We asked Bob to do a home check for us before a planned renovation to make sure we didn't have any major home repairs we needed to direct our money toward. We walked the property for 2 hours. It was like taking your car to a reliable mechanic. He asked us about our home repair skills and instructed us how to fix some things and when to call in the professionals. He helped us prioritize what needed to be taken care of immediately, what could be put off (and what we would observe when it was time to make the repair) and what was nice, but not needed. Since we didn't need an official report, he allowed me to record the inspection so we could go back and get the details of anything we neglected to write down. Overall it was a positive experience. We found several things we need to take care of, but we are a "go" for the renovation! read more

Bob seems to have a routine and can't deviate. The inspection was on a circa 1895 house and he missed many defects. Yes you are presented with "this is how things work" but he glossed over or did not cover many things that we had to fix post settlement. The house is heated by gas steam heat so he lit the boiler - then it was "ok that works". I had to suggest we leave the heat on to see that it actually delivered heat to each radiator - something that takes a while. In fact several radiators needed new valves. Like an upper porch railing that was not attached at the bottom and therefore just hanging by upper supports. Like a rear faucet that was not freeze proof and an uninsulated copper pipe under the porch that did not drain and required replacement by a plumber. And it was completely visable to the naked eye. Five missing locks on windows - steam a pipes in basement uninsulated - $2,900 to have insulated. He doesn't lack in confidence that's for sure. And it's misplaced. The agents involved felt that his process was cumbersome. Post settlement I received a "happy now you are a homeowner" email. I responded with a list of the things that he had missed and indicated that we were very disappointed. Guess what - never heard a word back. I was prompted to write this review 2 1/2 years later when I read today that his business is relocating to Frederick - our home town. read more

I recently had a home inspection, on an older house (it was built in 1900) in a rural area performed by Bob (aka Mr.Bob) of Inspections by Bob. Bob, as promised, arrived on site about 23 minutes early for our 10 AM appointment time, which was perfect for me, because I was ready and waiting for him, and he promptly started his inspection after having introduced himself. I have a strong background, in terms of graduate level university studies and degrees, as well as actual work experience, in both the sciences and engineering, and this extensive technical background proved very useful and helpful in understanding many of the technical items and issues that Bod pointed out to me during his inspection of this admittedly very old house. Interestingly, it turns out that Bob too also has a strong engineering background, just as I do; he got his original Bachelor's degree in electrical/electronics engineering (EE) and a minor in mechanical engineering (ME), and with some additional training in lots of related areas. I found Bob to be very detailed and thorough in his inspection, and to be very knowledgeable as well on a wide variety of topics related to the inspection of a home. I was very impressed with his work. Bob was also very personable and friendly, and took plenty of time to explain many of his findings very carefully and succinctly. BTW, the price that I paid for the inspection was one that I feel was very fair and very reasonable. Incidentally, he spent 4.5 hours on site with me, far more than the nominal one hour that the company's website cited as the average visit time for inspection of a 3BR/1BA house, and he then spent several additional hours writing up his report, which was delivered to me via email in a PDF file format by 6 PM on the day of the inspection. Overall, Bob was great at his job, and he delivered more than promised and more than expected. His final report was also excellent and comprehensive. Would I choose this company, and Bob, again if I needed another home inspection? Yes, I would, in a heartbeat! read more

Good not great. Bob is probably better than average but there were several things missed on my home inspection and at least 3 of those items I specifically pointed out to Bob and he dismissed them. On the upside he is personable and has an air of thoroughness because his story is that he bought a lemon of a house in the past and started the business so nobody else gets caught in the same traps. I also understand that short of tearing down sheet-rock it is impossible for a home inspector to catch everything. It is a non-destructive surface inspection. First, he caught a lot of easy things like light bulbs needing replacement, battery changes on smoke detectors, and the garage door test which is probably a "gimme" on most houses (doors don't stop with proper amount of resistance). He also caught one big item which was a possible overloaded breaker box requiring the owner to put in a new sub-panel. That was a great catch that will help me on re-sale for certain. My house had a significant roof leak. I pointed an area to him of concern where it looked like there had been major sheet-rock repair or damage but since it was an inconvenient area to get to (cathedral ceiling), he talked me out of being concerned. It was (and still is) a problem in the home. There was also some Pergo flooring that was a bit warped and squishy by a sliding door. I pointed that out to Bob and he said that Pergo has foam under it and that is why it is squishy, not noting (as a later handyman did) that the flooring near the door was laying different than the rest. After the first rain I found out the door leaked like a sieve and water was sitting under the Pergo. My real estate agent made big claims that Bob would check every window in the house. Well, he only checked 70% of them and guess what? Major problems with a couple of the ones he didn't open because the owner had them blocked with furniture. The window frames are not square and the windows will not fully close. Would have liked to know about that! Both sliding doors were in need of significant repair but the prior owner (who was in the house) made sure she opened the doors for us every time we went out. As a result Bob never noticed that it was extremely hard to open and close the doors. They both needed replaced. The tracks under the doors were warped and when we replaced the doors, there was water damage requiring wood replacement. The doors were so hard to open that our children and their grandparents could not fully open or close the doors. One other nitpick is that the prior owners did not leave the house for the inspection and there were times Bob spent a good bit of time speaking with them or not wanting to inconvenience them which I believe compromised my home inspection. I was the one paying for the inspection and didn't feel like I had all of his attention. He's a very personable guy, which is a plus, but in this case I think it distracted him from the job at hand. All that said, I did like Bob and suspect I'd use him again. He is thorough and I feel I'm smarter now in being able to manage my inspector to flush out all the areas of concern. Do not be talked out of anything that does not look right to you! It will probably come back to bite you. read more

