My First Inspection: 1968

My first inspection was almost my last inspection.
I did my first for fee home inspection on September 15, 1968. I had been a home builder and remodeling contractor for more than 10 years. My friends would call me to “check out” a house they wanted to buy to make sure it didn’t have any major problems. They would thank me with a gift certificate for dinner or to a department store. When their friends called me for the same reason, it dawned on me that there may be a business for this type of service, so I ran an ad in our Baltimore newspaper: “Be Sure Before You Buy. Experienced Builder Will Inspect The House For $35.” Remember, this was 56 years ago. I received a nice response to the ad.
At my first inspection the young couple, the real estate agent and I arrived at the same time. It was the agent’s first inspection, too, and from the look on her face, she was not happy about this inconvenience.
She wanted to know if I had a state license for this type of inspection. I wanted to answer, “I ain’t got no badge” from the classic Humphrey Bogart movie
The Treasure of Sierra Madre.
When I finished my inspection I gave the young couple my one-page report and kept my carbon copy. The real estate agent seemed glad the inconvenience was over.
I started the inspection with all the tools of my new trade in my pocket: screwdriver, flashlight, and ruler.
I carried my 4-foot aluminum stepladder and my one-page report form on my clipboard. I made note of the missing roof shingles on the rear roof of the 50-year-old Cape Cod style house and the missing downspout at the rear corner that could cause a wet or damp basement wall.
Inside the house, the real estate agent, Barbara, was quiet until I took the cover panel off the electric circuit breaker box. “You better know what you are doing, and you better get that cover panel back on right.” I did on both counts.
When I stood on my stepladder to check the attic after sliding the ceiling panel to one side, I noted that there was no insulation in the attic. I recommended to my clients they budget for insulating the attic. They thanked me. No comment from the agent.
When I finished my inspection I gave the young couple my one-page report and kept my carbon copy. The real estate agent seemed glad the inconvenience was over.
At dinner that evening I told my wife how the inspection had some bad moments because the agent was not happy with the time it took (one hour) and how it made more work for her to negotiate my recommendations for the buyers. I was not sure if I wanted to continue in this line of work and live with this type of aggravation.
The phone rang. My wife answered and said it was the real estate agent. I said, “Oh, boy. Here we go again.” But the agent said her daughter and son-in-law were buying their first house, and she would like to have me inspect it for them.
That call made everything alright, and I knew I was on the right path with confidence in my new career as a home inspector. Also, the buyers said that was the best $35 they ever spent. The next day I raised my inspection fee to $50.
Opinions or statements of authors are solely their own and do not necessarily represent the opinions or positions of ASHI, its agents, or editors. Always check with your local governmental agency and independently verify for accuracy, completeness, and reliability.
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