Secure Choice Real Estate Consultants

This was our second time using Secure Choice. Mark did such a great job on the first home we considered that we happily hired him again for this one. Since time was critical, we were glad he could schedule an appointment very soon. He was right on-time. He encourages the customer to follow him around during the inspection to explain what he finds and to answer questions. This is very helpful and you should do it. When he completes his inspection he creates a very detailed written report with photos and estimated budgets for any needed repairs. This is very helpful and not very common. He emailed the report to me the next day. This home had been recently renovated but Mark still found several items that needed attention. He is the most thorough inspector I have ever seen. His inspections typically take about 4 hours and it's worth every minute. I think he provides a great service at a great value. I can't recommend him enough!

I found Mark through Angie's List at the recommendation of my friend. I contacted him to conduct a pre-purchase inspection of a single family home we wanted to buy. The home looked great to me but since it was built in the 1800's I knew I needed expert help to be sure. He scheduled an appointment very quickly and arrived on-time. His inspection is the most thorough I have ever seen. He encourages the customer to follow him around during the inspection so he can describe what he finds and answer questions. This is a great addition to his very thorough written report which he emailed to me the next day. His expertise saved me from buying a property that would have cost me over $30,000 just to get started. We were so happy that we hired him to inspect the next home we selected and eventually purchased. Mark is the best! You won't find anyone better or a better value!

Excellent service. Inspector checked the home from top-to-bottom, inside and out. Family members followed along throughout the entire inspection -- on the roof, in the attic & everywhere else. He had invited us to do so. He gave clear, concise explanations & was very knowledgeable. (2 family members have experience in similar commercial applications.) Within a few days, via email, I received a complete report with lots of pictures & comments. The report has been an excellent reference for us to go through the house & begin updating & checking on things. I have had 2 previous recent experiences with home inspectors. The first inspection was terrible, missing many problems that resulted in large expenses during the first months of home ownership. Because of that experience, I checked references carefully. I found Secure Choice through Angies List & checked other references as well. I highly recommend Secure Choice, Inc. & will use their services when needed again.

My husband's uncle is a construction veteran who tends to believe all home inspectors are hacks. After walking through with us on our inspection, he decided he wants to hire Mark to inspect his own home before they put it on the market in the coming months. "This guy's good," was muttered often throughout the inspection. Why did I love working with Mark? * He was unbelievably thorough and walked us through what he was doing every step of the way * His detailed report made things incredibly easy when submitting our proposal to the seller * He was pleasant, well-spoken and patient with the entourage that ended up tagging along for the inspection Can't recommend him highly enough, truly.

He did a very good job. I was invited (and encouraged) to come along. The inspection lasted about 4.5 hours and I felt like we really dug into all aspects of the home. Mark explained things as we went along, and everything was documented and explained in the electronic report that I received within about 36 hours of the inspection. The report had probably 60 pictures and was well organized. I've heard nightmares about home inspectors. Mark is a good guy and makes an effort to do a really good job.

I was extremely impressed with Mark's professionalism, breadth and depth of his knowledge. I have purchased several homes over the years, and this was, by far, the most thorough and meaningful home inspection I have received. Mark spent approx 4.5 hours reviewing every detail of the houses various systems. In addition to noting defects not visible to the casual observer, he also took to time to explain some items that would need future attention, for use in budgeting for repairs down the road. Mark's report was timely, concise and well-documented for use in finalizing negotions with the seller. It is clear that Mark takes pride in his work and delivers a professional product. He understands that he is working for his client and presents his findings in a format that allows the buyer to make informed decisions as to how they will use the information. I give Mark and Secure Choice the highest possible rating and recommendation.

We had an superior experience with Mark, inspector of Secure Properties. From the initial phone call I felt confident that I had found a solid inspector. We discussed his background and what he would be covering with the inspection. Mark suggested sending his contract to our lawyer in which we did and our lawyer was very impressed and with the written report. Mark spent a little over 5 hours and he covered everything. We started at the exterior then moved to the interior starting at the basement and working his way up to the second floor. He found quite a few things such as: Shift in foundation which was noticeable in bedroom (crack on wall, door did not close properly and crack in basement wall); air conditioner units had not been serviced along with furnaces; only one outlet in master bath; wood floor had hump in it; oven had default in LCD display (costly to replace); deck had loose rails; part of roof had a damaged membrane; gutters needed to be cleaned from hail damage; pitch problem with pipelines from water heaters; cracks in basement flooring and grading problems. Mark was prompt and very professional. His report was superior. He took digital pictures and included them in his full detailed report which had a budget to every problem needed to be attended to and the urgency of getting it repaired. I would highly recommend Mark to anyone.

