Steven Hockstein

"That's what she said!"

Yes. NJ requires the installation of smoke and carbon monoxide detectors as part of the closing process. Many real estate agents keep a few in their trunk so that when they meet the town inspector at the house they can install detectors as needed before the inspector leaves and avoid a delay in the transaction.

Ms. Duncan, please take this as an insult. Until you have something meaningful to say that doesn't sound as if it was written by a mentally disturbed halfwit, stop posting here. [:-timebm]

I have been using dopdf for a while and have had no problems. It is free software that can be obtained via CNET. Just search dopdf.

Ms Duncan-Please don't take this as an insult but as constructive critique: Most of us on this forum are independent business professionals. Your statement(s) of the obvious can make the poster, and other possibly readers, feel like you think of us as ignorant Home Inspectors that don't have a clue about how to run a business. It is apparent to me that Adam knows he needs help from an insurance expert. The title of this thread makes it even more obvious. He just wants to know if any of us have had similar issues in the past and how they were resolved regarding insurance.

Darren, Thanks for the link. I am still amazed at how some people cannot figure out that when they charge so little for the home inspection they are just about breaking even or possibly losing money on each inspection. That is of course assuming that they have insurance, tools, a decent vehicle, travel expenses, office and equipment expenses. At least he is building relationships so he can be one of the ten best rated home inspection companies (whatever that means!). Are there really 700 home inspection companies in NJ? I don't think there are even 700 Licensed Inspectors! Regards, Steve

Hey Darren, Why not share the link for us to read ourselves? Thanks

Gee thanks, I hadn't thought of that. Be Nice now. You are going to scare her away. Have you checked with Lloyds of London? It is my understanding that that they will insure almost anything if they can make a profit. The big question is can anyone afford the premium that they come up with?

[:-bouncy] That is what I was going to say!

Careful, She may work for S.P.E.C.T.R.U.M.

A few weeks ago my son was in the basement playing his guitar and he called me down to tell me that there was some water on the floor near the water heater. I checked the heater and found a dripping TPR valve. To make a long story short, my pressure reducing valve near the meter was bad and I had 160 pounds of water pressure in my house that caused the TPR to drip. I replaced the reducing valve and all is fine. I wonder if the TPR had been discharged outside, or into a sink, how long the pressure problem would have gone unnoticed and what other damage the high pressure could have caused to the 50 year old pipes in my home? Maybe a little water on the floor of my basement was actually a good thing. Of course if the water heater was on an upper floor my opinion would be different!

Just got notified of my first Angie's List Posting and I thought I would Share (brag!). Removed my client's name and posted a copy. For those of you that have had this happen, does it result in more work/referrals? Member: Confidential Categories: Home Inspection Architects & Building Design Work Done: Yes * More Weight is given to a report where work has been completed. Work Completed Date: July 23, 2010 Hire Again: Yes Approximate Cost: $700.00 Description Of Work: Inspection of two-family home including termite and radon tests Member Comments: My wife and I are purchasing a two-family home. Just a few weeks prior to this inspection, the same inspector helped save us from a near financial disaster by revealing severe fire damage in a home that we had previously wanted to purchase. We brought Steve in again to inspect this house. Though he didn't do the termite and radon tests himself, he arranged everything, which saved us a lot of extra time. He and the termite inspector arrived at the same time, both totally punctual. As we went through the house, he didn't just take his own notes, he showed me everything that he was seeing and when I didn't understand something, took his time explaining to me whatever needed explaining. Steve is extremely thorough. By his own admission, he is not the inspector that brokers recommend. He is the inspector that lawyers recommend. Why? Because in addition to being extremely detail-minded, he is also an architect. So, if he sees something that he doesn't like, no matter how small, he'll let you know about it. If there's any negative about this contractor, it might be that he's almost a little too detail oriented. But as far as I'm concerned, that's fine. He provided us with exactly the information we needed to go back to our seller and negotiate for certain necessary repairs. He was always available for follow up phone conversations, and even came out to the property a second time when it became obvious that some stored items on the property would need to be removed in order to finish the initial inspection. If and when my wife and I look to acquire any additional property in the area, he is the only inspector I would use. Not only did he save us from a potentially disastrous purchase the first time we used him, he's a super nice guy. Very professional, prompt, courteous, and above all, honest! Overall A Price A Quality A Responsiveness A Punctuality A Professionalism A Additional Questions Answered when completing this report How much did the final cost compare to the original estimate? right on How does the value of the work compare to the price? I got more than my money's worth How far in advance did you schedule the work? within a week Did you find the company through Angie's List? no If no, what was the other source? Referral from our attorney. Why did you choose this contractor? other, strength of the referral Have you used this company before? I've used this company before What did you like most about this contractor? He's prompt, professional, fast, honest and nice. What more could you want? What did you like least about this contractor? I think he might have a tendency to overstate the severity of certain issues he finds. What surprises came up during the course of the work? None What words of advice would you give other members considering this contractor? Don't even bother making any other calls. His price is reasonable and you will get a very detailed report very quickly.

