The Home Inspection Co

Home Inspection
Vancouver BC V5L
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The Home Inspection Co
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Reviews for The Home Inspection Co

Average customer rating:
9.9 10 (92 reviews)

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Alec in Burnaby
Alec in Burnaby
1 review Vancouver, BC
10/10

Home Inspection

Thanks to Ted's very thorough inspection and resulting report of the entire building and unit I was able to determine what the likely real cost of the townhouse would have been over the forthcoming 5-10 years which was more than my current budget allowed. I ended up not taking that place but Ted's fees were worth every penny compared to the thousands of dollars I would have had to pay as the building and unit repairs mounted. It was a great looking place at first, but I sure learned a lot about property inspection, building quality, strata assessment, appliance maintenance, etc on my day with Ted.

Approximate cost of services:
$900.00
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Company Response

Hi Alec,
I'm so happy to hear from you, I was wondering how you managed with the townhouse, from nearly a year ago, and am pleased to hear that you walked away from it. When people hire me they are generally quite concerned about being caught up in the sales process, they are generally beaten down by the months of searching and being outbid. Their sense of objectivity has been sullied by disappointment after disappointment of being outbid. Basically homebuyers just want the house, damn the torpedoes. I'm afraid I'm not much help to house fatigued people as they will choose a cheaper home inspector because- they may be convinced that all licensed home inspectors are the same. Disappointingly, common licensed inspectors can be measured in yrs of experience, the type of inspector who trained them, school courses or online, are they working for a multi inspector business, franchise or themselves, how long of an inspection turn around- some can be as little as a 2 1/2 hour turnaround while the majority are 4 to 5 hour inspection turnarounds which includes an instant computer generated report, there are still some inspectors who are not computer savvy and are still using a paper checklist. And finally most of all; 95% of all home inspectors are dependent on realtor referrals where there is a tit-for-tat reciprocity. Total independence from realtor influence is extremely rare, how can a home inspector have 2 masters? The real state agent is the constant in an inspector’s business relationships, home-buyers are transitory. Yup, it's a jungle out there. Happy trails Alec...
Ted Gilmour

RK in Burnaby
RK in Burnaby
1 review Burnaby, BC
10/10

home inspection

We have worked with Ted on two home inspections, one for a townhouse and another for a 60 year old house. One of the things we really liked about Ted's service is the inspection binder that he provides that is customized to your inspection, which isn't what you get from other companies who mostly give you a binder of boilerplate information applicable to any home. Ted provided us with a customized review and set of "to do's" to make our home safer and more salable. He has also been available for question post-inspections and has always been there with good advice. I would recommend Ted very highly.

Approximate cost of services:
$500.00
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Company Response

Hi RK,
Thank you for taking the time to pen the impression of your inspections. My testimonials are done without incentives, it's entirely up to my clients. My extended post inspection service is not dependent on clients submitting testimonials. I'm sorry I do not provide incentives to write a testimonial as some referral websites operate, I believe testimonials should originate with a sincere level of exceptional performance and satisfaction. As most of my inspections are from past client referrals I'm finding when they contact me they already know from their friend, family or colleague what to expect and have generally reviewed my past client’s inspection report. For people who are not referred to me by friends or family, I do provide a sample report to showcase, to some degree, my level of dedication to the client. Incredibly most home inspection companies do not think this information is important enough to include on their website. The inspection report sample can be the best measure of client dedication, inspection detail and interpretability. happy trails...
You know I can always be found by typing Ted Gilmour
PS: your inspection fee was not $500, thanks for trying to make me look more attractive to window shoppers. If people are looking for a bargain, that's me, I spend 4 times the hours and only charge twice as much as most other home inspectors.

jtsoi85 in New Westminster
jtsoi85 in New Westminster
1 review New Westminster, BC
10/10

Pre-purchase Home Inspection

I was recommended to Ted by a friend who had his 50 year old home inspected earlier in the year. Ted came highly recommended and during the inspection of our potential new home, he lived up to his reputation. Although it was a brand new home, not only did Ted point out cosmetic deficiencies, he identified mechanical and structural issues that needed to be addressed. Throughout the inspection, Ted made sure to highlight the important maintenance tasks to address throughout the ownership of our home. He turned around a full 60+ page report the day after the inspection and met with us for a comprehensive review of the home. Overall, Ted was very knowledgeable, meticulous, and diligent looking out for our investment and we'd be happy to recommend his services to other potential home buyers.

