Many homeowners I speak to about home inspections are disgruntled with their last inspector because they feel he did do a thorough enough job.

When I ask them more specific questions they might say, ' Well, the inspector put down that the door lock was broken and I already knew that'

They might be upset because some of the things the inspector noted were obvious to them as well, and they expected the inspector to not waste their time with the obvious things.

The problem is, what may be obvious to one homeowner, is completely overlooked by another. Furthermore, we are required by NC State standards to note all broken items, or those that don't function as they were intended, as well as items that adversely affect the habitability of the house.

Now, some of that may seem silly to the homeowner, because they are obvious, like for instance, there is a broken window in the bedroom.

But if we don't mention it, and the buyer finds it later, we are likely going to be liable. So we document everything, even if it seems trivial, according to state standards.

Now, on the other end of the spectrum, some home-buyers and even real estate agents are upset because we didn't go far enough.

Perhaps we did not find the rot that was in the walls that did not become visible until someone chose to remodel later. ( We aren't supposed to take the house apart people ). Or, they are upset that we did not take the HVAC system apart. 

When a home inspector feels there are reasons to indicate that such a system or component bears further investigation and evaluation by a specialist, ( liscenced HVAC technician,  electrician, plumber, structural engineer, etc), they feel that the home inspector did not go far enough.

In NC, our state standards define a home inspection as a visual, non-technical, non-invasive inspection. We are generalists and unless we actually hold a licence in the particular category requiring professional evaluation, we are limited in what we can say.

There is something good about knowing your limits. 

I hope I helped someone to understand a bit better what ours are.

Philip LaMachio  Advantage Inspection Clear View  Preferred Provider of Lowe's Home Improvement Inc.

7B Corporate Center Ct. Greensboro, NC 27408

336-327-5523      336-369-2173