We used Mark for a property we were on the verge of purchasing, and he was phenomenal. Mark pointed out serious flaws with the home that we would never have noticed, and that the seller had attempted to disguise. His thoughtful input was invaluable, and caused us to decide not to purchase the home. He was extremely professional and responsive throughout. Despite rainy weather, he went up on the roof to make sure that our inspection would be thorough. He tailored his remarks to our particular concerns as parents of a toddler, pointing out child hazards. He explained everything clearly and patiently, and provided us with a very helpful written report the next morning. When it became clear that the property was seriously flawed, and that the gas in the building was not on, despite the fact that the seller had promised it would be, we ended the inspection, and Mark offered a partial fee of $150 rather than the full fee. We are still looking to buy a home, and when we find one we want to purchase, we will unquestionably call Mark to inspect it for us.

Mark really impressed my husband with his breadth of knowledge about all things home related. He was able to offer a lot of general advice and in depth explanations of all of the findings. He strongly encourgaged us to get a radon test done on the home (he doesn't do radon testing) which we didn't know was such a problem in our area. The house came back with high radon levels that we wouldn't have known about if he hadn't pushed us to get the test done. He even knew that the vermiculite fireproofing material in the fireplace was potentially asbestos contaminated. He basically gave my husband the full run down on all the possible issues and problems with the house and gave him an understanding of what items were important and which were nitpicks. He also provided a 'budget' in his report of what he thought it might take to fix the issues which was really helpful. The report was a little late, but he called to let us know why (he had another inspection go long) so it wasn't a problem. He answered additional questions we had after the report was complete. All in all an excellent and informative experience. We loved having him as the inspector for the house we're buying and were glad he was not the inspector on the house we're selling. We'd definitely use him again in the future and recommend him to anyone.

This is the second time I've used Secure Choice Property Consultants for a home inspection. And just like the first time I cannot complement Mark enough for his services. As a repeat customer Mark offered a discount which was greatly appreciated. On the day of the inspection, Mark was very punctual and gave me an overview of his inspection plan - first focusing on the exterior and then moving to the interior of the home. I followed him throughout the inspection and the nuggets of advice he gives while performing the inspection are incredibly valuable. And his attention to detail is second to none. It was amazing to me the items he would uncover as we went along. He explained everything clearly to me - which items needed immediate addressing and those which were not as critical. He answered any of the questions I raised as well. The knowledge I gained in those few hours with Mark is immeasurable. I promptly received his full report the next day. The report is concise and provides a great recap of the previous day's inspection. His photographs accompany the full descriptions of any issues or concerns he discovered. I most assuredly will retain the report for future reference. In fact my printed copy is already showing signs of wear from reading through it repeatedly! Mark is a great guy and his services are phenomenal. I would without hesitation use him again and would recommend him to anyone seeking a home inspection.

Mark showed up on time and immediately dashed our hopes for a smooth house-buying experience! Facetiousness aside, what Mark was truly brilliant at was spotting problems that the ordinary person would overlook. He noticed issues with the house foundation seconds after arriving - and we had been there no less than three times. He tested every single thing - from the water heater to the handrail on the front porch - giving care to each task. He was remarkably candid and forthright (and discrete!) throughout his inspection, to say nothing of being creative and inventive: his tendency to traipse through a house in his socks was not to avoid mud being tracked in, but rather to notice the most subtle of deficiencies in design. His professionalism and direct personality shone through from start to finish, and gave us a lot to think about using "layman" terms. We would most certainly hire Mark again and recommend him to whomever might be buying a house.

He responded very quickly. We made an appointment. He did a very thorough inspection of the house. The bottom line is that he did a really great job. He was very patient and explained everything. He answered all of my questions. I felt very comfortable working with him. He left me a very detailed report with pictures. He explained everything that he found on his report. He left it open, telling me I could call with any questio such as how to fix anything.

This is the second time I've used Mark for a home inspection and the second experience was just as great as the first. Mark has an excellent ability to look at a house and immediately understand how all of the major systems work and then explain it to you so you can also understand. He is also extremely detail oriented and spots all kinds of defects (minor and major) and can estimate how much it would cost to fix them. Finally, Mark seemed to truly care about us finding a good home to raise our family. Mark even asked about our kids and tailored his report knowing what might pose a safety risk to a small child. Mark's prices are very competitive with other home inspectors and perhaps even lower. I also got a discount as a repeat customer. I couldn't be happier with the thoroughness of the inspection and quality of the report. The inspection lasted 4 hours, and even though I was worn out toward the end, Mark was full-throttle from beginning to end and was just as thorough 4 hours in to the inspection as he was in the first 15 minutes. Mark was both very responsive and punctual. I called Mark on Super Bowl Sunday to setup an appointment. He called me back on the following Monday, and we were scheduled to do the inspection on Tuesday. Finally, Mark was very professional. The night before the inspection, it snowed 6 inches. Mark called both me and my agent the next morning to let me know that he was probably going to be 15 minutes late due to the snowstorm. I appreciated the heads-up, but in the end, Mark arrived at the scheduled appointment time despite all of the snow.

