Laugh + Learn: Postcards from the Field
It was 2016 when ASHI Certified Inspector James Brock of Boston Home Inspectors started really thinking about the sometimes wild and crazy things he saw out in the field. “My high school daughter, Roisin, who has helped me on many home inspections over the years, suggested I start posting pictures of the funny things we have seen or found on home inspections on this new app called Instagram,” he recounts.
That was only the beginning—Brock and his daughter celebrating their work with a fun photo each day on social media. Today you’ll find Brock’s experiences—sometimes funny, sometimes bewildering—often in the Postcards section in each issue of the ASHI Reporter. In every issue we ask inspectors to send their discoveries with a high-res photo, brief caption, their name, business, city, and state for consideration in the magazine.
“I like to share the crazy things we find during home inspections with other home inspectors,” Brock says. “Just as I enjoy seeing what other inspectors find in their different areas. In New England I find flaws that are different than let’s say Texas. I love to see what they find because construction is different in each state.”
Brock jokes that his wife and kids say he submits so many Postcard submissions to the Reporter each month so he can brag about how many pictures he gets in. “They say the first thing I do is always look at the back pages every month,” he laughs. “They are just so wrong. I look at the ads first! Don’t listen to them.”
In 28 years of inspecting Brock says the wildest things he’s ever witnessed on the job aren’t suitable for print, but suffice it to say that he has come upon everything from a flooded basement to a dead body. “Another time, a buyer brought their dog to the home inspection and halfway through the inspection the buyer canceled the inspection because the dog did not like the new house. I got paid the full amount.”
Brock hopes more of his fellow inspectors will be inspired to send their photos to the Reporter for the Postcards section. “Remember. It’s meant to just be fun, light humor. Put a smile on someone’s face,” he says.
Send your photo to be considered for a future issue of the Reporter to postcards@ashi.org.
And now, for some postcards.
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In this Issue
Picture-Perfect Promos
Taking a Closer Look at Electrical Inspections
Back in Business
Do I Need to Be There?
A Biannual Update
Postcards from the Field
Understanding Insurance Endorsements
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