HHI INSPECTIONS

Don't walk away, run! In the first 12 months we've replaced 25% of the roof, found out we have no vent exhausts on the roof, a dryer vent to nowhere, only one smoke detector, and that's just from the top of my head. There are flat out lies that he found no deficiencies in items in the house that don't even exist! It specifically said all the bedroom smoke detectors were operational and there are no bedroom smoke detectors! It says the are caps on the exhausts pipes on the roof but there are no exhaust pipes!

The inspector, Dean Dowdell, found mold, which didn't surprise me in such an old home. Although I was surprised that he considered the tiniest bit of mildew in the bathroom to be "mold." What surprised me more is that the $1,800 estimate for mold remediation included in the buyer's inspection response was from Residential Mold Services, owned by Dean Dowdell. And the wording in the buyer's inspection report was that I was to have the mold remediated "Per the attached Exhibit A ... by Residential Mold Services." Is this not a huge conflict of interest? There was no way I was going to pay a guy $1,800 for mold remediation on a house he was hired to inspect. So I called around for second opinions and estimates. Unfortunately, the places I called (which have excellent Angie's List reviews) wanted nothing to do with the project when they heard who was involved. And I didn't even tell them who was involved; they figured it out when I told them the story. Two places told me they had done mold remediation in homes inspected by HHI, and Dean Dowdell refused to sign off on their work, making them return multiple times. So I ended up offering the buyers money (less than Dowdell's estimate) and they could hire who they liked after closing. That killed the deal. Thankfully I found someone after that, when I was free to hire who I liked, who did the work for $800. And this is a business with excellent Angie's List ratings. I saved $1,000 by not going with Dean Dowdell's RMS. For the record, the state licensing board for home inspectors includes the following: Home Inspectors Licensing Board Laws and Regulations : 878 IAC 1-2-2 Code of ethics for home inspectors Authority: IC 25-20.2-3-8; IC 25-20.2-3-9 Affected: IC 25-20.2 Sec. 2. (a) Integrity, honesty, and objectivity are fundamental principles embodied in this code of ethics, which sets forth obligations of ethical conduct for the home inspection profession. The home inspectors licensing board has adopted this code of ethics to provide high ethical standards to safeguard the public and the profession. (b) Licensees shall: (1) comply with this code of ethics; (2) avoid association with any enterprise whose practices violate this code of ethics; (3) strive to uphold, maintain, and improve the integrity, reputation, and practice of the home inspection profession; and (4) avoid conflicts of interest or activities that compromise, or appear to compromise, professional independence, objectivity, or inspection integrity. (c) Licensees shall not: (1) inspect properties: (A) for compensation in which they have, or expect to have, a financial interest; or (B) under contingent arrangements whereby any compensation or future referrals are dependent on reported findings or on the sale of property; (2) directly or indirectly compensate realty agents, or other parties having a financial interest in closing or settlement of real estate transactions, for the referral of inspections of or inclusion on a list of recommended inspectors, preferred providers, or similar arrangements; (3) receive compensation for an inspection from more than one (1) party unless agreed to by the client or clients; (4) accept compensation, directly or indirectly, for recommending contractors, services, or products to inspection clients or other parties having an interest in inspected properties; or (5) repair, replace, or upgrade, for compensation, systems or components covered by the minimum standards of competent performance found in section 1 of this rule for one (1) year after the inspection. (d) Licensees shall: (1) act in good faith toward each client and other interested parties; (2) perform services and express opinions based on genuine conviction and only within their areas of education, training, or experience; and (3) be objective in their reporting and not knowingly understate or overstate the significance of reported conditions. (e) Licensees shall not disclose inspection results or client information without client approval. Licensees, at their discretion, may disclose observed immediate safety hazards to occupants exposed to such hazards when feasible. (f) Licensees shall avoid activities that may harm the public, discredit themselves, or reduce public confidence in their profession.

Trafalgor,IN

Service was on time and took a couple hours. They went over the report at the end of the visit and then email a copy of the report the same day. Very friendly and answered all my questions.

Suggested to us by our Realtor for their quality work and timely service. Everything went very smooth. They were very thorough.

-The representative I spoke with on the phone, who also administrated the radon test, was terrific. But the actual inspector, Todd Smith, was less so. When checking out the loose paint on the house (we have to repaint in the spring), he pulled a chunk larger than a football right off the front, leaving a big bare spot. According to reliable electricians, he was mistaken about the electrical problems, and should study his code again. He made repeated sexist comments throughout the day, and repeatedly disparaged our decision to purchase an older home that needed repair work. And two days later, when our real estate agent called for additional information, Mr. Smith said he didn't remember anything about the house we proceeded to purchase at all, despite having spent three hours inside it. We've since learned a lot about the house--much of which our inspector should have alerted us to.

THEY DID A GREAT JOB. I HAVE USED THEM SEVERAL TIMES.

DEAN WAS VERY PROFESSIONAL AND EXTREMELY THOROUGH. HE TOOK THE TIME TO EXPLAIN EVERYTHING. BEING A SINGLE WOMAN WHO IS PURCHASING A HOME, I WAS A BIT APPREHENSIVE AS MY KNOWLEDGE OF HEATING/COOLING, PLUMBING ETC. IS VERY LIMITED. DEAN THOROUGHLY ANSWERED ALL MY QUESTIONS AND PUT MY MIND AT EASE. I WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND HIM!

INSPECTOR MISSED PROBLEMS THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN COMPLETELY OBVIOUS.

INSPECTOR MISSED OR OVERLOOKED: DEFECTIVE DOOR KNOBS, DEFECTIVE BATHROOM FAUCETS, DEFECTIVE CASEMENT WINDOW HARDWARE, DEFECTIVE DISHWASHER, DEFECTIVE TRASH COMPACTOR, DEFECTIVE CENTRAL A/C, SEVERAL AREAS OF DRY ROT, ABSENCE OF AIR DUCT TO FINISHED BASEMENT ROOM. SPENT MANY $$ IN HOME REPAIRS AFTER PURCHASE.