Finding a Good Home Inspector

I watch a LOT of HGTV, specifically Holmes on Holmes and Holmes Inspection. If you are not aware of these two shows, they show what happens when you buy a house that has shoddy workmanship and an incomplete home inspection. They completely freaked me out during our 6 month and 60+ house search. My way of dealing with this is was to research the heck out of it.

The research process:

1. Checking out the national home inspectors' association websites.
   Be sure to check the Accuracy, Authority, Objectivity, Currency and Coverage of both sites.
   In my opinion, AMHI was more organized and provided a list of inspectors with more detailed information.


2. Narrow your list of inspectors to a manageable amount.
   I suggest narrowing in realtionship to the location of the property that will be inspected.


3. Check out consumer rating sites.
   I searched by rating and location in both Yelp and the BBB (Better Business Bureau). 
   Angie's List is brilliant but does cost $.


4. Go to your state's department for professional regulation and/or licenses to check if the inspectors' license was current and if they have ever been disciplined.


5. Review the inspectors' web sites.
   Remember: Accuracy, Authority, Objectivity, Currency and Coverage
   The one I chose had posted a sample inspection report and closely matched the Scope of Service provided by the AMHI.

USA Women's National Soccer Team and the World Cup run

Go USA! I am at work today and will be following the match online which is disappointing. Watching these women is extremely fun as they are really, really phenomenal athletes. I was lucky enough to catch  the Brazil v. USA and France v. USA. HOLY CROW! What amazing games.... Brazil's match went full regulation time, down a man, two overtime periods and then penalty kicks! The France match was anxiety producing as France clearly was the more talented team. However, despite the odds against the USA, these women always find a way to win! They work as a team and never give up. They are a team that can be held as role models for everyone and serve as a brilliant reminder what can happen when you work as a team and believe you can be the best. Good luck USA and kick some team Japan butt!

Here is a link from FIFA for a play by play update. http://www.fifa.com/live/competitions/womensworldcup/matchday=15/day=1/match=300144437/index.html

Why start a blog now?

Well, why not? Once I came to terms with the fact that I will not become an international star (Perez Hilton) and I didn't need to be perfect, I decided it was time. So I will post a variety of topics, hence the stew, but most will be focused on the research, the library part, I do for rehabbing our 60+ year old house that hasn't been touched in about 35 years. I hope you enjoy this as much as I will!