Absolutely outstanding. I just moved into a new construction custom home in which the build / builder was a disaster. Any concern brought up, I was either gaslit , ignored or the builder didn't follow through either b/c he forgot or didn't care ( who can say ? ). After two agonizing years, i finally moved in yet was brimming with questions that could only be answered by a respected 3rd party expert. I knew there were areas of the house that were not constructed properly yet having been gaslight so many times, I was confused on what all was defective vs. normal. Big thank you to Mark w/ Domicile, who was my Lead Inspector. Mark carries decades of experience in which I found him to be fair, firm, patient and very educative. Shout out to him for answering ALL of my questions (there were many). Mark's report was very thorough in which I can now focus on areas that need to be addressed. To anyone out there building a custom home, don't make the same mistake I did in waiting until after your move in / final occupancy to book Domicile. Very important! Thank you Domicile/ Mark. read more

Mark (owner) and his team and Domicile are amazing. They are professional and super easy to work with. Mark is very thorough. He even suggested a day after heavy rain to get the most accurate readings for his water intrusion report. High recommend him and his service! read more

James did a very thorough inspection on a new 1 bedroom condo i purchased in downtown Chicago. He took his time and explained the findings as we went through the condo. At first I didn't think I needed an inspection since it was a newer condo and it looked in good shape. But I was able to get credits from the seller from his findings that paid for the inspection and then some. They also had one of the lower prices when i compared with other inspectors. read more

Mark and James at Domicile Consulting were excellent for my wife and I as we considered buying a condo in Chicago. James was our inspector and was very thorough in his review and did a great job explaining what he was seeing, both in person and in his written report. Mark, our scheduling/planning contact also discussed additional services with us and actually talked us out of services we thought we'd need but actually didn't (Radon testing is not needed on 3rd floor and higher units, etc...). I'd highly recommend them for inspection services in Chicago. read more

I recommend Domicile Consulting more than 100% in services. They give full details of the house meaning they give you complete satisfaction and give you confidence to decide if you still need to buy the house or not. You pay a reasonable charge . Thanks for the Team of Mark Hughes. Highly recommended. read more

Robert did the inspection for my house in mid of 2017. I was a college new grad back then, and got my first home right after I relocated to Chicago. The house was presented uneven flooring obviously, but Robert failed to tell me that it could be a potential structural problem!! I spent $60k on remodeling the interiors, and the flooring presented the uneven flooring issue. However, contractors just told me that it's normal for Chicago houses. Today, as I tried to sell the property, the buyer's party's inspector reported this is a serious structural issue. read more

If you never built anything you shouldn't be an inspector!! Didn't know the difference from catch basin and main sewer. Broken drain tiles rarely occur inside a foundation but generally outside of it. Fearmongers, 60 hours for certification doesn't make you a professional at anything. read more

Domicile Consulting is no doubt the best inspection service the city has to offer. They have saved me 3 times now from making a colossal and expensive mistake. Dan, who did two of these three inspections, is experienced, thorough, and leaves no stone unturned. Beverly did my third one, and she really knew her stuff as well. Brokers call Domicile "deal killers." That should tell you all you need to know about how good they are. Of COURSE brokers are afraid of a detail-oriented inspector. It could mean their deal doesn't go through and they don't get the commission. Of course this is how they make a living and it's important, but this is a long, expensive, and possibly lifetime commitment that should be front of mind. My broker tried to persuade me that they were perhaps too aggressive in their inspection. I just want to understand what I'm getting into. Do I need to replace a furnace or fix some tiles or do I need to deal with a $50,000 roof replacement in the next year? In the first place I made an offer, this is exactly the case. Inspection 1. The boiler was knocking and needed to be replaced right away and the furnace was 18 years old, inefficient, and would likely require replacing in the next year or two-- certainly I could manage that. The windows the owners had said were replaced we're not actually replaced. They had only replaced broken panes. The windows had warped frames and would be super drafty, potentially leaky. So maybe I ask for a concession on price. But then they actually inspected the roof and found that they had missing flashing, loose cornices, and would be in need of a full tear-out roof replacement in the next one to two years. I later found the building was aware of that, it was noted in their minutes, but there was no planning for it, financially speaking. Aaaand I'm out. Inspection 2: this was especially heartbreaking. It had everything I wanted-- truly everything. However it also had something I didn't want: power lines right out back. This would never have crossed my mind to check or to think about (and my broker said he had never seen anyone check for this) yet Dan whipped out an EMF reader which read 7.5 when placed beside the window and 5 where you'd sit in the living room. The recommendation is 1 or under. At three it's considered high enough to warrant remedy. They saved me from this cancer-causing mistake. The final place was inspected by Beverly. She caught every loose tile, every poorly configured hose or pipe, and the massive silt buildup inside the galvanized pipes running throughout the building choking off the water supply so substantially it took 45 minutes for the tub to fill. Of course there were also the crumbling, moisture soaked bricks, and standing water in the basement. Heading down there just after a torrential downpour really meant the basement was easy work. But I'm pretty sure she would have caught all that stuff anyway. Big hot NOPE. Please do yourself a favor and never buy a home without domicile. read more

