Was Your Last Home Inspector Blind?
Learn Seven Things You Must Know To Avoid
Hiring The Wrong Home Inspector!
1. Get a Home Inspector With Lots Of Experience:
No one works harder for the client “You” Than the owner of the company!
It takes a full time inspector with at least 500 inspections to develop the eyes, ears and nose for hunting down problems. Part-time home inspectors simply don’t have the time in the field to develop that radar. Be sure to ask how many inspections the inspector conducts annually and how many years he/she has been doing them. A quality full time home inspector conducts between 200 and 300 inspections annually - blind inspectors conduct 50 to 100 inspections annually. Conducting 200-300 inspections each year requires extensive referrals, by prior clients, lenders, real estate agents and others -- so there is a much greater chance the inspector is not blind!
Midstate Inspection services conducts 200-300 inspections annually. We are State licensed & meet requiring continuing education credits & full members of the American Home inspectors training institute, Illinois Home Inspectors’ Association & Radalink Affiliates.
2. Education & Training:
Being a contractor is very different from being a Professional Home Inspector.
Home inspectors are responsible for evaluating all of the systems and components of the home -- not just one aspect like the brick or the framing. To be able to provide a competent evaluation of all of these elements takes formal education and training. Did the inspector attend one of the top home inspection schools like The American Home Inspectors Training Institute (AHIT) or Kaplan professional schools Or, did he complete a correspondence course online, or have his brother, Bubba show him how to inspect?
Bruce & Greg both have received their education from the American Home Inspectors Training Institute- AHIT, completing the Master Home Inspectors Course. Bruce & Greg both have completed a Radon measurement course from Radalink, One of the Nations top radon testing firms.
Upon completion of the inspector’s formal education / meeting state licensing requirements they have passed the stringent state exams & are fully licensed in the state of Illinois to perform home inspections or measurement of radon gas.
3. Certifications:
While certifications are certainly important, it’s the combination of Experience, Education and Training that make the difference in the competency of your next home inspector. Certifications let the world know that the inspector can pass a test not that he can inspect a home properly. We all know people who are certified for one thing or another that we wouldn’t hire under any circumstances. There is simply no substitute for experience and proper training. We have over 40 combined years of construction related experience, and 7 years experience as home inspector’s. Your future home is in good hands.
4. The Inspection Report:
The top home inspectors in today’s business don’t produce handwritten reports. A professional inspector will provide a combination checklist/narrative report. Technology has evolved where you should expect to receive a full-color report, with digital photographs of the issues discovered during the course of the inspection. The report should provide “Summary Pages” with specific categories like Concerns, Safety Issues and Deferred Cost Items, etc. The report should not contain repair costs or action plans for repairs. Professional home inspectors inspect -- they don’t repair! An inspector that makes repairs should always be avoided due to the conflict of interest inherent in that situation. Midstate Inspection services will not recommend you to a specific contractor, but we will guide you in a specific spot to choose a professional, qualified contractor to fix your home.
Ask for a sample of an inspection report so you’ll know what you can expect for your time and money. After all, you are the client! Midstate Inspection Services provides computer generated reports with full color digital photographs. Log onto our website (receive a free report sample), enter your first name and email address and you will automatically receive a free sample report. P.S. No future spamming will be received.
5. How Long Has The Inspection Company Been In Business:
Is the inspection company locally owned and operated or are they some far away faceless corporation where no one is monitoring and evaluating the quality of their work? If you are dealing with a multi-inspector firm, how long has the inspection company been in business? Midstate inspection Services is locally owned and operated. We are not a subdivision of a large national franchise firm.
Bruce has performed over 900 inspections & started this business in 2003.
Bruce has been a full time inspector since March of 2007
6. Ask Your Real Estate Agent / Lender For A Referral To A Quality Home Inspector:
The Real estate agent / lenders sole interest in the transaction is seeing that
You get a quality home that's right for you and your family!
7. So don’t just choose any home inspector - make the #1 choice in the Tri-State Area!
Midstate Inspection Services
“Changing the Quality of Home Inspection – One House at a Time”
“Protecting Peace of Mind”
“We inspect like you expect”
Bruce Hutton…Owner / Operator
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