A good home inspector can often be difficult to find. Getting a good home inspector involved with a real estate transaction can make a big difference when it comes to clarity, accuracy, completeness, and confidence within the results. You will find potentially conflicting definitions of “good.” To a homebuyer it means someone who acts in his (i.e., the client’s) best interest; to a real estate professional, it means someone who isn’t so pedantic he disrupts the transaction needlessly. But there are several criteria that enable us to derive a far more objective definition of what makes an inspector good, criteria we discuss in this article.
The home inspector pins his success on two principal characteristics: technical expertise and lead-generating marketing. If he isn’t careful he might fall prey to pressures in one aspect or even the other that can lead to undesirable compromise of principles. An excessive amount of focus on garnering referrals may lead to his straying from established standards so they won’t upset the referring agent. Too much rigidity about the technical side might mean not enough business. Hence, our first criterion which makes a home inspector good may be the ability to put things in perspective, to not hesitate to call out defects and yet not to kill deals through overzealous citation.
Obviously, at minimum the good home inspector has proper licensing, training, and financial protection (insurance and/or bonding). This reinforces his following state and national standards. He also constantly makes effort to improve through continuing education and participation in professional organizations at both the local and national levels. And, although it may require a separate license, the great home inspector is provided to identify invasive pests and to spot proof of infestation.
Another criterion to be good is ethical conduct of business. What this means is is not “going soft” to please a realtor (or generally placing allegiance to the agent above loyalty to the client). Additionally, it means not quoting repair costs, not offering to create repairs (at least not in the near future), and not taking undisclosed kickbacks for referrals. Actually, the great home inspector takes pains to disclose all personal and financial connections he may have to the home being inspected.
A good home inspector tailors his inspections to the needs of every customer. He offers different inspection types, such as pre-purchase, pre-listing, warranty (e.g., one year after buying a new house), and verification (re-inspection after repairs). He is a good generalist, understanding how each system and component operates, and it is good at communicating these details to his client, both in verbal and in written form. He is thorough, keeping detailed checklists and delivering well-documented reports.
