Great Article on Madison Home Inspection's Website
Ask the inspector to email you a copy of the inspection agreement. You will be asked to sign this contract prior to the inspection. Ask the inspector how long they spend on a typical inspection. In my opinion anything less than 2 hours for a single family home or townhouse is inadequate. I routinely spend 3 ½ to 4 hours or more if needed on a single family home depending on size, age, complexity, and of course condition. If I am allowed the time to do a proper job, the chance of missing something critical is greatly reduced. Remember nobody is perfect so nobody is going to find every single detail. But a good inspection should identify all important defects. Also remember that the purpose of a home inspection is to convey a sense of the general condition of a property, not every single detail.
Ask what type of report is prepared. Straight check lists are largely worthless to the home buyer. There should be a written component to a home inspection report.
Scott Madison, Madison Home Inspection Service LLC
Rockville, MD