I use Carbonite and I like it. I also use a portable hard drive that we use to back-up data and take offsite. Keep in mind that if your building burns down, all of your back-ups at the same site may be destroyed. Everyone should have copies of their files in more than one place.

I would go with the system that has the better warranty. I would also factor in which contractor you like better and is more dependable.

When I was in Architecture School my Building Construction Professor said something I never forgot. "There is only one place that flat roofs don't leak and that is where it doesn't rain!"

I have enjoyed watching the original, almost meaningless, comments develop into some very clever responses. I now have some question as to the original posting and if it was actually a way to stimulate the responses. Maybe the original poster was expecting this is and is actually smarter than I think.

I doubt the inspector is too busy to visit the house. I think there must be more to the story. If true, the inspector's response was ridiculous. If that is the only problem with your house I think you are doing OK. I am guessing that the repair cost will not be too much (if it is just the vent pipes). If you have 30 year old furnaces I hope you are anticipating replacement soon. I am not defending the inspector, just pointing out that sometimes you just have to fix the problem and move on. Send the inspector the bill (not a BS inflated bill for the purpose of trying to stick it to him), and ask for reimbursement. You may be pleasantly surprised. If you are reasonable the inspector may just send you a check (with a release attached). Good Luck.

S**T!! and I though I was the first. Anyone want to buy a bunch of plastic canisters with small beads in them?

Ghost detectors. I saw them in the movie "Ghostbusters". Business is down so I have branched out and started a new business. I am offering ghost detection home inspector education seminars for a reasonable fee. I will also be selling ghost detectors to home inspectors so thay can offer a new service to their clients. I am still waiting for the state to approve my course for home inspector education CEU's.

Could it be some type of amateur radon in water mitigation system.

There's this new natural gas extraction process that has people's minds going wild. I'd like to see that film if you remember where you saw it. Thanks. Hydraulic Fracting Marc http://gaslandthemovie.com/ It can be seen on HBO On Demand here in NJ (FIOS). Very disturbing documentary.

I disagree with your opinion on the architectural drawings from the past. Around here when I see a set of drawings and specifications from an old house and I am impressed that the houses got built with so little information. You used to be able to give a carpenter an elevation of a house and tell him to make it look like the drawings. There were often technical mistakes (we see the results of these mistake when we inspect the houses now) but the old houses looked like the drawings. A typical set of drawings included a simple wall section, one plan for each floor and an elevation of each facade. A builder and his craftsman could be proud of their work when completed. Todaty we have to provide lots of technical details and inforation in order to get a building permit and hope that someone will actually look at them when the house is being built. The general lack of craftsmanship combined with the goal of building for the most profit has resulted in some bad homes. Many builders are just looking at the bottom line when they walk away from a completed home. They hire the cheapest sub contractors and the house suffers the results. I have many fights with crappy contractors when I am hired to do construction administration. The most common reply is "I have been doing it this way for __ (fill in the blank) years!" I tell them that they have been doing it wrong for that many years. On the other hand there are still a few old school good contractors that take pride in their work and are willing to make a little less money for a better result. I enjoy working with this type of contractor because they show me how I can improve my details and I am willing to learn from them. IMHO

Never saw a wire cap like that for the antenna wires but I often see the satellite dish brackets installed this way. It makes me angry that a roofer that does the job right conceals almost all of the fasteners and then the dish installer thinks nothing of bolting through the roof surface. Just curious if anyone has seen roof leaks caused by this type of installation?

Just curious, What is a "Heavy up"?

Myself and a few others have been toying with the idea of starting a competing organization for some time. The problem is that so many of those we like and respect are involved and heavily vested in other associations that are already losing membership numbers to the soap opera and state associations. Starting another organization could threaten the survival of those respected orgs and we could end up being the villains. Still, with this latest mold is gold thing, maybe it's time to rethink that position. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike Mike, We started NJ ALPHI (New Jersey Association of Licensed Professional Home Inspectors) in response to the ASHI Branding a few years ago. We now have around 300 members in NJ. Dues are $70 dollars a year and if you attend all meetings you can acquire CEU requirements for the year. Many of us founding members of NJ ALPHI were the founding members of Garden State ASHI. We got tired of the high cost and the amount of money leaving NJ to pay for national expenses. The main difference between the two non-profit organizations is that all of the money stays in NJ and the subsequent cost to the members is less. The people outside of our circle of knowledge regarding these organizations generally could not care less about our affliations. Since licensing started in NJ I have never been asked if I am a member of a professional society. Occasionally I am asked if I am a licensed home inspector. Mike-If you need some advice on starting an organization I will be glad to give you my two cents worth. Let me know if I can help. (How does Washington ALPHI sound?)