Thread: Average Inspection Tine

I am still shaking my head, as I just received a call from an agent who asked me how long my inspections were, I replied that it is based on the size of the property, so her answer was about 2,700 sf ft, so my basic answer was about 2-3 hours. Her reply was that it is to long and she normally gets them done in less than an hour, my jerk-knee reaction was wow are you getting shafted and short changed. My inspection time is not based on the clock as I stay an answer any and all questions before I leave.

Am I totally out of the ballpark with my reply, or do others think this agent it nutz.

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Originally Posted by Joe Reilly

I am still shaking my head, as I just received a call from an agent who asked me how long my inspections were, I replied that it is based on the size of the property, so her answer was about 2,700 sf ft, so my basic answer was about 2-3 hours. Her reply was that it is to long and she normally gets them done in less than an hour, my jerk-knee reaction was wow are you getting shafted and short changed. My inspection time is not based on the clock as I stay an answer any and all questions before I leave.

Am I totally out of the ballpark with my reply, or do others think this agent it nutz.

I wouldn't listen to just one voice in a sea of agents. Maybe she forgot to tell you she normally uses a inspection company that uses a "team" approach. Or maybe she has an unrealistic expectation.
If she's so happy with the wiz-bang 1 hour guy, then why did she call you?

Average house = 1 hour/1000 SF, not counting extras.
Defects and cranky agents add extra time ....

Dom.

Originally Posted by Dom D'Agostino

I wouldn't listen to just one voice in a sea of agents. Maybe she forgot to tell you she normally uses a inspection company that uses a "team" approach. Or maybe she has an unrealistic expectation.
If she's so happy with the wiz-bang 1 hour guy, then why did she call you?

Average house = 1 hour/1000 SF, not counting extras.
Defects and cranky agents add extra time ....

Dom.

She called and when I answered she hung up, but when I noticed it was an agent I called back..like I said, I just had to sit back and shake my head...she also stated my report is to long, most likely because I break every room down and do not generalize on my reports. Her lose.

I had an agent tell me that "his" inspector had retired and so he was trying me out. He said that his inspector did six inspections a day, six days a week for around $125 each.

I asked if he was sure the guy retired or spontaneously combusted.

In any even, he referred me only once. Can't say that I've missed that agent at all.

Originally Posted by Lon Henderson

I had an agent tell me that "his" inspector had retired and so he was trying me out. He said that his inspector did six inspections a day, six days a week for around $125 each.

I asked if he was sure the guy retired or spontaneously combusted.

In any even, he referred me only once. Can't say that I've missed that agent at all.

6 in a day, I get them confused when I do 2 in a day....sounds like someone was full of #@$@$.

Ask the agent how longlong it takes her to sell a house - when she says '2 months" (or whatever is said) respond with 'That long? I know an agent who can sell a house in 2 days.'

Shuts them up quite quickly.

Originally Posted by Lon Henderson

I had an agent tell me that "his" inspector had retired and so he was trying me out. He said that his inspector did six inspections a day, six days a week for around $125 each.

I asked if he was sure the guy retired or spontaneously combusted.

In any even, he referred me only once. Can't say that I've missed that agent at all.

They forget to tell you, Forced retirement due to claims. Either that or had a heart attic.

spontaneously combusted, LOL. That's Great!!!

It's not worth the time dealing with folks like that. I keep the name of the local low-baller and give out his name when I get that kind of question.

Originally Posted by Gunnar Alquist

It's not worth the time dealing with folks like that. I keep the name of the local low-baller and give out his name when I get that kind of question.

Gunnar,

That's a great idea ... and when you give that name out, tell the agent that you've heard he/she gives a 50% kickback to the agent, but you've also heard that he/she only gives the kickback when the agent pesters the inspector enough for it.

Jerry,

You crack me up.

Originally Posted by Lon Henderson

I had an agent tell me that "his" inspector had retired and so he was trying me out. He said that his inspector did six inspections a day, six days a week for around $125 each.

I asked if he was sure the guy retired or spontaneously combusted.

In any even, he referred me only once. Can't say that I've missed that agent at all.

I had a sellers agent tell the buyers agent (my clients agent) that she wouldn't read my report because it was too long and had too much text. So the buyers agent told me, "Well, that's better for negotiations!"

I had to chuckle at that. Instead of bitching, she took advantage of the other agent not reading the report.

She called me the next day to do more.

By the way Lon, I like the Rush quote at the bottom.

In my opinion Agents (No such thing as a "Buyer's Agent") should never* be involved in picking an inspector, since they only get paid if the home sells.

