Inspection services
Every inspection follows the same standard of care set out in California Business & Professions Code section 7196 — a competent, diligent, non-invasive examination of the accessible systems and components. What changes is the scope and the timing.
Buyer's Home Inspection
The full pre-purchase inspection. We examine the roof, structure, foundation, attic, insulation, electrical, plumbing, HVAC, water heater, interiors, exterior envelope, drainage and attached garage, then hand you a photo-documented report you can negotiate from.
- Every accessible system and component
- Same-day summary, full report within 24 hours
- Walkthrough with your inspector at the end
- Free follow-up call with your agent
Pre-Listing (Seller's) Inspection
Find the problems before a buyer's inspector does. You control the narrative, price the repairs on your own timeline, and remove the mid-escrow surprises that kill deals or trigger a second round of price negotiation.
- Identify deal-breakers before you list
- Repair on your schedule, not under deadline
- Supports a stronger, more confident asking price
- Report you can share with prospective buyers
New Construction & Phase Inspections
Builders work fast, and municipal inspections check code compliance, not workmanship. We inspect at the pre-drywall stage and again before your final walkthrough, so defects get corrected while they are still the builder's responsibility.
- Pre-pour and pre-drywall phase options
- Final walkthrough punch list
- Documentation the builder can act on
- Coordinated with your closing date
11-Month Warranty Inspection
Most builder warranties run twelve months. An inspection in month eleven gives you a documented list of covered defects with enough time to submit the claim before coverage lapses — routinely the highest-return inspection a new homeowner buys.
- Timed before your warranty expires
- Written, itemized defect list
- Photo evidence for every claim
- Follow-up if the builder disputes items
Sewer Scope Inspection
A camera down the lateral from the cleanout to the city main. Root intrusion, bellies, offsets, cracks and collapsed clay or Orangeburg pipe are invisible in a standard inspection and routinely cost five figures to repair.
- Video recording included with your report
- Locates and depths for problem areas
- Add-on to any inspection, or standalone
- Especially important on pre-1980 properties
Commercial Property Inspection
Retail, office, multi-family and light industrial. Scope is built around your due-diligence timeline and lender requirements, delivered in a format your lender and partners can actually use.
- Multi-family and mixed-use experience
- Scope matched to lender requirements
- Coordinated specialist trades where needed
- Delivery aligned to your due-diligence window
Termite & Wood-Destroying Organism Inspection
Termite, fungus and dry-rot inspection carried out on the same visit as your home inspection, performed by our Branch 3 licensed partner company. You get the official California WDO report (form 43M-41) filed with the Structural Pest Control Board, alongside our own findings — one appointment, one timeline, two reports.
- Same visit as your home inspection
- Official California WDO report (form 43M-41)
- Section 1 and Section 2 findings itemised
- Performed by a Branch 3 licensed partner
Repair Re-Inspection
After the seller or builder completes the agreed repairs, we return and verify each one against the original report — item by item, with new photographs. Buyers routinely accept a repair receipt as proof of a proper fix. Often it isn't.
- Verified against your original findings
- New photographs for every item
- Written pass or fail per repair
- Turned around before your final walkthrough
Wildfire Hardening & Defensible Space Assessment
For properties in or near California's wildfire-urban interface. We assess vents, eaves, roof assembly, siding, decking, window glazing and the defensible space zones around the structure, then document what would need to change — increasingly a condition of getting insured at all.
- Structure hardening assessment, zone by zone
- Defensible space evaluation to 100 feet
- Documentation for insurance discussions
- Prioritised by risk reduction per dollar
Seismic Readiness Assessment
California-specific and frequently overlooked. We evaluate cripple wall bracing, foundation bolting, water heater strapping, chimney condition and soft-story exposure — the retrofits that determine whether a house stays standing and habitable.
- Cripple wall and foundation bolting review
- Soft-story exposure on multi-unit buildings
- Water heater and appliance restraint
- Notes on retrofit grant eligibility
Multi-Family & Investor Portfolio
Duplex through apartment building, single asset or whole portfolio. Unit-by-unit condition assessment with common systems evaluated separately, delivered in a format that supports underwriting, capital planning and offer strategy.
- Unit-by-unit condition matrix
- Common systems assessed separately
- Capital expenditure planning notes
- Volume scheduling for portfolios
Add-on services
Specialist testing, same visit
Bundled into your main inspection wherever possible, so you're not coordinating four separate appointments against a contingency deadline.
Pool & spa inspection
Equipment condition plus the drowning-prevention safety features California requires inspectors to note under Health & Safety Code section 115922.
Mold sampling
Air and surface sampling with independent lab analysis when visible growth or moisture history warrants it.
Radon testing
48-hour continuous monitoring. Relevant in specific California geologies, not statewide.
Thermal imaging
Infrared scanning to reveal moisture intrusion, missing insulation and overheating electrical connections.
Irrigation systems
Coverage, controller function and leaks — an explicit part of the California statutory definition of a home inspection.
Detached structures
ADUs, guest houses, garages, workshops and barns inspected to the same standard as the main dwelling.
What a home inspection covers — and what it doesn't
California statute defines a home inspection as a non-invasive physical examination of the mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems and the structural and essential components of a residential dwelling of one to four units, performed for a fee in connection with a transfer. That definition sets useful boundaries, and we think you should know them before you book.
Included
- Roof covering, flashing, drainage and accessible penetrations
- Foundation, structure, framing and visible slab conditions
- Attic, insulation and ventilation
- Electrical service, panel, branch wiring and devices
- Plumbing supply, drainage, fixtures and water heater
- Heating and cooling equipment and distribution
- Interiors, doors, windows, stairs and railings
- Exterior cladding, trim, decks, walkways and grading
- Attached garage and vehicle door safety reversal
- Pool and spa drowning-prevention features, where present
Not included
- Anything concealed behind finished surfaces
- Areas that cannot be safely or reasonably accessed
- Code-compliance certification or permit history research
- Property valuation or appraisal
- Wood-destroying pest findings, which California law reserves to Branch 3 licensees — we coordinate this for you
- Environmental testing beyond the add-ons listed above
- Predicting future failures or remaining service life guarantees
Where we find something outside our scope, we say so directly in the report and tell you which licensed specialist to bring in. We don't guess, and we don't pad the report to look thorough.
Ready to book your inspection?
Same-week scheduling across California. Most reports delivered within 24 hours of the walkthrough.