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May 29, 2008

home inspection?

We are buying a house and need to have it inspected prior to contract. We made an appointment with Heimer - any thoughts or other recs? We called Rand but they couldn't do it soon enough. Any questions I should make sure to cover? Any advice? Thanks - first time home buyer here!

Comments

We used Carnell and they were great - very thorough, and no surprises nearly 2 years later. I have heard and read bad things about Heimer recently.

Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 2:34 PM

Heimer was very detail oriented. That was great for us but they are more pessimistic than most inspectors so you have to take their assessments with a grain of salt. But I'd recommend them.

Posted by: Mrs. Limestone at May 29, 2008 2:46 PM

My advice is just to pay attention and ask a lot of questions--this could be your one chance to get someone who knows New York City buildings to explain to you how the boiler works or exactly why that plumbing arrangement is sketchy.

Keep your own notes about what he's saying things will cost, and whether this is an urgent project or an eventual project.

Posted by: amanda at May 29, 2008 2:51 PM

I know someone who used Heimer recently and he refused to inspect the roof. An important detail, one would assume....

Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 3:10 PM

I would strongly suggest not using Heimer. While the inspector was doing his inspection, he refused to talk to me. I was expecting him to walk me through things and tell me about them as he was doing the inspection...He said "he needed to concentrate and could only talk to me afterwards" So afterwards, he was talking about all these things that I wasn't able to see first hand, as he needed his "privacy" while inspecting. I was very upset with this...

Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 6:28 PM

We recently (only a few weeks ago) used Johann Grobler for a pre-contract inspection and we were really happy with him. He talks you through the entire inspection in lay man's terms. He is not an alarmist and will mention when something is common and knows the cost of repairs (he is also an architect). He also gave us a very thorough written narrative report, not just a check list. In addition, his price was very attractive.
His information can be found on:

www.grobler-inspect.com

Posted by: mkop at May 29, 2008 6:41 PM

I also was not thrilled with Heimer. Quite a few obvious problems were totally missed.

Posted by: guest at May 30, 2008 1:31 AM

We had the exact same experience as 6:28. Heimer's contract expressly says that you're not allowed to talk to the inspector while he's doing the inspection. We chose them based on a post on this site that said the inspector walked them through the inspection and gave them helpful information about how things in the house worked and how they should be maintained, so we were very surprised and disappointed by our inspector's refusal to speak to us.

Posted by: JH at May 30, 2008 12:11 PM

I also used Grobler a few weeks ago for my inspection in a 720 sq. foot Park Slope co-op and I highly recommend him.

Posted by: guest at May 30, 2008 1:18 PM

my lawyer told me NOT to use Heimer b/c they tend to be over the top about every little detail and cause manjor headaches for both buyer/seller once the report comes in and everyone has to negoiate back and forth to get things done in a timely manner - than the bank gets skittish and you can have a real nightmare on your hands

Posted by: guest at May 30, 2008 1:20 PM

DO NOT use Heimer. Told me my roof was "good" and should last ten years. WRONG! Said my electric was up to snuff. WRONG! And when I got in contact with them to complain, instead of defending themselves, they just matter-of-factly sent me the information to make a claim against them...like it happens every day!

Posted by: jlo at May 31, 2008 4:13 PM

How many prospective home owners got a reference to a home inspector or engineer from their real estate agent? I've read this so many freakin' times on houseblogs and oldhouseweb it surprises me. It's like getting a reference to a lawyer from a representative of the party you're suing.

After the inspection is over, your relationship with the inspector is effectively over but he'll still be beholding to the party who referred him for future business. It's not even a good idea to get a reference from your own real estate attorney because it's also in his or her best interests that the sale go through, especially if it's a flat-rate closing fee.

A friend in Connecticut got an inspector through his agent. The inspector wrote up a few minor concerns, like no ridge vent, and gave him a nice folder full of pretty pictures and charts and professional-looking boilerplate.

I checked the place out just after he closed. What the inspector "missed" was that the entire extension under that questionably vented roof was blatantly amateur and illegal construction, from the undersized foundation to the reverse-pitched bathroom drain to the exposed BX laying in the dirt in the crawlspace. That was just for starters. He didn't even notice that the brick chimney was pulling away from the house or that the drywall around it was waterlogged from outside moisture.

Posted by: Steve at June 1, 2008 10:36 AM

I am a real estate agent so I meet a lot of “inspectors”. I also do a lot of construction and own a brownstone so I know a bit about buildings and especially brownstones. And I can tell you I have never met a “home inspector” that new a heck of a lot. I think I met this Heimer guy in question… and he does do that ridiculous “privacy” bit (which usually manages to scare the pants off buyers of course!! Imagine someone looking at the boiler you are about to purchase and fastidiously jotting down notes in a “private” note pad?? I’d be terrified too!!). My guess… is that like all the others he doesn’t really know very much about construction or buildings so he is incapable of talking to you at the same time as he walks through the house.

I am shocked almost every time. On both sides. Really significant items that should be spoken about… like hmm… for instance… a “new” but LOUSY stucco job on the back wall almost never make the list. On the other hand… anything “old” no matter how well functioning and well made go on the list. That’s the general rule… new things (even lousy new things) are “good” and old things are “bad”.

Once I stood in front of an “engineer” who spend about 10 minutes “warning” the buyers about the potential for mold (another scary word right?) because the bathroom didn’t have a fan and in the middle of that diatribe (it was a really terrifying dooms day type extrapolation about what was likely to be behind the walls…) the seller simply walked into the bathroom and turned the extremely obvious switch marked “fan” on. It was brilliant.

Oh!! “Code”… geeze these guys come up with the most bizarre things to say about “Code”. Ughh!! I am getting frustrating writing this.

Anyway… whoever you choose take it with a grain of salt… it’s a process learning about a building. More often there’s more then one opinion… I find a home design architect/ contractor type to have the most useful and accurate and pertinent commentary, suggestions… range of options… on brownstones.

Posted by: guest at June 1, 2008 11:27 AM

We just used Aberdeen Building Consulting and were very happy with Matthew. He was very thorough and we ended up with a 50-page document (complete with pictures) of current problems, things to keep our eye out for in the future, and helpful tips on maintenance and repair.

Matthew Wynne
Aberdeen Building Consulting
877-492-9800
2inspect@optonline.net

Just wish we were as happy with the condition of the house...

Posted by: Gravy at June 3, 2008 5:25 PM