*Unless they or a family member is the Buyer....since you know they are going to pick the most Thorough, "Deal Killer" (in their mind) inspector they never recommend to their regular buying clients...

Originally Posted by Larry Morrison

In my opinion Agents (No such thing as a "Buyer's Agent") should never* be involved in picking an inspector, since they only get paid if the home sells.

*Unless they or a family member is the Buyer....since you know they are going to pick the most Thorough, "Deal Killer" (in their mind) inspector they never recommend to their regular buying clients...

There is always and agent that represents the buyer and one for the seller (unless of course it's a fsbo). I was using that term for clarity.

Some agents like picky Inspectors, and if the represent the buyer, all the better. Not all agents think thoroughness is a bad thing. It really depends on their ethics.

By the way, she told me she hands them a set of business cards. They are the ones that make the decision. She just usually sets up the times with me.

Originally Posted by Rod Collins

There is always and agent that represents the buyer and one for the seller (unless of course it's a fsbo). I was using that term for clarity.

In theory, but remember in most all real estate transactions both agents have a "fiduciary" responsibility only, to the Seller. Meaning the Seller pays them their commision.

Now, I will say it does come down to ethics, and usually the 10% of agents that are involved in 90% of the sales, realize that a buyer is in the market for a house and will eventually buy a house...A good agent will search till the right home is found and have no problem if The inspection helps determine if a home is a not a good fit for the buyer.

I always tell them that it'll take approximately 4 hours. I have gotten the same reaction a couple of times from agents but I explain to them that I am being thorough and that my job is to help our mutual client enhance their decision not to wreck the deal. I go on to explain that if an inspector if rushing through a full inspection then important things are very likely getting missed and the client is getting ripped off.

For the reply that "My inspector does 7 or 8 inspections a day.." I explain that they are very likely doing Wind Mitigation or other short inspections. Because it simply isn't possible to do that many good full inspections in a day.

And as for the ridiculous pricing of $125...There really isn't a great comeback..but I explain that you are getting what you are paying for. If an inspector is under pricing then they are under performing. It is a ton of work to do a good inspection. we are getting a few hundred and the agents are getting a few thousand.....I really don;t get it when they are shocked that we need to get paid too.

Originally Posted by Joe Reilly

I am still shaking my head, as I just received a call from an agent who asked me how long my inspections were, I replied that it is based on the size of the property, so her answer was about 2,700 sf ft, so my basic answer was about 2-3 hours. Her reply was that it is to long and she normally gets them done in less than an hour, my jerk-knee reaction was wow are you getting shafted and short changed. My inspection time is not based on the clock as I stay an answer any and all questions before I leave.

Am I totally out of the ballpark with my reply, or do others think this agent it nutz.

That agent is nutz. On average I schedule 1 hour per thousand square feet and add another hour if there is a crawlspace. (extremely common here in middle Tennessee).

Originally Posted by Joe Reilly

I am still shaking my head, as I just received a call from an agent who asked me how long my inspections were, I replied that it is based on the size of the property, so her answer was about 2,700 sf ft, so my basic answer was about 2-3 hours. Her reply was that it is to long and she normally gets them done in less than an hour, my jerk-knee reaction was wow are you getting shafted and short changed. My inspection time is not based on the clock as I stay an answer any and all questions before I leave.

Am I totally out of the ballpark with my reply, or do others think this agent it nutz.

Agents are useless idiots...

4 hours +/- for me no matter what - I take lots of photos so a person can follow me room to room and see what I'm looking at even if they don't read the report. When you have to pull your camera out 100- 200 times plus typing, and test every outlet you can get to and never using the term "Appears Serviceable" - it all adds to the length of the inspection. Never had a Buyer tell me I take too long and I could care less what Realtors / Car Salesmen think.

I have to chime in here. I was a Realtor in Colorado in the 80's and early 90's. I was a home inspector in AZ from 1/1/93 to 12/31/17, and am now a Realtor again in AZ.

In Colorado and Arizona Realtors do represent just the seller or buyer almost all the time. If a Realtor sells his or her own listing they enter 'dual agency' and have a special form that the seller and buyer must sign. Otherwise I represent either the buyer or seller. That old caveat emptor (buyer beware) is dated thinking.

Regarding the average inspection time, I could rarely inspect a 2700 sf home in 3 hours, especially if that included chat time with the buyer. I have heard the '1 hour per 1000 sf' several times, and totally disagree for my area. I have inspected a 2000 sf home in 2 hours a couple times. When it was 5 years old, no attic or crawlspace, all electric, and generally in good condition. In my area many homes have a crawlspace, many are more than 20 years old, etc. I would schedule several hours fora 2700 sf home built in 1919. There were inspectors that laughed at me when I told them how long it took me to do an inspection and complete a report. But I always do the best job I can, and after 8000+ inspections and 25 years I was never a defendant.