You simply will not find a better home inspection company!  I had extensive water damage despite newly installed gutters,  roof and siding. I contacted Domicile to ask help in determining the underlying issue(s.) My inspection was done by Daniel. He arrived on time and was very professional.  His extensive expertise in home construction was abundantly clear.  He explained in detail the causes of the water damage. His inspection report concisely laid out what was done improperly and the remedy needed.  He included photos the problems and photos of how it should be done properly. Now I can move forward with confidence  and  knowledge thanks to Dan. This will help ensure the contractor makes the repairs correctly.   A big thank you to Dan, Deb and all of  Domicile's staff. read more

Just needed a mold inspection prior to buying a house to check to see if the (maybe roof/window leak?) has produced mold or not. I first talked to the receptionist and I was actually leaning towards picking Domicile since they gave the best quote for the quality of service they offer. Then I get a text from someone who didn't introduce themselves (turns out is was a manager named Daniel C.) You can see the text below - "why would you want to waste your money?" I responded and the massive man-splainer stayed true to his demeaning and incredulous tone. The conversation was a sea of accusations/questions about saying "so there is a leak, you know there is mold, why get a mold test? You just gotta fix the root of the problem, why waste your money" "what is the mold test going to tell you, it's pointless, why are you wasting your time" - "I'm doing you a favor, see I'm not trying to take your money" - ad nauseum. The information he is shoving down my throat is that any leak over 24 hours old guarantees the presence of mold. I wanted to understand this more and he might have a good point if he didn't make himself so intolerable. I mean, the second text he sent came right after our conversation ... and it's truly delightful. After he was done berating me for wanting his services, he blamed me for not agreeing to be snowplowed by his truck of defensive bitterness. Maybe this is the bad apple in a group that seems to have a lot of great reviews, just hope the dice roll doesn't land on you when it's the narcissist's turn to return inquiries. Update after Dan's heartfelt reply: To answer the question dan didn't want to hear the answer to - we need the mold test for a closing on a house. It's not my job to fix a house that I don't own and get to the root cause of it (our inspector already identified that) - we just need proof before we buy it so the owner can deal with it and take measures before we purchase. Such a simple request made way too complicated by his soapbox. read more

Domicile Consulting - Home Inspectors Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Above and beyond for my inspection. George , did an awesome job and was incredibly flexible with my schedule. Communicated to the max and was great to work with. I would highly recommend them to anyone that is searching for hone inspection. Thanks again read more

We had water seepage problems in our finished basement. Despite several foundation cracks being sealed with epoxy, and having a French drain, a previous home inspection and a new deck done - we STILL get a little puddle of water on our lookout basement's windowsill. (when we get a heavy rain coming out of the East) We need to get the walls sealed up (new 2 X 4's, insulation, drywall and paint) but first we have to be SURE the windowsill puddle problem is FIXED! One lucky morning, I heard about Domicile Consulting on WGN 720 AM radio. I did some research and their reviews were excellent. It was easy to schedule a water intrusion inspection online. Dan Cullen came out to our home right on time and did a safe and socially distanced inspection. Right away we knew he was an expert in home construction, assessment and engineering. He was inside and outside; he missed nothing. In no time at all, Dan explained the source of our problem and how to fix it. Caulk needed to be placed in 3 areas. We missed 'em, the new deck builder missed 'em (he knew about the problem) and the first home inspector missed 'em-telling us the problem was lack of flashing on the original deck. Dan educated us in a friendly, easy-to-understand way. It was a HUGE RELIEF to find out the solution would be inexpensive, pretty quick and not too difficult! Honesty, integrity, excellence and expertise are rare qualities to find in business these days, but that's what Domicile Consulting is all about. You can tell when someone's the real deal. Whether you're buying, selling, building or just vexed with a problem like we had-give them a call. You'll be pleased and impressed; they know everything about building science A-Z. Check out their website. It's an investment that's worth every penny. The value is in the quality of their service. read more