Approximate cost of services:
$950.00
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Company Response

Hi,
Since you didn’t leave your name I can't very well comment on your testimonial other than to say thank you.
Client referrals are the backbone of my business, how are homebuyers to know who to hire when most home inspection companies will not post a sample report and fee schedule, you end up relying on the businesses self-promotion and their client testimonials. Since people don't buy houses that often they are not in a very good position to form critical opinions about the service they receive.
You probably looked your friends report over thoroughly to make your decision. I would say most homebuyers wouldn't know what a thorough inspection looks like and are completely satisfied with a 3 to 4 hour inspection turnaround. As you know I spend most of the day investigating and collecting information and spending the entire next day composing your custom report which we sit down and review. The report is not a checklist, boilerplate or computer generated- it's a photo detailed original account of deficiencies prioritized with action suggestions.
Thanks again and happy trails...
Ted Gilmour

Owen in Vancouver
Owen in Vancouver
1 review Vancouver, BC
10/10

house inspection

a very good work done by Ted Gilmour, he spent almost 7 hours to look every inch in the house and explain clearly to me in order for me to understand all the little things.

Approximate cost of services:
$1,100.00
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Company Response

Hi Bowen,
Thank you for writing about your inspection experience.
We made some significant discoveries: code, safety, functional and cosmetic deficiencies. You used the report to demonstrate to the builder what you required to be repaired. Approx. 2 weeks after the inspection you asked me if I would do a reinspection of the contractor repairs. Not surprising the builder did not respond to all of your requests. Some of the repairs were done with the wrong materials such as the wrong caulking material and some other repairs were simply fudged. Many were not even addressed.
For someone like yourself it would have been very easy for the seller to simply tell you everything was completed and you would have been satisfied. I'm very happy you asked me to check things out.
You have a serious problem with lime deposits on your exterior tile walls that needs to be investigated by a building envelope engineering specialists and to prescribe a solution, do not let this issue slide. If a solution is not found these walls will be quite an eyesore within a couple of yrs.
Wishing you all the best,
Ted Gilmour

Anna from Burnaby
Anna from Burnaby
1 review Richmond, BC
10/10

Home Inspection

Ted did two home inspections for me. The first was for an older (40-ish) building. I was thrilled that I was getting a nicely renovated condo in a prime location for an amazing price, with nearly every major thing (exterior, roof, hot water tank, etc.) recently redone... but it turned out that the roof (which had only been redone 1-2 years before) was completely worn down, as it hadn't been done properly, and would need replacing again. And the strata had only $1K in the contingency fund per unit! I didn't buy the condo, and in the month that followed, even more units went up for sale in the building. Ted also said that the wiring was aluminum, which he said would make it hard to get insurance for fire. If I hadn't had a home inspection, I would have thought aluminum wiring was perfectly normal. When I got my second home inspection from Ted, it was a mostly positive report and I bought the place with confidence. As an added bonus, his way of walking you through the inspection tells you what to look for in a condo should you need to continue your search. He not only does the home inspection for you, he also teaches you (during the tour and the lengthy written report with photographs) how to choose and maintain your home over the years.

Approximate cost of services:
$780.00
What could this company do to improve their services?
Any advice to offer fellow homeowners facing a similar project?
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Company Response

Hi Anna,
Your description of the previous condo is a different version than my memory. The roof was not 1 or 2yrs old, what they had done one or 2 yrs prior was to make repairs to the roof instead of replacing it. It actually needed replacing. As with other assurances from the seller, the reality didn't measure up to the claims. FYI Aluminum wire is not a reason to run away from a purchase if everyone in the building has their wiring pigtailed. I don't think that sort of thing happens very often so as with any chain, it's only as strong as its weakest link. Older buildings have a lot of handyman wiring due to new lighting fixtures new outlets and switches which all require very specific skill and material to interface with the aluminum wiring. Most homeowners/handyman do this work as if it was all copper which could lead to overheating/fire hazards. There were other things like the copper piping being at/beyond its service life. The entire exterior had been painted but that only sets the building on a one-way course to possible destruction by Mold. Yes the building was an exercise in what could go wrong, had gone wrong and had been covered over.
Although your new home is not without its problems they are nevertheless manageable. I hope you can make your unit a happy unit and that you press for some of the repairs and replacements that we had discussed.
Wishing you: Happy trails...
Ted

