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home inspections: "You're wasting your money on a home inspection, and we're not going to fix anything." - 11/15/11 06:13 AM
That's what a local builder told one of my customers.  The home buyer hired me to inspect her new single family home before she finalized the purchase, and the builder apparently didn't want to end up dealing with any hassles.  The builder's rep told the buyer that having a new construction home inspection was a waste of money, and that even if I came up with any issues, it wouldn't matter; the house had already been inspected by city, so they wouldn't fix anything.
The home buyer said she felt like cancelling the entire purchase after hearing that, and I can't say I … (68 comments)

home inspections: Why municipal inspectors wear blinders - 06/14/11 05:58 AM
 
I've taken many building code classes that were taught by the Building Official for the City of New Hope, Roger Axel.  He's a fantastic teacher.  In his classes, I remember him repeatedly telling us to take off the blinders; what he meant by this was to not miss the forest for the trees.  Sure, the deck ledgerboard has lag screws every six inches... but if the house was built with floor trusses, what are those lag screws going in to? The wall sheathing? Look at the big picture, keep an open mind, don't make assumptions, question everything.

Despite this sage advice, municipal … (29 comments)

home inspections: Why Are Home Inspectors So Inconsistent? - 09/07/10 06:08 AM
Have you ever wondered how different home inspectors can look at the same issue, yet have completely different ways of describing the situation and different calls to action?
I’ve realized that I’m not even consistent about my own recommendations.  I’ve given a lot of thought to why this is, and I think it comes down to two factors: cost effectiveness and risk management.  I think those two factors affect just about every recommendation that I make during my home inspections.
Cost Effectiveness Sometimes I’ll identify an issue with a house and I’ll tell my client what the problem is, but I’ll … (47 comments)

home inspections: Does A Better Home Inspection Increase Liability? - 03/21/09 06:13 AM
I've heard the same tired old argument from other home inspectors 342 times - the more testing and services you provide with your inspections, the better chance you have of being sued.  I think this whole argument is based on home inspector folklore, and it all comes down to proper communication with the client.  One of the most common arguments I hear for not doing ‘additional testing' is when the topic of carbon monoxide testing comes up - do or don't? 
Here's how the argument goes:   "I don't test for carbon monoxide on furnaces because as soon as I start doing … (38 comments)

home inspections: Insurance Problems Caused By Home Inspection - 03/10/09 07:56 AM
I received a very odd phone call last month; a customer (I'll call Mary) called to tell me her insurance company was dropping her policy immediately after reading my inspection report for her home.  They told her there were 'too many problems'.  I've heard of insurance companies having specific reasons for denying insurance, but never such an ambiguous reason as ‘too many problems'.  I'm wondering if this is going to become a trend.
Mary jokingly told me that she should have hired a crappy inspector, but she was really looking for advice on what to do.  I asked Mary, what would have happened … (53 comments)

home inspections: Preparing Your Home For The Inspection - 03/02/09 06:29 AM
Home inspections can be a major source of stress for sellers.  If you want to make the home inspection go better, the easiest and most obvious thing is to hire an inspector to go through the house before the buyers have it inspected.  This is a seller's inspection.  If you don't want to have this done, there are still a few simple things you can do to make the buyer's inspection go better.  This advice also applies to Truth-in-Housing Inspections.
Change the furnace filter.  This is the simplest no-brainer.  When I inspect a house and find a nasty furnace filter, I'll often recommend having … (4 comments)

home inspections: Should The Seller Fix This? - 02/28/09 07:20 AM
"Does the seller need to fix this?"  This is a common question I'm asked when I find defects at houses that I inspect, and the answer is always no. When I find defects during a home inspection (and I always find defects), there are four ways for the buyer to deal with them: Do nothing, have the seller do repairs, have the seller fund repairs, or cancel the purchase. I'm going to discuss these different options, and go over why some are better than others... in my opinion, of course.
Do Nothing. This is usually the best option for buyers. When buying a … (77 comments)

 
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Minneapolis Home Inspections - Reuben Saltzman

Minneapolis, MN

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Structure Tech Home Inspections

Address: Minneapolis, MN, 55416

Office Phone: (952) 915-6466

Cell Phone: (612) 205-5600

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Home inspection topics in the Minneapolis / Saint Paul area.


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