients. just watch Homes Inspection and you will see crazy stuff inspectors miss.
having said that, i never hire an inspector. i know more about houses and home improvement than 90% of them. by the time i place and offer i have already inspected the house. i put "no inspection required" and they think i am nuts. one more way to sweeten their "deal" and make them accept my offer.
I agree with George, although it's partly because I went through a training course several years ago so I wouldn't need to pay each time I buy. For me, I am mostly concerned with major issues like the roof, furnace, structure, etc. A good inspector should tell you about all of these issues if they are a potential problem. As long as the water is on and I can make sure the waste lines run smoothly, I will also not request an inspection period.
Although I don't personally use home inspectors on my purchases, I deal with a lot of them when selling and there is a wide variety.
As an investor or a buyer, I would want an inspector with actual construction experience. Some are former building code inspectors, which is even better. Either way, look for one who will really look into the details and look for any potential future or hidden problems (i.e. the stuff I look for when evaluating houses). To me, a bad inspection report says "water heater was working at time of inspection with no noted issues" while a good one says "although water heater was fully functional at time of inspection, the serial number indicates it was manufactured in 1997 and therefore may be near the end of its useful life". He should walk the roof to check for soft spots, not just view from ground, etc.
To answer the title question, I would gladly pay $400 for the detailed inspection rather than $200 for someone to test the dishwasher and flush the toilets.
$250 per.
After a few deals, kept working with the same one and we worked out a good arrangement. Depending on your locale, I'd demand one that will go into crawl spaces and into attics. There's a big difference between poking your head into a crawl space and going in there to look around. I missed out on some damage because of this once.
I paid $250 and I felt like the inspector did a great job, however this is my first time so I have no one to compare him to. The report came in a booklet with a CD of all pics taken. Dates and life expectance of all mechincal items.
The neighborhood is older (1957) with Large Trees so I paid a Plumber $95 to run a camera down the drain to the street. Roots in the plumbing can cost a lot of money. Father-in-law had his driveway dug up for roots in his plumbing and it cost near $5,000. As a first time investor (looking to hold onto the house long term) this would be hard on my wallet.
I pay $400 for my inspections. My inspector is a mechanical engineer that has 20+ years in home building/inspections. The reports are VERY detailed (last report was 29 pages), including pics of any problem areas with description of what the problem is. He includes a classification of the deficiency stating whether it is a Maintenance issue, a Repair issue, or a Safety issue. He also includes links to government (county/state/federal) sites that pertain to the area that he identified.
At $400, he's a little more expensive than some of the others around here, but I'm very happy with the reports and he has been able to give me advice that I know has saved me thousands.