Abe from Vancouver
Abe from Vancouver
3 reviews Vancouver, BC
10/10

House pre purchase inspection - Above and beyond all expectations!

Ted Gilmour did a pre-purchase inspection of a house in Vancouver. I chose him because of his website and rave reviews here. The previous reviewers are all right on the money – Ted is extremely detailed, thorough, delivers on exactly what is advertised as per his website and then goes the extra mile with his post inspection follow up and help!
When I saw Ted’s website, an editorial of sorts on the home buying world - full of buyer bewares and cautionary tales – I could tell that he was candid, honest and not afraid to ruffle a few feathers and offend the whole real estate ‘system’. I knew that Ted was kind of guy that I wanted and MY side, and truly be my advocate. And wow – did Ted ever deliver! He completely exceeded our expectations. On inspection day my wife and I joined Ted as we literally went over every inch of the house and every inch inside. Those 8 hours were an eye-opener as he showed us the numerous issues with the house, which on its own is already great. But even more importantly, the time we spent with Ted was a course on how to maintain a home. He was pleasant and extremely patient with his explanation of the problems and possible remedies, as well as maintenance items that we would need to upkeep to prevent future problems. We could tell that he not only loves his job but that he genuinely loves helping people with their homes! We met him the next day where he presented his BINDER of a report, completely written in his own words, exactly as shown by the example report on his website. We sat over coffee as he went over EVERY SINGLE PAGE and PHOTO. He also reported on the maintenance items, so now we have a complete “owner’s guide and maintenance manual” for our house. (We have one for our car, it only makes sense to have one for the house!)

So, everything I’ve described up to this point is exactly what is advertised on his website, and thus Ted delivers exactly what you pay for. But actually there’s more than that. Ted then goes the extra mile with his follow up and keenness to continue helping after the initial inspection! In fact, it’s a been a year since he’s inspected the house that we did end up purchased (sorry for the delayed review Ted!) and he even emailed me to check up on how we were doing with the repair and maintenance and OFFER GUIDANCE on how to address any remaining issues. In fact, we asked for advice regarding re-roofing a few months after moving into the house and he responded within hours! WOW! That is service above and beyond. Ted Gilmour IS the complete homebuyer’s advocate, more so than your realtor, more so than your mortgage broker. I would never buy another home, do any major renos or let anybody else I know do the same, without having Ted Gilmour as the home inspector!

(Some advice to first time home buyers and especially house buyers: every house will need maintenance and every house will have issues – some can and some cannot be fixed. The important part is that you are able to make an informed decision and that’s where Ted’s expertise is so valuable.)

Approximate cost of services:
$1,000.00
What could this company do to improve their services?
Any advice to offer fellow homeowners facing a similar project?
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Company Response

Hi Abe,
I really appreciate your testimonial submission to HomeStars, stories like yours help homebuyers seek out and demand better, dedicated service.
It's so good to hear from you, I assume you’ve been taking care of our discoveries. I'm very happy that you chose me as your inspector, your home had many challenges and thankfully, I believe, we were able to make those discoveries which led to discussions on repair strategies. As you noted; holding my clients hand through renovations and improvements is the cornerstone of my business. And yes I do enjoy it. I don't do construction anymore but I still love the involvement in the process. You were on a tight budget, I'm always impressed when people choose me when there are so many tempting and less expensive choices.
And as you know I never tire of progress stories and a call for guidance.
Happy trails...
Ted

Jordan from Vancouver
Jordan from Vancouver
2 reviews Vancouver, BC
10/10

Home purchase

This is a great example of getting what you pay for. Before you do anything, review Ted's website and go through all his pointers and free advice. It saved me from buying a place that looked great on the surface but under closer scrutiny had many defects. That was without having to pay Ted a dime. When the time came to hire him for an actual inspection the level of detail and scrutiny that Ted exercises is tremendous. What you get after all is said and done is a playbook for the future of your investment. If you're looking for somebody who will tell you the truth, be honest about what is observed, and give you tips and pointers on how to look after your home then this is the company for you. Sure, it's not cheap. But consider how much money you'll spend on the home and ask yourself whether you're willing to risk your money on a place that could be in much worse shape than you think. In my opinion it was worth every penny.