Dan was an amazing inspector - incredibly thorough, knowledgeable, always available to answer our questions in detail throughout the process, with decades of expertise that made our home search so much smoother and his report worth its weight in gold. Cannot recommend highly enough! read more

This guy is so full of himself. I had an issue with a prior tuck pointer and need a thorough report to document the issues and appear with me as a witness. I inquired with this company due to their high rating (only to uncover the numerous negative ratings that help does show). He bids me a flat rate for everything. I wrote him back attempting to setup a time to visit. With the holidays I lost track or time and tell him I'll be in touch as I need to get a mason out first as that's what my attorney advised. He tells me oh no his report is all that matters and to quickly schedule. I blow it off as just being pushy. I finally was able to lock down a time. I ask to confirm the quote as he asks for payment in advance that is nearly the total he originally quoted me and changes the quote to by the hour! I ask him why it changes and then he cancels the job. It's such a joke to deal with these people. Quote on November 13th (Flat Fee) email from Dan owner directly I began working in construction at age 14 as a tuck pointer with my father. Over the following 50 years I've been intimately involved in construction, inspections, and forensic investigations. I've also worked as an expert witness on many occasions. To be honest though, your issues are pretty basic and won't be a challenge for me to evaluate. The fee would be $295 Quote on December 18th: (Email from Dan, owner, directly) The $195 fee is for the site visit and the report outlining the exterior wall defects and conditions Paul. Any court appearance, deposition, or similar service is billed at $145/hour. read more

Domicile consulting is the way to go. We've had two home inspections in the last two months- and both were effortless in scheduling. The range of appointments is wide (extremely helpful as a work 3rd shift), and the online access is awesome. Robert M. did the first inspection and was totally objective and patient as i had many questions as a first-time home buyer. The second property was inspected by Dan C and an apprentice, and they were both extremely knowledgeable and patient as well. Dan even took the time to talk through with me about items on the report, and give feedback which was a major help in determining what credits and repairs to ask for. We would highly recommend them to anyone looking for a home inspection service. Keywords: trustworthy, knowledgeable, patient, efficient, reliable. 10/10 would recommend! read more

No problem with the inspection. Performed as scheduled, report delivered earlier than expected. Thanks read more

on call with owner Daniel for 10 min asking pricing and talk bit. I got a 5 bedroom house and I was asking if possible to lower the price bit because the 5th room is really a small drywall thing. He explained not possible, right before I was gonna say, "ok then no problem let's stick with the full price", this person hung up on me. What a nice service :) Keep in mind if they don't have patience to hear from their client, they won't be patient to do their work. read more

Domicile Consulting and the inspector Brian was incredibly helpful and thorough in my home search! Brian identified mold and termites that would have been extremely costly to remediate in an older home. He found things that I would have never noticed. 10/10 service and accuracy! read more

Thanks so much to Meagan and Mark for making this experience as smooth as possible. I was between about ten companies (this is my first time buying a house and was taking a bit of a shotgun approach) and the Domicile team stood head and shoulders above the rest. Meagan called and emailed me multiple times to confirm the scheduling, they were able to come the following morning, and Mark thoroughly inspected the entire building (he scaled a gated area on the rooftop to make sure everything was in good working condition!) and had the inspection report completed BEFORE THE END OF THE DAY! The home buying process can be quite hectic, but you guys made it exponentially easier on us so we thank you so much for everything! read more

Dan and the team are wonderful. They inspected our home when we purchased it three years ago, so when water damage appeared on our ceiling I know I could call them. Dan came the day and time I requested, found the cause of the issue (surprisingly did NOT need a plumber) and checked out the rest of our house for any other problems. He fixed a few minor things on the spot, no extra charge. They even gave us a discount as a returning customer. I would have had to pay a plumber at least $100 just to come out and tell me that I needed a tile installer instead! Domicile was well worth the cost. read more

