HomeKey Inspections, LLC

Our inspector was Wolfgang Tatschl, he was extremely thorough and detail oriented. We were very satisfied with the level of care and detail he took to the inspection. Wolfgang took his time (over three hours on a hot Friday afternoon), inspected the attic thoroughly, and physically went up onto the roof. He was also very knowledgable and personable. I would definitely recommend him in the future, and will be requesting him for any future home inspections. On top of that, the turnaround time for Excel was fantastic. Excel was able to accommodate the my (and the seller's) tight schedule. Overall, great experience and will certainly be recommending.

After much searching, we found a great leak detection expert with Excel Inspections. We highly recommend them, if you have a similar issue. They're extremely professional and responsive!

After attending literally hundreds of home inspections over my real estate sales career, no one has the knowledge and expertise that Ian does!

I'm a first-time homebuyer, so the whole process is a little intimidating. I knew a home inspection was the first thing done in the process, so I simply went on Yelp and typed in "home inspection". You've probably done the same thing if you're reading this review. I went with the company that had the most 5-star reviews, and Excel Inspections definitely met my expectations. Sabastian was my inspector. I'm not too keen on what an inspector does, or what tools they use, testing methods, etc., but what I do know is that he was in and out in 2 hours (a standard inspection). He started in the garage and monitored everything. He explained to you everything he was looking at and offered his sincere recommendation on whether or not it was "minor" or "major" concern. He made the experience enjoyable, but I also think that was us just being lucky and having a newer home with few issues. I would definitely recommend Excel Inspections. They have a pretty standard pricing model, but the report they generate and the thoroughness of their processes are great.

These guys are the best at what they do, they will tell you the ins and outs of any home, and help you make the final decision on a home your interested in. Our inspector was Ian, and he did a phenomenal job, very friendly and personable, highly recommend!

Darren arrived on time and was very thorough with his inspection. The 3-4 hours of inspection were an education for me since I now know where to look for potential problems. His report was detailed with pictures highlighting all the issues. His report listed all the issues found with the severity level (major/minor). Based on his findings , we managed to get credit from the seller to fix the major issues in the home.

Ian was fantastic. Exceeded our expectations. Thorough and professional. I would recommend Excel Inspections to anyone.

Ian brings an extremely knowledgeable and professional expertise to home inspections. We consider ourselves very familiar with identifying structural deficits- However, Ian revealed just how much our deficit knowledge would have negatively impacted the outcome of our new home construction without his input. Ian has provided extremely valuable input and corrections to the construction process. Our project manager has expressed recognition of Ian's expertise and has acted upon Ian's recommendations during the construction process. We HIGHLY recommend Ian to perform any house inspection for either new or existing home purchases. This is an essential investment from our perspective.

Excel Inspections is simply outstanding. Starting with Jenn, she was exceptionally courteous and very prompt and proactive in making appointments and keeping things on track. The inspectors invited me to join them during the inspection. We spent the entire afternoon going through the house three times. They were about as thorough as it gets. They also provided me with comments on how things work and what I should do during various events (like an alarm going off, a water leak, etc.). This was above and beyond normal service. The report was very long and detailed, with pictures of any deficiencies. I am so glad I used Excel Inspections.

Very professional and detailed report.

I fully recommend Ian from Excel Home Inspections. He was incredibly thorough and has an excellent eye for details. He really helped us dodge a few bullets and produced in very helpful report. Check the sample reports on their webpage; they are representative of what we received. I recommend him without reservation.

Three members of the team happened to come to the inspection. This isn't normally the case, but they were all available. They were all very good and professional. They also performed a radon test. They took photos of ever issue that was found and rated the degree of its severity. They spent a lot of time explaining everything. This was the best home inspection I have ever had. Price below reflects inspection and radon test.

Darren was great. He was very thorough, helpful in his explanations, and responsive.

It went really well. Stepped me carefully through the process and provided insights on every aspect of the inspection.The process was longer than usual and they followed up with a report within a day.