Well I think I agree with TJ B's assessment of Bob's work. He seems very confident and his binder is thorough and beautiful. He took his time and pointed out many noteworthy spots. He was somewhat dismissive of areas that I brought to his attention that seemed like potential water damage areas. We don't own the house yet so there will be an update in the future. He seemed almost overconfident in his abilities and very occasionally and definitely unintentionally condescending in his explanations of some hazards. He was telling us how big of an emergency it could be if we lost power and it disrupted the schedules of our 3 year old and new baby. We have 6 kids. The little ones' schedules are sleep when you can, cuz it may be time to go somewhere at any minute. We've been parenting for 11 years, I think we can handle the power outage. Stay tuned for an update after we've lived in the house for a while. read more

With regard to some of the other comments here, it should be mentioned that inspectors are just that. Inspectors. They're not electricians or plumbers or roofers or flooring specialists. So with respect to what their job actually entails, I think Mrs. Bob was fantastic. She was friendly, thorough, unbiased and candidly nitpicky. Thanks to her, we ended up passing on what would have been a hell of a fixer upper. Along with your little binder of detailed inspection observations and recommendations, you get a lot of helpful literature such as average "life expectancy" of various household structures/appliances, as well as information about proper maintenance. Will definitely be hiring her again soon for our next inspection. read more

We hired Inspections by Bob, LLC to assist us in the purchase of our new home in MD. The inspection process was very painless. He was detailed in his review and explanation. I was happy with the detailed report and liked the summary sheet that he provided to the agents for their records. I would have given him 5 stars however he missed a couple of item during the inspection. The main one was the fireplace inspection. I hired a chimney company based on his summary report to insert a damper and found that the fireplace was not a wood burning but a gas fireplace with a damper. The bad news, cost me another $109, the good news the gas log fireplace was not operational as he stated in his report. Overall, I was very pleased and would highly recommend his services. read more

Absolutely wonderful service, I could not have asked for anything better! The reason I chose this company in the first place is because when I called/researched the four different inspectors, Bob was the only person who took the time to answer all my questions (there were lots, I am a first time home buyer) and was very patient with me over the phone while others rushed me. During the inspection, Bob was very thorough and provided detailed information about what is wrong/what needs to be done not to mention an extensive report, powerpoint slides, and a binder with pictures that he takes for you..all provided right after the inspection was complete. I was in a situation were I distrusted my real agent and all he wanted to do in rush thru the inspection just to 'check it off the list' and proceed with selling the house. Bob sided with me numerous times and completely impressed me with his knowledge of this industry and his willing to intercede with my distrustful real estate agent and take my side/protect my interests. Bottom line: Bob is a certified inspector, reasonable price...I would highly recommend him and will 100% use him for further inspections!! read more

I recently had a pre drywall inspection with Inspections by Bob, with Bob conducting the inspection himself. Bob was at least 15 minutes early to the appointment and began working prior to my arrival. Bob was friendly, knowledgeable, and readily explained the defects he was seeing, how they are caused, and the process by which the defects should be remedied. Bob took detailed photographs of the defects and provided me with literature handouts to some of the more common builder errors he noted. I would recommend Bob and will likely use him if I elect to perform a final inspection. read more

Thorough and certified/qualified. Relatively reasonable rates. We had Bob do a pre-drywall inspection and then a final inspection on our new construction home, and it gave us peace of mind to have him poking around looking at everything and pointing out good and bad things he saw as everything was getting built. With our house being new construction though, I did if nd myself wishing he had a formal construction or structural engineering background -- but I admit this is an unfair standard, as I doubt any home inspector I could have found would have this. One caveat - I was happy, and felt he was professional with us... But friends I referred to Bob felt he didn't put their interests first, as he ought to have, when they hired him. read more

