I know it goes beyond the scope of a traditional home inspection, but I like to include some value added services for my clients. I have mentioned before about little things I do like Appliance Recall Research, but a news story on the Local Fox station last night reinforced for me the importance
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04/07/2008
After my last blog I have had a LOT of interesting side conversations with Realtors about new construction inspections, building codes, and other such entertaining topics.The one thing that seemed to be new to many Realtors was that new construction inspections are WAY MORE than just an inspectio
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03/18/2008
I think the general consensus seems to be that all buyers should have a full home inspection.But lately, I have heard that many builders (and even some agents - gasp!) have suggested to their clients that the Builder's Warranty is good enough and an inspection is overkill (or a waste of money).No
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03/12/2008
Let's face it - NO ONE (not even inspectors) like talking about, looking at or even thinking of septic systems (let alone inspecting them!)With that in mind, it is one feature that is unfamiliar to many buyers and there are lots of good questions...but unless you are pretty well versed in taking
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03/11/2008
Recently, I have seen builders using a product called "LedgerLok" fasteners to secure decks at the ledger board.Where before the common practice was to use 1/2 inch lag bolts, now it is not all that unusual to see these screws in place.Since I was ingorant about their installation, I called the m
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03/10/2008
I have always been kind of a nut about safety. It's nerdy, I know, but it's just one of those things I can't help.As a result, one of the services I have been including for my clients has been to run their appliances through the Consumer Product Safety Commission database to see if they were th
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03/10/2008
If you are wondering why my posts seem to have been revived, it's because I have been the victim of a personal attack - a person in "leadership" of my former inspection association with a personal animus against me.He has added the same post (11 of the same message in under 30 minutes) to all my
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01/17/2008
I have been tagged by Andrew to write my first Me-Me (OK, I was tagged about a month ago, but I'm finally getting back to blogging just now!) To borrow from Jason Sardi, I have added a soundtrack that will put you in the right frame of mind for reading this.I am a beach bum at heart, trapped in
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01/16/2008
As a Home Inspector, I admit I am a bit more uptight about home safety than most people. No, my kids don't wear crash helmets in the bathtub, and I don't have bumpers on all sharp edges or anything. But I do try to take care to make my home (and those I inspect) a little safer in a common sense
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12/05/2007
As expected (see "Weathering Winter Heating Costs") oil prices have broken the $3/gallon threshold.That is a 60 - 80 cent increase over the end of last winter, meaning that for a 150 gallon delivery (the minimum for most local companies) homeowners can expect to pay $90 - 120 more per delivery th
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12/03/2007