I left a mediocre review here on Yelp and was contacted by the "owner" to see whats up. I provided them all the information they requested and they since proceeded to insult me and berate me to the point where I had to report them to yelp. I didn't care for their professionalism. Be wary if you leave a less than satisfied review of them on Yelp here, as you'll probably be harassed shortly thereafter. read more

I was in the market for a home inspection and reached out to others in the area. I received 12 quotes back ranging from $350-$475 (which was Domicile's quote for me). I received a nice note from the owner saying if you had any questions to please give him a call. I called his cell phone to see if he would consider dropping the price closer to $425 and he says "Well sure I can do it for a lower price and give you check boxes on a piece of paper." I said no their reports give as much detail to yours. He goes "then I suggest you go use their lousy service" and hung up on me. read more

I highly recommend Domicile Consulting. Excellent service. Excellent price/performance. I am an original owner and board member of an 8-unit condominium built in 2004. Our building was constructed of ornamental masonry, brick and split block. Very popular with construction at the time, but the trades were unfamiliar with the new construction requirements. Mistake were made in construction. After 5 years, we had various and nagging small leaks throughout the building and spent quite a bit of association monies making repairs that would reappear 2 or 3 years later. We hired Domicile Consulting to do a top-down engineering inspection and after reviewing the results we asked them to give us a prioritized list of repairs needed and the specs for the proper repairs. We started knocking them out one-by-one with the guidance of Domicile on the timing so we didn't blow a hole in our reserves or have crazy increases in our assessments. Essentially they realized we couldn't afford to do everything at once and helped us understand what had to be done now and what could be done with regular maintenance, We couldn't be happier with the results. We are most through our punch list and our building is performing very well. No more mystery leaks. No more repeat leaks. We finally feel like we are spending our cash wisely. Also, their documentation is exceptional. It is detailed with the correct spec and lots of photos and diagrams of problem areas. It makes it easy for a layman to communicate with the trades. We bring them back every 2 years to inspect for new problems, look at our progress, and just give us updates to our maintenance plan. We are also planning to hire them to oversee a large upcoming project. To review our proposals, communicate our requirements to the trades, and inspect their work for acceptance. We discovered Domicile Consulting by our of our recent owners used them for their inspection. The inspection report was very impressive and detailed. Do not hesitate to get them out to look at your building. read more

Scott came out to check out this 1880 rehab we had made an offer on. We were all excited to close on this house, until Scott pointed out a few things: - The "new" roof had holes in it - The insulation wasn't installed properly, and it would lead to mold growth - The contractors had half-assed the basement and so it would eventually have water issues - The electrical system was not up to code - The furnace did not have proper air exhaust And more. I know nothing about construction, and I just thought that because the kitchen looked great, we were fine, but it turns out these guys were a fly-by-night operation just trying to do a quick flip. I could not be happier paying these guys $600 to save $600,000. I will definitely be using Scott's services again for our next house that we find. They're worth every penny. Don't be penny-wise and pound-foolish - pay the experts, because if I had gone cheap, the inspector probably would not have kept me from bungling this purchase. read more

EDIT - 1/22/2017. (On 1/22/2017 I had edited my original review with an update as I didn't know how to write a follow-up to a yelp review. I learned today!). This is that same exact update copy pasted in Yelp's followup format. The owner posted a reply and focussed on my understanding of the scientific consensus. Seems to have missed the fact that my review had words like "MAY BE hazardous to life/health" for a reason - because I'd seen the lack of consensus in the scientific community. And no mention of the the misinformation received from the inspector. He also states that they use gauss meters the same way as RH meters - to detect relative differences and not as absolute measurements. I think Mr. Cullen doesn't realize that the 'relative' in relative humidity isn't to do with another location that he measures but rather relative to saturation point. He also says that I "..perhaps willfully misinterpreted the statements of the inspector..." - this statement is couched neatly among pleasantaries and the paragraph is designed to paint the writer as professional and courteous while at the same time getting-in a cheap shot. The end of the write-up ends similarly - offering graciously to take my call so I can vent to the "appropriate target" while alluding that my yelp review may not have been so productive. EDIT 2/17/2017 - I open my Yelp account and found a personal message from Mr. Dan Cullen the owner of Domicile. You can also see the message (photo attached) that I've received from Dan Cullen - the owner of Domicile. As is evident (the conversation has only one message), I haven't sent him any messages to deserve this response apart from my critical Yelp review.... which had a couple of sarcastic lines but apart from that nothing but a statement of what happened and when. read more