Approximate cost of services:
$1.00
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Company Response

Hi Jordan,
I assume you're well settled in by now, I'm always surprised when clients write me a testimonial several months after their inspection.
Yes, when we met it was as if we were old friends. Helping people sort through some of the marketing camouflage not only helps potential buyers but I actually prefer to inspect strong home contenders. I do thoroughly enjoy the challenges of less than happy homes but I hate to see people waste their money for a home inspection of a real bow wow that should have been euthanized. Don't get me wrong, doing an inspection on a problem house is a huge educational plunge for unsuspecting buyers, it's actually kind of fun. In most all cases their 2nd purchase choice is quite a bit different when they realize; any savings in the sales price would actually be more than gobbled up in needed repairs and future maintenance, repair and replacement. Yes those imagined savings pretty much evaporate when the rose-colored glasses come off.
As always; you know where to find me, I'm anxious to assist with any issues you encounter.

Happy trails...
Ted

W & J from Richmond
W & J from Richmond
1 review Surrey, BC
10/10

pre-purchasing home inspection

Ted's inspection was very detailed and through. The most importantly, he knows what he is doing. We were told to bring a notepad for inspection. Ted tell us a lot, what should be corrected and how should we maintain the house during his inspection. Also, his report was amazingly good, contains lots of reference, pictures and even his drawing. His inspection was expensive, but at then end, both my husband and I agree it totally worth the money. Instead of spending 3-4 hrs to inspect the house, Ted spent 6-7 hrs to check it and almost 2 days to put all together. We believe it is worth to pay more to find out the truth of what we are purchasing rather than spend hundreds but get nothing. So glad to have Ted for our pre-purchasing inspection. We will absolutely recommend Ted to our family and friends.

Approximate cost of services:
$1,700.00
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Company Response

Hi W & J, I’m pleased you were able to negotiate a better sale price to reflect some of our discoveries.
For clarity: most of my clients count the time from when they arrive at the inspection, I might be there an hour and sometimes more prior to my clients arrival, the actual time that I spent on this house was just over 8 hours. Getting there a little bit early allows me uninterrupted observation and analysis of the exterior, the most important part of the house; so when you arrived at 9:30 AM I had a good account of the home's exterior elements. Together we reviewed the entire exterior before we proceeded to the interior. This home had some serious deficiencies and unpermitted work done after the original city inspections. There were plumbing, drain and electrical infractions that confirmed my suspicions that the basement was finished post city inspections.
Your HVAC system will be a sizable repair job, all the deficiencies aside, there were many solid aspects of the house that were without concern; mainly the structure and interior finishing.
With the selling agent constantly reminding us to hurry up and finish we proceeded at our steady pace of discovery and discussion and managed to complete the inspection prior to my 6:00 original estimate and in spite of the agent’s interference. Slow and easy does it.
As you are aware; the inspection industry is virtually designed and controlled by real estate sales interests, any home inspector who spends more than 3-4 hours on a house will not get agent referrals and can even get blackballed. Agent referrals represent more than 60% of all home inspections, guess what caliber of home inspector is the beneficiary to that 60% market?