Bob did an excellent job. He was attentive to detail, friendly, and offered a full report on site after the inspection (with color photographs provided). I would highly recommend him to anybody seeking a home inspection. read more

This review is long overdue. Bob administered a radon test at our house almost two years ago. Not only was he punctual, but he was also polite, professional, and very patient with all of my questions. Before getting started, he explained the process from start to finish, so I would know what to expect. After setting up the radon kit, we began discussing other aspects of the house - he put my mind at ease about several items, but also drew my attention to other potential issues. I learned more from him in ten minutes than I did from my home inspector's visit and report. I truly wished Bob conducted my initial house inspection. After the results of the radon test were available, he provided counsel and recommended next steps. He has continued to be a trusted and valuable resource since then. read more

We hired Inspections by Bob to do the home inspection for our home which was a new construction. I called around to the different home inspectors in the area and Bob was the nicest and most helpful person out of all of them. He was familiar with new homes and particularly the builder. Bob showed up bright and early to do our home inspection. He meticulously went through the house to flag things that needed to be looked over. After he was done, we walked us through the home to explain what he found and why they were areas of concern. Then he prepared a binder for us with his findings. Then he wrote up a list of things that he wanted the builder to look at and fix up before we closed on the home. Afterwards, Bob took his time to go over his findings with the builder. Bob was extremely knowledgeable and professional. We honestly couldn't have been happier with the quality of service that he provided. The project manager of our home told us "Bob is well known around here and the contractors fear Bob". That made me feel happy knowing that I hired a great inspector. Thanks Bob! read more

Mrs. Bob did the inspection on our home. She was very thorough and pointed out a number of things for us to consider. She took time to provide detailed explanations of what she looked at and what she found. The binder with her inspection report is extremely detailed and a very helpful reference guide. I completely agree with the reviewer below who described Mrs. Bob as candidly nit-picky - which is actually something helpful for a home inspector. read more

Mrs. Bob (Welmoed) did our inspection. I was impressed. She was thorough, friendly, patient, and all the other good adjectives you'd like to hear. Her report arrived promptly and covered the waterfront. In fact, she is returning at her own initiative to try to get a better look at one thing she was unable to see. I suppose the real test is whether we later discover any additional defects, but short of that, I wholeheartedly recommend her. read more

Would give Bob ZERO stars if I could. HORRIBLE!! We were buying a home and used Bob based on reviews (must have been paid reviews or friends??). He nearly cost us the settlement because we were unsure of that to think. He was incorrect on several important factors that I was able to verify with little research and/or asking the seller for documents. The seller easily provided legitimate records that directly contradicted what Bob said. It was as if he was determined to find issues that simply didn't exist -as if this would earn him a positive vantage point in our eyes? He never bothered to look up if the deck was permitted but claimed it was not a legally permitted deck with the county. He was simply lazy and never looked it up. We were able to obtain the permit and verify the deck was to legal standards. He also missed a large leak in the basement that we found a week after we moved in. Another was a faulty circuit he missed when examining the fuse box. We unfortunately discovered this a few days after closing. The list is so long. I really am disappointed we paid so much for his service based on reviews only to discover he is more on a "mission" than an honest inspection. We should have known reading is bio about why he became an inspector. Payback. Inspectors should be professional enough to check for permits and not make false claims that there is an issue, when with little research, we were able to determine there was NOT a concern after all. We almost walked away from our dream house due to his unprofessional and misguided report. Shame on Bob! read more

I needed an inspection done on very short notice and Inspection by Bob were able to work with my schedule. Welmoed conducted my inspection and I was genuinely very happy with her knowledge and thoroughness. She took her time to work through the house slowly and to explain in detail all the issues she found and answer our questions. At the end of the inspection, she provides you the inspection report, which given our abbreviated timeframe was a real plus. In general, I would have no problem recommending this company or using it again. read more

I'm a first-time home buyer, and hired Bob to conduct a home inspection, based on the glowing recommendations of my realtor. I'm so glad I did. Bob was SUPER helpful and informative and willing to answer all of my questions. I learned so much during the inspection that I will put to use right after closing. To make a competitive offer on the house, I hadspecified that I wouldn't require the seller to make any repairs for issues identified during inspection, so Bob's advice will be INVALUABLE. Other than the excellent and thorough job he did inspecting my house (as well as a thorough inspection report with PHOTOS!), I really liked that Bob was clearly a very honest man with the highest in ethical business practices. Plus, he had great stories about notable or hilarious home inspections he's conducted in the past! I would definitely recommend him to any friends or family who need a home inspection. I had a great experience with Bob. read more