Ian took the fact that we were first-time home buyers into account and went into painstaking detail on all his observations, categorized issues into "major" and "minor," and told us about methods for fixing some of the issues he found. The report he sent us, the following day, was extremely thorough. His professionalism so impressed our realtor, she took a stack of business cards to pass out to her colleagues.

Ian is amazing! I am in the process of having a townhouse condominium built. This is my first new construction build and I'd run into a couple of issues with the builder so I felt it would be in my best interest to have my own third party inspection performed on the property. I came across Ian here on the Angie's List website and I couldn't be happier. Ian was very professional, completely put my mind at ease and was patient in his explanation of the build process and his observations of different things we saw on the property. Ian found things that the builder hadn't identified and was super fantastic. Awesome experience. I am definitely planning to use Ian to perform a final inspection on the property prior to closing in April. Super grateful that he was available to perform the inspection today. Thank you Ian!!!!!

I highly recommend him. My son?s realtor was so impressed he wants to use him as well and hire him. He said he has seen nothing like it. He was extremely through. He used modern equipment. He was so good that we used him at our home and we are not even trying to sell our home.

OMG! Thank you Angie's List for helping me find this gem! Excel Home Inspections is AWESOME. I can't thank Ian McNaught enough for his professionalism, expertise, promptness, friendliness....I could go on and on. My builder told me they hire a 3rd party inspector to inspect their homes, but being a widow and having limited knowledge about this kind of stuff, my gut told me to hire my own, and boy, am I glad I did! I met him at the house on our scheduled date, and to my surprise, he told me the house wasn't even close to being done and ready to be inspected. Of course I felt terrible (and was furious that the builder didn't notify me), but he was very polite and pointed out a few items he found while waiting for me to arrive. He was more than kind about the situation and was willing to return when the house was ready. On our rescheduled date, Ian found numerous major and minor flaws in my new home - many that would have spelled disaster and a lot of money to repair down the road. Not to mention the countless items that weren't up to code. Upon Ian's recommendation, I will have him come back again before my warranty is up to do another inspection to make sure all is well for my own peace of mind. Worth every penny. If you need a home inspector for either a new or old home, I HIGHLY recommend Excel Home Inspections, and if you can get on Ian's schedule, do it! You won't be sorry. I received his detailed, easy to read report (to include photos) back in less than 12 hours after the inspection - amazing! Thank you, thank you, thank you, Ian McNaught!

Ian and one of his new associates (don't recall his name) did our home inspection for a townhouse that we were purchasing (and now live in). We did a lot of research, and settled on Excel. They were there on time (early if I recall correctly) and did a wonderful job. Ian was very thorough--he even climbed on the roof to check its condition, which was a nice added bit of effort. He made sure to explain everything to us. We even had a concern about a pest inspection that was taking place concurrently with Ian's inspection, and Ian went out of his way to reassure us and said he would also double check to make sure there were no signs of any pests in the attic. He did not rush at all, and he encouraged us to follow him around and take a look at everything as he explained it. My wife and I , as well as our realtor, were all impressed with his professionalism and knowledge. He pointed out a lot of potential issues (nothing major thankfully)--and so far, two months after closing, nothing else has come up (fingers crossed). Thanks, Ian and team!

Ian and Tyler were very thorough in the home examination. They were willing to answer any and all questions that we had about the home, its systems, and potential issues that need to be addressed. During the time of inspection, we had expressed general concerns regarding uncertainty about the home's insulation. Ian indicated that he has been trained to use infrared technology that can help identify (but not diagnose) potential areas of weakness in the insulation. Prompted by our concerns, he offered the service cautioning that it was expensive (an additional fee of $400). At the end of the inspection, we indicated that we'd like to have the infrared inspection completed. We not only understood where there may be issues with insulation and energy leaks, but we were able to see two water leaks (one substantial) from the master bathroom that caused water to sit on the first floor ceiling. Without the infrared inspection, we would have discovered the water issues only when they became a clearly visible issue on the ceiling. Ian is set to deliver a complete report with pictures the day after the inspection. Ian and Tyler spent a substantial amount of time with us at the property under contact to purchase. We could not recommend Excel Home Inspections more highly.