Being totally unfettered by promises of inspection referrals I am also not intimidated by any controlling/interfering real estate agents. The only reason they think they can control the home inspection is because they are quite accustomed to telling inspectors how to do their job and how long they can stay in the house. Most home inspectors do not know what their clients rights are and/or are afraid to push back against agent manipulation of the inspector's time. I know most home inspectors would say they never have any problems with agents controlling their inspection, that’s simply because their discovery and reporting do not pose any threat to the sale.
In the end meddling agents generally are only accomplished at making themselves look foolish, trying to rush the inspector out of the house, this behavior speaks for itself, is unprofessional and represents an unauthorized interference with the buyers legal right to exercise their Due Diligence. Happy trails, Ted

Sunny Hirai from North Vancouver
Sunny Hirai from North Vancouver
2 reviews North Vancouver, BC
10/10

Home Inspection on a New Home

We had two home inspectors come and look at a new house we ultimately ended up purchasing. The first inspector we hired as recommended by our realtor. For clarity, I think he did an okay job and I think our realtor genuinely liked the quality of his work (and he was probably decent compared to some other inspectors out there); however, my wife having read up a lot on home purchasing felt we should have a completely independent inspector look at the home. There was absolutely no question that there was a dramatic difference between that first inspection and the huge and detailed deficiency list that Ted provided for us.

This was a huge book of information he provided to us and walked us through.

Ted covered little details like making sure there was enough clearance from the bottom of the door to the carpet so we didn't have carpet wear, and that the door stoppers were of sufficient quality so as not to damage our doors. He found lots of little details like making sure that the seal around the sinks were complete with no breaks (there were several that were not properly sealed) and that our bathrooms had been water protected on the tile (which they were not). There is no way we would have noticed any of it.

He also found more serious issues like there being an insufficient amount of drainage for our roofs and HVAC issues.

Fortunately, the builder has agreed to work with us to fix these deficiencies as part of the purchase but we would never had known about them without Ted.

Let me tell you though, the realtor representing the home builder hated Ted. He was so angry at how detailed Ted was. And in fairness to him, I'm pretty sure he was telling the truth when he said he had never met an inspector that was that picky. But you kind of want somebody like that to be representing you. In the end, you can still decide to let things go (and we did let some things go) but at least we had a clear picture that we were doing that instead of simply not knowing.

There was also a small flood in the basement that happened during construction that needed to be remediated. Ted did not discover this (we knew about it before), but he helped us through the process of getting it remediated. He came back to help us inspect the remediation. We actually hired him to re-inspect but he refused to let us pay him.

He also helped us earlier with our deficiency check to see if the deficiencies were fixed properly. He didn't charge us for that either even though it took several hours and went into the evening.

If it isn't clear, we are fans of Ted, the quality of his work and his work ethic. Like other have been saying, he charges more for the inspection but, quite frankly, he has saved us more, not just in his services, but his follow ups to the initial inspection.

Most people want to do the least amount of work necessary to complete their job. Ted's kind of the opposite. He keeps checking in and emailing us and trying to find more work for himself to do, and then he does it without charging us.

Approximate cost of services:
$1,600.00
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Company Response

Hi Sunny,
Thanks for your generous account of your experience. It's more like a short story.
If it wasn't for the builder's willingness to make repairs I think this house would've been quite exhausting to attend to all our substantial discoveries.
Since my inspection covers nearly every square inch, my inspections will uncover minor details along with the major. Only because I spend the time on the inspection and composing your report (in your case, a 3 day turnaround) can I present most all deficiencies in terms of importance, priority and cost. As you pointed out you were able to convince the builder to make good on the more grave deficiencies. Typical to anybody who's in business to make money we found on some occasions that the builder’s repairs were fudged and had to be done over again. Yup we can't always take people's word for it, you gotta check it out for yourself.
The reason I offered to reinspect for you and not charge was because I was concerned that the builder would try to hoodwink you into accepting less than what you were promised, what you believed you were paying for. You are right some of the deficiencies were so obvious that even a blind man would have caught them, like the finish installation of all the plumbing fixtures. I suspect he got Carpenters or Carpenters helpers to install the plumbing fixtures after he had fired his plumber. There are many things that can go wrong with a new house and for the most part are usually not that apparent. I’ve found I need to inspect every square inch of the house from the substantial and obvious to the minutia which can be telltale indicators to deficiencies, short cuts, failures and fudged. Wouldn't want to give people the wrong impression that I hound my clients for more work, as your advocate I simply like to see things tidied up.
Happy trails....
Ted

The reviews on this page are the subjective opinion of the Author and not of HomeStars Inc.

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