I've used Mark on two properties this year. This first property was so bad, we actually stopped the inspection before getting out of the basement. He only charged us a fraction of the full cost. On our second property, I felt like I was getting a home inspector's training class. He took the time to fully explain everything and answered any questions I had. I felt so educated after his 4 hour inspection process. His detailed report, along with images of the house helped us push to get over $3000.00 in repairs done by the seller before closing and another $9900.00 knocked off the price of the house. Obviously worth every penny. Mark is very personable and professional. I highly recommend his services to anyone considering the purchase of a property. It gives you so much leverage in negotiation with the seller of a property.

Mark Wilczak's service exceeded our expectations. He typed out a 10 page report explaining everything in detail. During the inspection we covered every inch of the property as he explained everything. He even showed me how to light the pilot on the water heater!

I can't complement Mark enough. On my first phone call to him he explained his services in full detail and gave me an exact quote. On the day of inspection he was prompt and proceeded to explain to me how he planned to perform the inspection. I followed him throughout the inspection. He was incredibly thorough in his work. He explained everything to me as he went along - what he saw, what the issue was, the severity and what would be needed to address the issue. Being a first time home buyer, this information is invaluable to me. Any question I brought up he would answer in full. We went from the exterior to the interior covering all rooms within the home. No area was left uninspected by him. It was truly a great learning experience for me. I received his report the following day as he mentioned. The report was as thorough as his inspection. All the items were presented clearly with corresponding pictures. It was very easy for me to follow and it did a great job in refreshing everything we covered during the inspection. It is a great document to have and will be extremely valuable. Mark also mentioned he could be contacted for any issues or concerns down the line. This is further proof of what an exceptional service his company provides. I would use Mark's services again without hesitation and I would refer him to anyone seeking a home inspection.

Overall (A+): Overall, Mark did a fantastic job with the inspection and exceeded my expectations. At the end, I felt I had a very detailed understanding of the house, how it functions, and all its shortcomings. I felt I had all of the information that I needed before making any further decisions and/or investments regarding the house. Price (A+): The price for the inspection was lower than competitor's advertised prices. Plus I received $15 off when I mentioned I found them on Angie's List. Quality (A+): Mark was extremely thorough in both his inspection and in his report. Mark was almost immediately able to understand and clearly explain to me all of the major systems of the house and how they operated based on visual inspection alone. Mark noted every defect (large and small) that he found with the house, but was also able to provide direction as to which items should be fixed immediately because they posed a safety and/or security risk to my family. I was most thankful that Mark paid extra attention to the roof of the house. He noticed some significant defects with the roof and attic ventilation and notated in the report that the house was in need of a completely new roof. Responsiveness (A+): I called to setup my appointment on the Sunday after Thanksgiving. I got a call back the same day to schedule my appointment. Also, I emailed Mark before the inspection to confirm that he would be able to inspect the boiler and radiant heating system and he got back to me the same day confirming that he would inspect the heating system. Punctuality (A): Mark showed up on time (in fact, a little before) our scheduled inspection time. Also, I received my report from Mark as promised first thing (7:00 am) the following morning. Professionalism (A+): Mark really went above and beyond here. The current home owner was present during the inspection and the owner was (in my opinion) rather rude and somewhat condescending to Mark. Mark handled the situation with true professionalism. Mark didn't get frustrated with the owner and didn't skip a beat the whole time. Mark continued with his inspection as though nothing had happened.

This was by far the best experience I've had with any sort of contractor. Mark is extremely thorough, patient, and knowledgeable. I feel as though I have a good understanding of what to expect will go wrong or need to be repaired/upgraded in my house for the next ten years. In addition to walking me through the inspection with him he also showed me how to adjust fans, the humidifier, replace filters, etc. He gave me the straight story, which helped with closing negotiations. The final report included detailed descriptions, photos, and estimates for how much it would cost to repair each item (which my attorney greatly appreciated). It was absolutely money well spent!

The entire experience was great. Mark took the time to make sure everything in the home was properly inspected and his expertise in all areas was nothing short of remarkable. He took the time to explain everything he did in detail and even encouraged me to be an active participant in the process. His report was conveniently emailed early the day after the inspection with descriptions of all issues including digital pictures and estimated budgets for repair. Mark's report had special emphasis added to those issues that pose a safety concern for my family and need immediate attention. When embarking on such a large investment you can rest assured that Mark and Secure Choice will get you an inspection you can be confident in.

