Choosing a home inspector

Years ago, before I became a realtor, I purchased my first home. At the time, everything I read said "don't use the home inspector your realtor recommends ! They just want the deal to go through and will recommend a poor inspector !!"

Since I became a realtor I have had the opportunity to see this scenario from both sides.

Yes, if you ask, I will recommend an inspector to you. You are free to use him, or use any of your choosing. But please don't feel like I don't have your best interest in mind.

In Massachusetts (and now New Hampshire) home inspectors have to be licensed by the state, and go through rigorous education and testing. Of course, with any profession, there are bad eggs, but for the most part they are well equipped to inspect a property.

Contrary to what people think, the home inspection is not just an inspector looking through the home and telling you what's wrong. It's an educational process where the inspector explains how things work, how to properly maintain your new home, and what to keep an eye on in the future. It's essential for new homeowners to be present for the inspection and pay attention to what is going on.

Here is an example of two home inspections I attended, both in the same week.

Inspection #1. My buyer was a first time buyer who told the inspector he had never owned a home, and had never had a garage. While we were all in the basement, the inspector disappeared, went into the garage quickly, then came back and said to my buyer "you need to buy a new garage door opener". He then walked away and continued his inspection while my buyer stood there not knowing what to say. When we finally chased him down and asked him to explain he stated that the electric eye, the safety device that protected children from being injured, wasn't working.

Inspection #2. My buyer was also a first time buyer. We all went into the garage and the inspector asked him if he had ever had a garage. When buyer said no, the inspector spent approximately 5 minutes explaining how the electric door openers worked, how the electric eye worked and how it can be adjusted if it doesn't work, until the buyer understood everything about it.

Can you guess which home inspector I continue to recommend, and which one the buyer found on his own because he didn't trust my recommendation?