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According to a recent national data from the American Society of Home Inspectors, the most common problem area uncovered by inspectors is roofing. Roof problems are 3 times more prevalent on inspection reports than the second most frequent problem, electrical. The most common...

Let’s spend a few minutes this month talking about your fireplace and chimney. It’s a rare one that doesn’t need something done to it… If your home is more than 10 years old and has a masonry chimney the mortar at the very top is probably worn and needs touching up. At the very...

I am constantly amazed at what people tell me they paid to have certain repairs done so this month we’ll talk about saving BIG BUCKS. We will talk about HVAC, water heaters and roofing as these are 3 of the largest expenses a homeowner will incur. Let’s start off with something...

I have to chuckle whenever I enter a home for an inspection and either the agent or owner informs me that, “this home is in excellent condition, so we doubt you’ll find anything wrong”. My advice on these type of comments is: 1. NEVER say this to an inspector (he’ll only look...

What happens when an inspector misses something during an inspection? Many parties to the real estate transaction think that inspectors, like many other professionals, carry some sort of insurance for any oversights made in the course of their work. This was not the case until...

THIS month let’s talk about 3 items you don’t have, but NEED. The first is a whole house surge protector. Most of you have those little surge strips that you plug your expensive electronic stuff into right? Well, those of “in the know” don’t use those. We use a WHOLE HOUSE surge...

The temperature & pressure (T&P) relief valve is found on all water heaters and is critical to personal safety. The T&P valve is a safety valve which allows for the release of excessive pressure that may build up inside your water heater. The most common cause for...

The most damaging substance to buildings of all types is WATER. Whether it’s from rain or your plumbing system, water getting into the wrong places can cause havoc, and quickly. Today we’ll discuss how your plumbing system can be your biggest enemy. Awhile back I asked my...

Over the past three decades, Round Rock has emerged from its former status as a quiet bedroom community to become somewhat of a super-suburb, due to the presence of Dell and the addition of a number of major retailers. In a city of over 100,000 people, there is a robust real...

It’s been a while since we had an article on these pesky bugs and a lot has changed since then. First, a comment on “conducive conditions”. The pest control operators find these as much as a nuisance as the Realtors however we are required by our licensing act to inform the...