I asked Mark to conduct the inspection of a brick bungalow I had signed a contract to buy. He conducted an extremely thorough inspection, taking almost 4 hours to go over the 1,200 sf house, inside and out. Mark told me up front to ask questions if I didn't understand something, and I asked plenty of questions, all of which he answered patiently. His post-inspection report was complete and documented with photos, and helped me prioritize the issues that need to be addressed near-term. As I approach the closing, I feel much more confident that I know what I'm buying.

Mark with Secure Choice arrived promptly and suggested I go with him through out the inspection. A very thorough inspection which encompassed walking the roof, the attic, to the basement below. He let me know up front that his job was to find every flaw from minor to major and even point out 'positive items' as he went through. He also let me know that even minor flaws would be counted and that his report could go no lower than $100 on these (Ex: if only one bad GFI outlet..$100). He stated not to be 'alarmed' by his final report but did not hesitate nearing the end of the inspection that this house was a very good buy..something I appreciated hearing. A lot of items were 'handy man specials' that were expected but some were major worries which I knew about and Mark agreed with me on those and gave prices for repair obviously along with 'suggested companies/businesses' which did excellent work at a reasonable price. From operating all windows, to every electrical outlet and panels, to chimney, to gas connections and appliances, to water pressure, duct work, foundation cracks, property drainage, to dry wall cracks or stress points, inside and out..this house was covered like a fine tooth comb taking about 3.5 - 4 hours! With the overall cost of repair work/corrections by Secure Choice we only asked for 21% of these costs as a further negotiation with the seller. Of this the seller agreed to some repair work themselves and dropped another 12% of suggested repairs we had asked for from the selling price! My wife and I were happy with that outcome. As I stated already..after 3.5+ hours of inspeciton Mark gave a positive opinion to this home purchase based on all he had seen..and I concurred with him on that. We're less than a month away now from closing and looking forward to our investment.

This is the 2nd home we are performing an inspection on and we can honestly say that it was a revelatory experience. Mark was communicative from the first time I left him a voice mail asking for information on his services. He was flexible in working with our schedule, set expectations early and was prompt in his follow ups. He performed his services creditably, took digital photographs of everything he talked about and was very professional throughout. Here are the things that were exceptional: 1) Mark clearly mentioned upfront that he was going to point out all the challenges in the home, whether we liked it or not. That was music to my ears as I did not want to be told that the house was great, only to struggle with problems in a year or two. Remember this is a foreclosure. 2) Mark's technical knowledge of each and every item in and around the house was wonderful. We are not handy at all, but Mark was able to explain everything to us in a way that we could understand, while still being technical in his process. All his points were also well documented in his report. 3) He turned on every tap in the house, he probed everywhere for water damage, he was able to feel damage to the wooden floor which was not visible to us at all (until he showed us) and he suggested changes/future investments that were practical and logical. 4) His Inspection Report was a meticulously drafted 40 page document with clear pictures that pointed out every prospective problem as well as indicated a possible cost of repair. This report was delivered back to us within 24 hours after the inspection which was crucial since we had to forward the report to the Attorney within a pre-specified time. 5) He asked us to call him back any time/email him if we have any questions about the home in the future and I have no doubt he will stick to his promise of responding back to us. I will conclude by saying that Mark is a highly professional, very passionate and knowledgeable Home Inspector. He gets his arms dirty, does a thorough job and is in the business for the long term. You may spend a $100 more upfront for his services as compared to others, but each and every penny is well spent and could possibly save you much more in the long run. I will unhesitatingly provide a reference for Mark in the future. It was, surprisingly, a wonderful experience - something I never thought I'd be saying about a Home Inspection.

Mark is AWESOME! Honestly, my sister is (hopefully) selling her home and moving soon. She will be calling Mark--I don't think I'd let her do otherwise. Mark was recommended to us by our realtor and we owe her for this recommendation. Mark and his wife were so great to work with--very professional and nice. Our inspection too close to 3 hours for a 4 bedroom home with detached garage. Mark took photos of everything and explained clearly everything he noticed. In the end, we felt we did not only receive a thorough inspection but a guide to owning our home! He identified which areas we should focus on first and repeatedly reinforced that he could be contacted later if we needed clarification or a memory jog about anything we discussed. In the end, we received a 30 page report that identified each problem and clearly explained how to fix it--see, a manual for our home! And, while the report was 30 pages, our home is NOT in terrible shape--he's just that thorough. Safety is his main concern and he knew we had a baby who would be up and running soon, he didn't take anything lightly. We contacted him a few weeks later when we began lining up contractors to do work on the home. Mark responded quickly with great advice. I'm glad we were recommended him. We moved from the Boston area where we owned a similarly aged home--our inspection there cost more and took half as much time. Mark totally changed the home inspection experience for us.

Secure Choice was great. They worked with me on scheduling and he showed up on time. He was very thorough with his inspection and even completed a follow up. His paper work was very detailed which was also a good thing.

Very well. Contractor was on time, performed a thorough examination, and explained everything he found as he went along.