Domicile Consulting - Message from the owner in response to my critical review. Check the tone of my review and compare. Also notice the subject calls me an 'MF' - Home Inspectors Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I would recommend Domicile Consulting without reservation. While researching home inspection companies, a family friend recommended Domicile Consulting. We continued researching. Then a college friend also recommended Domicile. We used the company for our July 2018 inspection and were exceedingly pleased. Dan Cullen, the company owner, is as knowledgeable a professional as they come. He works for you, gives you an honest and thorough assessment, and works to make sure you understand his findings. Excellent service and experience. read more

Buying a new home is a huge investment and the inspection process can be scary and overwhelming. We recently had the pleasure of working with Bob, Robert M, and he was fantastic! He was prompt, arrived early and had the exterior that he could access done ahead of the appointment time. His demeanor is extremely welcoming and friendly, he's happy to have you shadow him and articulated what he was doing and why. He was thorough, didn't rush, took tons of pictures and we got the report same day which was extremely detailed. He certainly seems to care about what he does and makes sure the new home owners have as much knowledge as possible. Even though Domicile had excellent reviews, I was hesitant because it was a group rather than one person and the cost seemed higher than most but after the experience and the report we got, I would use them again and recommend Bob specifically to anyone. Note - This was for a 5 bed single family home in the west suburbs. It was our first home purchase but we had a condo before and had an inspection done for that and this was a better experience by far. Bob, well done!! read more

Edit: There was a comment posted from the business by the person who was rude to me on the phone....and that message was not any better than my previous experience with the company. That initial comment was deleted and replaced by the comment that now shows up from the owner. The owner also messaged me on Yelp apologizing and asking that I contact him...which I have not done. His message explained that the offending staff member was a family member and he was powerless to tame her behavior despite repeated complaints from customers. I sympathize with him, having several idiots for family members myself, but I don't quite get why he's letting someone harm his reputation if he's that concerned about it. Something doesn't add up. There are enough of these reviews and his explanation, combined with deleting of the original reply, is weird enough that I still think something shady is going on here. I still say stay away....there are many other vendors who will treat you better and give you advice that is just as competent. I haven't yet posted a review of the company I ended up using but I did have a wonderful experience and plan to post a review. read more

They failed to find problematic plumbing that even I (a layperson) recognized once a plumber showed me a picture. Less than 6 months after my closing date, this resulted in costly repairs. I like the report they sent, but they aren't thorough enough. read more

Comprehensive home inspection report. We liked them so much we asked them to look at our whole condo building for a maintenance plan.

Domicile Consulting is such a great company that we've used them twice in our recent house search. Kenny, our inspector, was so thorough that we were amazed. Both my husband and I have purchased homes on our own before and neither of us have worked with inspectors who were like him. He was incredibly thorough, knowledgeable, courteous, and happy to answer our questions throughout the inspection and beyond. The ONLY reason I didn't give them 5 stars is because it takes a few days to get the report. Though once you receive it, it's clear why: it is so detailed that it is dozens of pages, with pictures of everything, along with recommendations. A friend of ours used another company for their inspection and they received their report much quicker because they sent two people, one to inspect, and another to record everything the inspector noted contemporaneously. That seemed to save time for the inspector, whereas Kenny had to type the report and attach the pictures himself after the inspection. Because they're busy, we had to wait until he had time to do it. If Domicile could set up that kind of arrangement for inspections, that would be great for customer service. But don't let time deter you from going with Domicile. They are worth every penny! read more

