BAUER INSPECTION & CONSULTING SERVICES

I bought a house in 2015 in Lawrence, Kansas. Mr Bauer did the home inspection. He found six what he calls deficiencies. There was no mention of termites, and I had the deficiencies repaired and continued the preventive maintenance termite treatments. In 2016, I sold the home, and again Mr. Bauer did the Inspection. But now he found twice the number of deficiencies as he did in the first inspecton. He did not like the way the construction company corrected the deficiencies he reported in the 2015 inspection so he counted the repairs as deficiencies. Also, he reported active termites even though he didn't see any termites. For each inspection, Steve Bauer takes pictures of the house and notes any deficiencies. he took pictures of the front windows of the house for both the 2015 and 2016 inspections. In the 2015 report, there was no mention of any deficiencies, took a photo of the front windows of the house, but in the 2016 inspection, Mr. Bauer said I was trying to hide termite damage by re-trimming over damaged trim. These windows were in the very SAME condition in both inspections! Nothing had changed but a coat of paint. After tens of thousand dollars of repairs by a reputable company, my home was in worse condition according to Mr. Bauer. Even though the house was in a termite prevention program, there was evidence of termites according to Mr Bauer even though he didn't actually see any termites. Windows were okay in one inspection report but not in the inspection even though they were in the same condition. Did I mention that Mr. Bauer and the perspective buyer, a builder, live in the same small town (population 4,500)? Steve Bauer's falsely accused me of fraud, found problems where there were none and cost me thousands of dollars in the sale price of my home. I highly recommend you find someone else to do your home inspection.

Bauer came recommended from our realtor to inspect a short sale house we were considering. We had their inspection from a previous buyer, which was thorough and well documented but over a year old. We investigated using them again for an update, but determined that if we were going to have the same charge, we would use it for a second opinion. We have no issues with Bauer, we just chose a different route.

Steve was great from beginning to end. We got a recommendation from our realtor to use his services, and he was great! He showed up on time, did a thourough inspection lasting about 2.5 hours, and printed out a full report on site! He went over the report in detail with us, and answered any of our first-time homebuyer questions. My husband forgot his check book, and Steve had no problem with us dropping a check by afterwards. He was very flexible. He also sends a monthly newsletter with reminders on what household maintainence projects should be completed based on the time of year, and tips and tricks for you home. We find it very helpful.

Mr. Bauer was prompt and professional. He was throrough and found a variety of problems, large and small. He created a professional report with pictures as we waited and went through it with us as well as the scope of repairs. Did not check wiring, but did look in attic, climb on roof, test all appliances, etc.

He went to the home and did the inspection with my realtor as I had to work. I did not know, and he did not tell me, that it was required in this county to have a septic tank inspection prior to the sale of the home. His home inspection report had a lot of pictures, but didn't uncover problems with the wiring, the plumbing lines, the leak in the hot water heater, and most importantly the problems with the illegal septic tank. As it was a county ordinance to inspect the septic system prior to sale, and since he was supposed to be an 'expert' home inspector I was shocked to find out after the sale that the septic system was illegal and was going to cost $20,000 to replace. I had to sue everyone and couldn't move into the home. FIND SOMEONE ELSE!!! There needs to be a law in Kansas that inspectors are licensed by some body that tests their knowledge. As far as I can see the home inspection business is a scam that the realtor promotes.

On site inspection was cursory in some areas (eg. wiring, appliances, roof). Inspection report was extensive, but most of the report was general information not pertaining to inspected house. Very few evaluative comments were included. Missed major structural flaws in garage and wiring. Missed problem with electronics on stove.

Steve Bauer came highly recommended by our real estate agent as a great home inspector when my wife and I were purchasing our first home. As we were completely new to the whole experience we placed a lot of trust in her and she was absolutely correct. Mr. Bauer was extremely thorough, checking out things in our home even I (an architect) wouldn't have thought to check. He found an issue with the foundation and a gas leak at the furnace, significant things, but he also recommended the ducts and gutters be cleaned, little things but things I didn't want to do. He checked everything from the insulation in the attic and connections in our electrical panel to the connections of our faucets and toilets to make sure they weren't leaking. The inspection itself took around an hour and when he finished he put together a bound full color report with pictures of our soon to be home outlining exactly the issues that needed to be addressed AND how to fix them. We had three copies of the report when he left, THAT DAY! I have no idea how he did it but it was impressive. What's more is he is still taking care of us. Everyone he does an inspection for receives a once a month e-mail reminder of regular maintenance. Things like changing the filters in your furnace, or batteries in your smoke detectors. He even saved me a huge headache with a reminder to disconnect my garden hose before the first freeze, me next door neighbor didn't have Steve when he bought his house (A week after us), and I new exactly what happened when he came over the first part of November to see if I knew why his hose turned on and wouldn't turn off. $300 to a plumber to replace the busted faucet and Steve proved yet again his value. I have recommended him to every one I know who is purchasing a house and forward his monthly e-mails to everyone in my family. There is no one else I would trust like Steve.