Inspector Mike's Blog

Just had a friend of mine take an online test to become 'Certified' as a Home Inspector. 40 minutes later: Test #1 Congratulations! You've passed this exam with a final score of 86! Test #2 Took the second test, which you can not fail, "Please register your successful completion" Test #3 Answered...

Now that your home is approaching 1 year old you may want to have it re-inspected or if it was never inspected, inspected now. You could hire a Home Inspector to look for cracks or leaking pipes but you could do that yourself. What you really need is to have it inspected by someone who can also t...

This is why Realtors® need to know a little about what Home Inspectors are putting in the report. An inspector (in Ohio) call this panel out as having a double tap. Here is what he said. "M Marginal Item is not fully functional and requires repair or servicing." He even stated that this was a Squ...

One of the easiest ways to protect your children or grandchildren is to add TR (Tamper Resistant) Receptacles. Here is a video that explains these receptacles. http://www.childoutletsafety.org/video.html Here in central Ohio Northwest Electric and Plumbing (OH. Lic. #26286) installs these for as ...

There is no such thing in Ohio. So why do I see so many Home Inspectors claiming to be either licensed or certified. In my opinion this is very deceptive. Just do a Google search and see. There is licensing legislation being debated but still no regulation. See: http://www.legislature.state.oh.us...

Problems with your new home?  Did you buy a new home and not have it inspected? Or did you hire a Home Inspector or use one that your Realtor recommended, and he missed a lot of new construction defects. Maybe before it is too late you should hire a new home construction expert to look at your ho...

Building or buying a new home in an area that has no local inspections? You better get an inspection. I do not mean a Home Inspection I mean an inspection by someone who knows the code. The code that I am referring to is The 2006 Residential Code of Ohio. All new construction must meet these requ...

When it comes to my writing skills I am closer to Forrest Gump than I am to the writers of The Constitution of The United States. My oral skills are excellent but you need to hear someone like former New Jersey Superior Court Judge Andrew P. Napolitano talk about health care and our government. A...

This is for Ohio only but maybe your state may have this also. Many Realtors, Mortgage Companies, Insurance Agents and others ask me how can I verify a persons license? Follow these instructions: How to verify a Specialty Contractors License in Ohio  First go to the State of Ohio website's licens...

Just ran across a case where the buyer did not take the agents advice for a Home Inspection. It looks like the court used common sense in this case. It also looks like the "as is" phrasing was discussed in this case. http://www.leagle.com/unsecure/page.htm?shortname=inohco20091207240 "However, it...