Last month I had a buyer under contract on a 1960s ranch in Clairemont Mesa. The inspector they found on Google spent about two hours in the house, handed over a 40-page report, and called it clean. My buyer was ready to remove contingencies that afternoon.
I asked them to get a second opinion. A more experienced inspector came back the next day and found galvanized plumbing throughout, knob-and-tube wiring in the attic that had been buried under blown-in insulation, and early signs of a foundation issue along the south wall. That's roughly $35,000 in potential repairs that the first report completely missed.
First-time buyers treat the inspection like a formality. You schedule it, you get the report, you move on. But the person you hire for that inspection matters more than almost any other decision you make during escrow. I'd argue it matters more than your lender.
Here's the thing. Home inspectors in California aren't required to have extensive training. The barrier to entry is low. Some inspectors rush through properties because they're doing four or five a day. Others spend three, four hours and actually get on the roof, crawl under the house, run every faucet. The difference between those two experiences is enormous, and you won't know what you missed until something breaks.
I keep a short list of inspectors I trust. I've watched them work. I've seen them catch things that saved my clients real money. When a buyer tells me they want to use their uncle's friend who "does inspections on the side," I push back. Hard.
A few things I tell every first-time buyer about inspections:
- Ask the inspector how many inspections they do per week. If it's more than two a day, that's a red flag. - Ask if they carry errors and omissions insurance. - Show up to the inspection yourself. Walk the property with them. Ask questions in real time. - Read the full report. Every page.
The inspection isn't a checkbox. It's your one real chance to understand what you're buying before you own it. San Diego has a lot of older housing stock, especially in neighborhoods like Clairemont, College Area, and Allied Gardens. Homes built in the '50s and '60s carry surprises that don't show up in listing photos.
So who's looking at the house for you?