He was there exactly when he said he'd be there.he was very methodical & thorough if everything he did. He had equipment I've never seen used in an inspection before. This is our 5th house to buy & he is heads over any inspector we have ever used. He had the report very quickly & it was so detailed. It had links to so us what things should look like & perform like. He may cost a little more than other inspectors but I promise he does far more than others. You can't go wrong hiring Excel.

This review is for Excel Home Inspections (Ian McNaught) and Home Authority LLC (Jim Vaughn). We purchased a 5,000 square foot new home, so Ian and Jim teamed up to complete the inspection in a shorter amount of time. That said, they spent over 4 hours inspecting every inch of our home! Our builder insisted that we shouldn't bother with a home inspection as we had negotiated a 2 year home warranty. What a mistake that would have been! Instead, we looked for the most reputable and highly inspector that we could find. The reviews of Jim Vaughn with Home Authority were exceptional. He was one of the first members of ASHI in Virginia and is also a trainer for the organization. He was quick to return my phone call and extremely responsive in all of our communication. He informed me that he would have Ian McNaught join the inspection and they made a fantastic team. Jim has so much experience and we felt confident that no detail was being overlooked. He has a true passion for his work and was happy for me to follow him while he explained what he was reporting. Not only did he help me to fully understand any issues with the home, he also offered us advice on maintenance and recommended various service providers/products as needed. My brother-in-law is a contractor and I asked him to join me for the inspection. He was incredibly impressed by Jim's knowledge and thoroughness. Ian has a gift for communicating technical language into layman's terms. We learned through the inspection that our Hardiplank siding was not installed properly. This was rather challenging for us to work out with the builder, but Ian took the time to explain the problem in various phone calls after the inspection period until we reached an agreeable solution. We also hired Ian to conduct our Radon test. We were rather disappointed when our home failed the Radon test, but Ian reassured us that the problem could be remediated (it was) and he was always ready to answer our questions throughout that process. Ian and Jim also pointed out to us that the roofing was not properly installed for the dormer roof - a low-pitched area in the front of our home. When the builder argued the point, they provided documentation proving that a new roof was necessary in that area. The report that they created (provided the same day!) was thorough and detailed. We were shocked when the builder agreed to fix ALL of the items listed - including replacement of the dormer roof! We are so grateful that we hired Jim Vaughn and Ian McNaught to be our inspectors, and we will certainly hire both of them again if we ever buy another home. Their fee is higher than some of the other inspectors that you may find, but they are worth every penny!

It went extremely well. Ian was punctual, professional, helpful and informative. He discovered a major problem with the new water heater (a very small leak near the bottom of the tank probably around the lower heating element and a broken or inoperative upper heating element) that would not have been discovered during the pre-closing walk thru. The written report (including pictures) covered every item inspected. We would certainly use Excel Home Inspections again and we highly recommend them for both quality and price.

Ian was VERY thorough. He was already there when I arrived, and was already in the middle of inspecting the exterior. He took 3+ hours, going over every little thing, explaining everything to me in detail. Coincidentally, the house I was selling was being inspected at the same time, and I was just hoping that the inspector inspecting my home wasn't as thorough as Ian, because Ian went over every inch of the house. He sent me the detailed report the same day, with pictures and explanations. If you are looking to buy a house, hire Ian. If you're selling your house, make sure the prospective buyer does not hire Ian!

Ian arrived early and had to contact the real estate agents in order to obtain the code that would allow him access to the lock box. He began his home inspection in the kitchen and proceeded to perform a methodical and very thorough inspection of the condo unit. He inspected all of the major systems (heating/ac, hot water, gas, etc) as well as the plumbing and electrical fixtures, He identified interior doors that were not operating properly as well as minor drywall issues. He also pointed out several problems with some windows. Overall he did a terrific job in about two hours.