Joseph McLaughlin

Review of Cornerstone Property Inspectio...

it has been three years now since the initial repo...

it has been three years now since the initial report. with over 30 years working on the side in construction, building one home and remodeling several dozen others, I am appalled at the lack of professionalism with my inspection. Gross code violations were missed and little attention was given to the inspection.

I have found all exterior outlets and lighting was installed without electrical boxes, just the vinyl siding cover plates. Not easy to see on an inspection but three exterior outlets it was obvious. In the attic there were three junctions with as many as 7 electrical lines using wire nuts at the level of the blown insulation and no junction boxes. these were both right next to bathroom exhaust fans with no ducting. wires to dryer and air conditioner exposed ( this is allowed ) showed burn marks as long as 5 feet on the insulation. AC used 2 sets of #8 Romex for a 75 amp service, under rated and probably the cause of the burning. Dryer wires were burnt most likely due to the use of PVC for the dryer vent. When it was removed it was filled except for 1 inch with lint.

Property grading forced water to settle against the north end of the home. THe AC/Heat system sat in this water. Ducting from AC to the home was on the ground later found to have a large gap on the under side with rodents living inside and large mold amounts that went into the AC unit too.

On the South end of the home we immediately found a water leak that took out 12 feet of the kitschen wall and cabinets. This water leak was found behind the grass growing against the home. Kitchen water pipes were installed on the wrong side of the insulation causing a gradual leak on a joint.

Inside the kitchen had a light over the sink with a wire forced between the header boards and stuck out of the drywall. Not only was there no electrical box, but the wires were run outside the wall down to the cabinets for a light mounted under the board.

At the time we hired this inspector I was recovering from a hip replacement. I could not climb into the attic or get down on the ground. I relied on a professional to get down and around what needed to be inspected. Instead we got minor issues and all the major items were ignored. Comments of "Garage full not inspected" do not cut it.

Since buying a turn key home we have since had to repipe all plumbing, repair almost every wire circuit, rewire and replace all GFIC outlets none of which were tested. We replaced the entire AC system along with proper sized wires and ducting. Graded all slopes away from home and set up proper drainage. In 3 years we have invested months of work and over $15,000 in repairs. I can now climb crawl and get into places to do these things, but when I needed a professional I was taken advantage of.

Since moving in I have spoken my mind about this inspector. I would challenge his skills and professionalism any day. He does the absolute minimum needed and provides a decorative colorful report calling it professional. It is far from it. In a region where there are no enforced building codes inspectors need to step it up. Had I had the opportunity to make this review earlier I would have. I would have gone to the office and told them just how bad their service was. I lost the copy and my realtor was a Gentleman that did not want to cause a problem. He told me he would mention the dis satisfaction to the Broker.

Well I found the inspector and can now speak my mind. Shame on you for poor work. I feel for those that do not have the skills and tools to do the repairs I have done. What could have costs easily $50,000 should never have been a surprise to a new home owner.