“Some of your competitors tell me they’ll print and deliver my home inspection Report right at the inspection site. I really like that idea. Why won’t Stem to Stern do that?”

The short answer is…THOROUGHNESS. We’ve all been groomed, taught and conditioned to expect instant or near-instant gratification. That’s probably o.k. for electronic gizmos, groceries, dry cleaning, and lots of other things.

How much did you say you were paying for that home? $179,000? $399,000? $2,899,000? Definitely NOT an electronic gizmo, grocery item, or dry cleaning item. Do you really want your home "professionally" inspected by the folks who can “do it” the fastest?

The ugly truth: most of the real estate industry expects a full home inspection to take less than two hours at the site, including the time it takes to actually print a computer-generated Report. Even if the “onsite Report” reaches 12-15 pages in length (most won’t), you can be confident in knowing that the vast majority of your home inspection Report is already contained in your inspector’s laptop or hand-held computer before the inspector ever sees your home! By necessity, these Reports contain a lot of boilerplate-sounding ambiguous comments “cloned” from the inspector’s last fifteen or twenty Reports. Providing this kind of superficial and “instant gratification” is the only for many inspectors to:

*Actually look-at everything the State of Illinois requires them to look-at;

*Enter a limited amount of specific home information into a computer;

*Print-out the Report (usually without photgraphs);

*Take time to field your specific questions about the home's conditions;

*Do it all in just two hours or less.

Once again, how much are you paying for that home? Stem to Stern’s professional Chicago home inspectors are respectful of your huge financial investment, and always provide you with the full investment in time, care and thoroughness that you demand and deserve. What does this mean for you?

1.)   Your physical inspection will generally take at least two hours. Even then, two hours applies only to small single-family homes found to be in relatively good shape. Most homes will take longer to inspect; count-on spending at least two and one-half hours on the site (or longer, depending-upon the home’s size and condition).

2.)   Your Stem to Stern inspector will take the time you need to answer any questions you have about the specific conditions found in the home by your inspector.

3.)   Your inspection findings and defect photographs are thoroughly-reviewed at the inspector's office. When necessary, your inspector performs additional research to arm you with more in-depth information about your home’s conditions. The result? Your Stem to Stern Inspection Services Report is very short on boilerplate, and long on the specific, useful type of information you need about the condition of your prospective home.

Many inspectors who produce on-site inspection Reports provide a good and competent physical inspection, but if you're looking for the attention you deserve and real value for your inspection fee, please don't expect to find all of that in a two-hour (or less) physical inspection and site-generated written Report.  

We don’t produce “on-site” inspection Reports, but your reference-quality Stem to Stern Inspection Report will be delivered in a very timely manner, normally within 24 to 36 hours of your inspection by fax or e-mail. Don’t take our word for it. Before you spend any of your hard-earned money for a professional home inspection, compare our sample inspection Report with any other professional inspection firm's “on-site” inspection Report. Providing you with a minimum level of anything is not a part of our professional philosophy or business practice, and we think that shines-through in our professional inspection Reports. Our clients think so, too.

STEM TO STERN INSPECTION SERVICES

LOCAL: (815) 521-1215

E-MAIL: inspect4me@sbcglobal.net