Keeping mum as I smile at the various answers ... ...

Originally Posted by Jerry Peck

Keeping mum as I smile at the various answers ... ...

I concur

If this is a "seller's agent," I'm wondering if she knows something she's hoping a hurried inspector will miss.

The house dictates how long you will be there. Problem is that these agents are used to these stupid ass inspectors who literally run through a house trying to impress the agent and subsequently screwing their client in the process.

With that... I want to see an inspector who is thorough that can... from a phone call... or internet picture say with 100% certainty that a house will take ___ hours.
NO WAY. If you're that guy you're screwing your client by trying to "fit" the house into "your time slot".
Back when I was inspecting I remember a 1000 sq house taking 3 hours. I also remember a 800 sq house taking 9 hours.

Hey realtors... Deal with it.

Originally Posted by murph52

If this is a "seller's agent," I'm wondering if she knows something she's hoping a hurried inspector will miss.

sale killer.jpg

Originally Posted by Marc M

The house dictates how long you will be there.

Marc,

I partially agree with that as there are two, possibly equal, factors which affect inspection time, and each affects the other.
- the house (size and condition)
- the inspector (knowledge and ability/willingness to apply that knowledge)

Different inspectors will spend different amounts of time inspecting the exact same house. With this last statement comes an acknowledgement that it may be "the inspector" which affects the inspection time more than the house when comparing inspector to inspector inspection times.

But, with that last statement just above, it is "the house" which affects inspection time for a given inspector and comparing house to house.

I always wonder what inspectors are NOT looking at when they are there only a short time.

What they ARE looking at is obvious - the check.

Originally Posted by Jerry Peck

I always wonder what inspectors are NOT looking at when they are there only a short time.

What they ARE looking at is obvious - the check.

What I wonder is who is the Margarita and why does she leave these useless posts?

Originally Posted by Margarita Keyys

property inspection or home inspection depends upon the size of the home and the number of rooms. An average inspection takes about 2-2? hours (1-1? hours for a condo). The time is well-spent considering there are more than 500 components in the average home.

It takes a dishwasher almost 90 minutes for a complete cycle - how can a person do a condo in an hour? Houses built in the 40's and earlier had knob and tube wiring and the grounding wire in Romex didn't appear until 1962, so, do you pull the coverplate off a three-prong outlet that isn't grounded in any / every house built prior to the early 1950's to see what you've got there? If not, you might have bigger balz than me, but definitely less brains.

Originally Posted by Jim Hintz

Houses built in the 40's and earlier had knob and tube wiring and the grounding wire in Romex didn't appear until 1962, so, do you pull the coverplate off a three-prong outlet that isn't grounded in any / every house built prior to the early 1950's to see what you've got there? If not, you might have bigger balz than me, but definitely less brains.

Why would you pull the cover plate off? There are other ways to find out if an equipment grounding conductor is present.

1) There is testing equipment (SurTest, Insp3, etc.) available.
2) Are there EGCs in the panel? If not, then it's unlikely that the receptacle outlets have EGCs.
3) K&T can usually be found in attic and crawls.

Using observation, tools, knowledge, and the little grey cells is what works for me.

Originally Posted by Gunnar Alquist

Why would you pull the cover plate off? There are other ways to find out if an equipment grounding conductor is present.

1) There is testing equipment (SurTest, Insp3, etc.) available.
2) Are there EGCs in the panel? If not, then it's unlikely that the receptacle outlets have EGCs.
3) K&T can usually be found in attic and crawls.

Using observation, tools, knowledge, and the little grey cells is what works for me.

What you find in attics, crawlspaces, and updated panels isn't always what you find in walls. As for Service Panels, they're usually in the garage which is the last area I inspect before checking the attic and finally the crawlspace.....To each his own....

Originally Posted by Jim Hintz

What you find in attics, crawlspaces, and updated panels isn't always what you find in walls.

True enough.

Originally Posted by Jim Hintz

As for Service Panels, they're usually in the garage which is the last area I inspect before checking the attic and finally the crawlspace....

Ah. I keep forgetting that. Here in (mostly sunny, but too often charred) California, the service equipment is at the exterior and it's often the only panel in the home. Larger homes will have an additional panel or two inside, but these larger homes are typically (not always) newer.