Used these guys twice. Relied on Yelp entirely to look for a reliable, trustworthy person to perform an inspection. Searched and searched and came upon Domicile. Next step, who to choose. After reading reviews, I found I had to schedule my inspection with Christi Malone. The description of her background made me believe she's who I want. Scheduled her and watched her go to work. Not only is she not timid about going into everything, high and low, she's thorough and informative and doesn't rush. She doesn't give you that burnt out feel but a feeling of comfort that you're leaving all in her hands. She was extremely thorough, nothing got past her. She makes the cost of an inspection worth every penny. Saw her look behind heavy candle holder and bags of books to find an alarming water damaged area of great concern and was sad but extremely relieved I avoided a potential disaster if I had moved forward with the purchase of a home that looked to good to be true. I recommended her to a coworker who described her as thorough and saving him and his fiance from a potential headache if the had moved forward blindly. You can sense Christi is active and fit and is unafraid to look everywhere where others might skip or overlook. She helped me with the purchase of my home and worked to be available within a short time frame. Christi is very personable and was really the best. I learned a lot from her and she made me feel comfortable despite my being naive about a few things. I will not hesitate to use her again and will recommend her to anyone of my friends and coworkers because I know she does an excellent job. You can tell she enjoys what she does. I am so happy I found her. She is truly the best. read more

We were able to schedule an appointment for a home inspection within 3 days of contacting them. Scott was our assigned inspector: On time (actually early!), extremely friendly, knowledgeable, and above all else thorough in his inspection. He answered all of our questions in a way that we could understand (layman's terms) and provided us with the confidence to manage closing negotiations with the seller (referring to being able to reference issues that needed to be addressed). We highly recommend them and will use them again. read more

Would you like to see a business (and business owner) that takes pride in their work? Read through the reviews and their responses. Second to none. read more

I have used Domicile now 4 times over the last 4 years. We used them when we originally bought our condo years ago and after living there for a few years and re-reading the inspection, they were spot on with the issues and the water issues with the roof. So when it came time to find a house we naturally turned to Domicile. We ended up avoiding 2 bad properties thanks to their thorough inspection. On the final inspection, which is the house we are purchasing, they still did a good job overall, but the inspector seemed in a rush to get out of there and did not seem nearly as thorough as the previous two. He also nicely agreed to do a mold test for us when he found mold in the attic (it was obvious but still good to show to seller proof on paper), but then did not get the test done in the amount of time he said he would. We eventually got it from him over a week later at which point we had already worked out a deal with the sellers and he complained about having to do it at all (not sure why he offered then). I would highly recommend Mark Hughes though, he did the first two house inspections and was great and answered all our questions. He was unfortunately not available for the 3rd one. read more

We were recommended to Dan Cullen with Domicile as an inspector with good water intrusion knowledge, and we had a water problem in our 100-yr old building. Dan was a professional throughout: punctual, available by phone, and a thorough communicator. His technical knowledge was exactly what we needed, and he was able to explain it both technically and in plainspeak - so we and our contractors can understand the issue and recommended resolutions. He was able to refer us contractors for our problem as well, which is a huge relief when wading into the vast sea of roofers and masons with unknown capabilities. We ended up recommending him as a general inspector when my in-laws bought a place a month later - and they're happy too! Would recommend in a heartbeat. read more

Mark was thorough, and explained what he was evaluating throughout the process. The report offered solutions, and he noted serial numbers on all appliances, to indicate approximate manufactured time. Great work throughout. read more

Disclaimer: I did not use them to inspect my house; my problem was when I tried to cancel. When you go under contract for a house, you only have so many days to line up an inspection. I put out a couple calls to get quotes and saw Domicile had only one appointment available for the date that I needed. Instead of waiting, I booked. After all, the website and the contract clearly stated I could cancel at any time as long as I gave 24-hour notice. The following was my interaction with the snippy lady who answered the phone: Her: Domicile Consulting, how may I help you? Me: Hello, I'm sorry to do this, but I have to cancel a home inspection that I just made a few hours ago. Her: May I ask while you are cancelling? Me: My wife and I found another company that is going to do it for less. Her: How much less, if you don't mind me asking. Me: They are about $100 less than what you're asking. (this is where the attitude came into play) Her: Well, if $100 is all that matters to you. (silence) Me: In fairness, this other company is rated higher than you. Her: Higher than us? Where? Me: On Yelp. Her: They are higher rated than us on Yelp? Me: As of this morning, they were. Her: And they have nearly 200 reviews? Me: They have over 80. Her: Well, if $100 is all that matters to you, good luck. (hangs up) A little word of advice, you don't know who I am and how many houses I plan on buying. For all you know, I could be a flipper who buys a new house every month. Or I could be in an age group where a lot of my friends are looking for advice on who they should go with when the time comes. The proper response should have been something along the lines of "We are sorry that you are choosing to go with someone other than us, but if for any reason you are not happy with the service you are going with, please don't hesitate to call us back because we would love your business. I wish you nothing but the best of luck!" And then don't hang up on me. Needless to say, my inspection went great and I got a detailed 80-page report delivered back to me within 24 hours using First Choice Inspectors. Even if it did go horribly - I would have called everyone BUT Domicile. read more

