I hired SFHI in May 2023 to inspect a 1927 home I was looking to purchase. I understood that a…read morehouse nearly 100 years old, there could be issues. That's exactly why I paid over $1,000 for a full inspection with a sewer scope addon to catch the serious ones before closing. I expected a professional and thorough report to help guide my decision. Instead, I was left with oversights, financial stress, and a dismissive response from the company via email.
A brand new kitchen was installed and what the inspection failed to catch was that directly beneath the kitchen, right above the furnace in the basement, several joists were pulling away from the header. I discovered a visible 1 1/2 in gap just a few weeks after moving in. This was not a minor issue. It was a dangerous structural concern in one of the most heavily used parts of the home, and it was completely missed in the report.
Instead of identifying that, the inspection focused on areas like the front and rear patio, which were less concerning to me. It noted a cut joist under the bathroom but failed to mention that another joist had already been installed a few inches away to correct it. It also listed two support jacks under the dining and living rooms. None of those findings bothered me. What bothered me was that the joists under the kitchen, which had just undergone major renovation, were never mentioned. That area should have been a top priority. It needed closer attention and WAS overlooked.
About 90 days after closing, I contacted them with my concerns. Instead of taking my feedback seriously, I was told I should have hired a structural engineer. Maybe I would have if I had been informed about the issue. But I trusted the inspection I paid for, and I only discovered the problem myself after moving in. I later reached out to request a refund so I could bring in another inspector just to have another opinion, but I never heard from SFHI again.
The inspection report also estimated the roof to be 5 to 10 years old. In early 2025, my ins. company asked for proof of this. I submitted a FOIA to the Village and found that the roof was last replaced in 2000, 25 years ago today. I verified this with Google Street View and confirmed it with the former owner's family. The estimate was off by about 13 years at that time in 2023. The roof in 2023 would be 23 years old. Not 5-10 years. As a result, I'm now facing increased premiums and risk of cancellation, all because I relied on an inaccurate visual guess.
I paid extra for a sewer inspection. The plumber they brought in couldn't properly trace the line. The camera kept looping through the wrong pipe. It wasted time and left us without clear answers. I notified the seller about this and the seller's plumber found a crack in the main line, which they repaired before closing. There is a cleanout and a new blacktop patch in my driveway where that work was done, fixed and was missed by the plumber working alongside Jesse.
In summary, the inspection missed a major issue under the kitchen, misidentified the age of the roof by over a decade, and failed to provide clear answers on the sewer line. These are not small problems. These are high cost issues that should have been caught. When I brought them up, I was met with defensiveness and silence. My refund request was never answered. I was told "Please stop saying that something was missed. Nothing was missed. Our recommendation was to have things further evaluated by a structural engineer prior to closing." When I raised my concerns, I was dismissed, belittled and treated unprofessionally. Things were missed, and that's the point.
I'm simply sharing my experience, which I've documented thoroughly. I've seen many positive reviews and I'm glad some customers had better experiences. But I've also seen how the company responds to criticism, and the tone I received from them was similar. You can write whatever response you want. I don't care. The truth is, as a first-time home buyer, the way this experience played out for me was unfair.