We had some water damage from the summer 2011 storms and brought Dan in to find the damage and report back where he thought the damage was coming from. Dan was a pleasure to work with and seemed knowledgeable. I asked him about one specific spot in our home that I suspected water damage, but even after using his trusted tools, he said there was no damage at that spot. When he completed his inspection, he sent the report in a timely manner providing us with his thoughts on what needed to be fixed. When I asked if he could recommend someone for the work, he provided me the contact information of a scare-tactic mason who was telling us there were several hundreds of thousands of dollars in repairs necessary to fix the leaks (we ended up getting everything fixed for about $30,000). During our repairs, I asked the contractor to rip open the spot I had asked Dan to look at for water and they found significant water damage and mold. I finally got around to letting Dan know about this (two months after the work was completed) and he got very defensive in his emails, even saying "I do not possess x-ray vision" in one of his replies. My emails to him were to figure out what went wrong in his inspection (never asked for a refund) but after a couple back and forth discussions, he ended his last email with, "It [Web site] does not say that we possess magical powers or that we are Superman. If you got that impression somehow I'm very sorry for that misunderstanding." Unfortunately, I would not recommend them to anyone. It is not because I don't trust their work (which is in question in my mind) but I would not want anyone I know treated the way Dan has been communicating with me. read more

I'm selling my condo, and this is my third transaction as a seller, fourth as a buyer. The buyer in my sale transaction used Ross from Domicile. As a seller, you expect that you're going to have things to do when you receive a buyer's inspection report. You know your property's warts, you know how you've maintained the property, and you know that there are things that may come up on an inspection report that you are not aware of, whether serious or minor. However, as a seller you do not expect a 54-page report on a one bedroom, one bath condo with suggested repairs like "hey seller, rip out all your mechanicals (furnace, water heater) in the mechanical room, put down a fireproof floor, then put all the mechanicals back in. Really? The report also contained extraneous suggestions like use CLR on shower head and kitchen faucet to clean them and have the ducts cleaned because the seller has cats (something I had done prior to listing anyway). That kind of stuff is homeowner 101, and in my opinion has absolutely no place in a report a buyer is relying on to alert them to actual problems with the structure or systems. Aside from ridiculous suggestions, Ross was absolutely wrong about the humidifier on the furnace not working. The humidifier had just been installed by a very reputable HVAC company I've used for years about 6 weeks prior to the inspection. When I had the company back out to "fix" the humidifier (which was under warranty), there was absolutely no issue with the humidifier which was functioning exactly as intended. Ross was also wrong about the type of valve used with the humidifier (surprise!). That visit luckily didn't cost me anything financially because of the warranty, but it did cost 3 hours of my time waiting for the repairman. Ross was also kind enough to completely break my garbage disposal, costing me $300 and another 3+ hours of my time. Not appreciated. About 10 days after Ross inspected my condo for sale, I had the house I am buying inspected by Rob Koncious of High Point Inspections. The difference between the report I received from high point on a 3 bedroom, 2 and two half bath house was like night and day. I received a concise 30 page report with practical, realistic suggestions. Rob was thorough, professional, and gave me the information that I needed to ensure the home I'm buying is sound and not a secret money trap, which is the entire point of the inspection in my opinion. I feel sorry for buyers that hire Ross, because he's an alarmist wackadoo. While he's busy recommending fireproof floors for the mechanical room in an existing structure, mislabeling a working item as broken, actively breaking other items, and telling the buyer how to clean things, what is he missing? I guess I was lucky though, because he didn't rip into my drywall with a screwdriver and force me to take the condo off the market to repair it like I heard recently happened during an inspection of another seller's property. TL;DR, get a reasonable inspector who will give you the information that you need rather than a rogue inspector like Ross. read more