The inspectors and supervisors of this company have completely checked out. Their reports mostly contain useless blurbs and give little helpful information about the houses they inspect. We bought a house based on the report from Star Inspection Group and we found that many items of the report were not true at all. The report clearly shows that the inspectors did not do a minimally acceptable job expected from an ordinary employee, however the report gives an impression of a thorough inspection. For example, they use the word "generally worn" for some items to show that they have actually inspected various items and determined they have been in "generally worn" condition. However, it turns out that those items were not working at all. They use the word "Generally worn" on items that decided not to inspect or did shallow inspection. Obviously "Generally Worn" will release them from any liability that they might have after the transaction. They wrote the plumbing was in a generally worn condition; but water did not even flow in one of the sinks. They also wrote the furnace is in a generally worn condition, but we had to bring an specialist to repair the furnace since it was not working at all. In some other parts of the report, they stated they had no access to various items for inspection (e.g., garage or basement). Later we found out, it was too much for them to crawl under the building or to move a small furniture and see what is going on. Since they usually gather little information about the house, they will fill up the report with general obvious facts about various things such as condensation, copper piping, cast iron and things irrelevant to what the seller and buyer need to know. If you want to avoid any kind of legal battle after purchase, run away from this company. read more

To say home-buying is a scary process is as much an understatement as saying our national economy is in a bit of a pickle (*winks one eye, and cocks head cutely to one side*). As first time home buyers, we face with much trepidation and respect, the prospect of going into major debt for the next 30 years of our lives. As such, we find it prudent to do as much research as possible into our investment. This brings me to Michael Brady, Home Inspector Extraordinaire. (We found him via another inspector who is Yelp loved, but who doesn't do inspections in the area we are looking at.) We hired Michael to do a second, in depth inspection (going beyond the standard pest report). The cost was $600, definitely the high end for this service, but again, we are talking about a major investment here. And let me now just gush and rave about how freaking worth it it was: Michael Brady is calm, clear, extremely informative, and practical. I followed him around like an insecure 5 year-old after a clever older brother, asking any and all questions that came to mind. Michael answered these with much more kindness and clarity than an older brother would have! He was extremely thorough with "our" house, climbing around on the roof, mucking about in the basement, carefully noting any and all signs of wear, tear, and damage. As a bonus, he provided sort of an off the record dialogue about which repairs he felt were more pressing, and which could probably wait a few more years. I felt utterly confident with his analysis. The Star Inspection Group treated us well in other ways. We were under a time crunch, and not only were they able to get the God of Inspections to come out pronto, they were able to turn out our 30 page inspection report the very next day! Everything was as we had discussed. No sneaky added charges etc. Also note: not all inspectors obtain all possible certifications because they don't have to by law. My new hero has 'em all it appears, including ASHI & CREIA. My understanding is that this means he has to take continuing education courses to stay current with new codes & laws that go into effect. Yep, I want that. So, if you want a strong, supportive arm to help steady you along the nerve-wracking process that is buying a home, I highly recommend Michael Brady. Damn! He's good! read more

I have been using Bill Londagin with Star Inspection Group for many years now. He's not only a great inspector, but he is also now the owner of this business (perhaps in just the last year or so). What makes Bill stand out as a home inspector is not one thing but many. Probably the most important is his skill level. I don't know how many decades Bill has been a home inspector but you can tell he is well seasoned (I mean that in the kindest way); his knowledge about the different systems of a home (or commercial property for that matter) come through not in a generic sense, but as it applies to each particular property. Every time I use him, I learn something new because there is something different about each property and he translates that difference into useful knowledge that buyers need. Another way in which Bill stands out is that while you are meeting with him, you feel like you are taking a workshop or a class from a wise and thoughtful teacher whose goal is to empower you as the potential owner of this property. It is for these reasons that I have sent many of my clients to him over the years as a realtor and why I used him in the purchase of my own home. In terms of price for home inspections, Star Inspection Group is perhaps middle of the road, but in quality they are at the top of the list. And regardless of price, when it comes to one of the largest transactions of your life, you want to go with one of the best. Call Bill. read more

When you hire a home inspector, you want to hire someone with experience and is exceptionally thorough. Bob Dullum from Star Inspection Group is exactly this person. Firstly, Bob was professional. He showed up on time, explained what he was going to do, asked if I had questions throughout the process, was connected to additional inspectors that we needed to bring on for their specialty (pool), delivered his report on time, offered up his personal contact info for post inspection questions and shockingly, even returned phone calls promptly. Secondly, thoroughness. Bob was more anal than me (that's saying a lot). Not only did he go through the usual easy stuff (water pressure, electrical) but he spent an amazing amount of time in the 2 crawl spaces of our property. He found a leak in one under a recently renovated bathroom that was only visible after getting under insulation. The sellers sent their contractor and own inspector in to see the leak. They claimed it wasn't there. Bob stuck to his guns, we arranged a conference call; seller's team went back and then found it. They repaired it. Bob at no cost went back and inspected the repair and found it wasn't done right. Called the contractor and he came back to repair it again. Amazing and saved us lots of long term worry. Bob, quite simply, is the guy you want for your inspection in the East Bay. read more

Bill was great! He was there early and very personable and easy to ask questions of! My last inspection person was so hard to understand, but Bill made it easy for me to understand what was wrong and what would need to be done and in what kind of time frame, which was so helpful! I would definitely recommend Bill to all my friends!! read more

The seller had Star do an inspection and Star missed a bunch of problems. For instance, there was one large active plumbing leak and one minor leak, both of which they missed! They said, "Portions of the steel pipe are in generally worn condition. The need to replace portions of the water supply piping in the near future should be anticipated." While that is true, there is a big difference between the pipes are failing now, and anticipate problems in the future. They also missed the fact that the roof was shot. They said it was in moderate to worn condition. The roofer said that the roof was well past its useful life and was likely to leak this season. He pointed out where the shingles were worn out so badly they had disintegrated (the entire top layer was gone). It goes on from there. To be fair, they caught a few things, but missed a bunch of expensive things. read more

Far too many problems missed that all subsequent inspectors said were obvious and straight forward. I am facing about 25k in unexpected expenses now. Was it worth it? read more

don't bother with star inspection.... the home inspector completely missed many areas of the house. esp the rusted pipes that were leaking underneath the house. they only refunded the home inspection cost to have this fixed.. i could have had the owner fixed this problem and other areas around the house if star inspection did complete a "star inspeciton" on my home. not worth the hassle and look for another home inspection company. read more

Being a (potential) 1st-time home buyer, having no clue what to do about ANYTHiNG, it's always nice when those with whom you interact are patient, polite, professional, & seemingly competent. I don't know the 1st thing about homes, but Roger has reassured me that I can contact him with any concerns or questions, even long after our inspection date. Shooot... for $400 he better! Haha. Seriously tho, a co-worker of mine recommended Star Inspection Group after I had already made an appointment with them. I am happy to pass on the good word. 5 stars for Star! Woo hoo! read more

I have been a Realtor for over 35 years, way before we had real home inspectors. I have had the pleasure of working with Bill Londagin (and now his wife, Suzon Murray) for many years, too many to recall. More than a dozen, maybe two dozen.They are an amazing team. Bill is unconditionally the best inspector I have ever worked with. He is smart and he is honest. He is through and articulate in his presentation and his discussions with clients be they home buyers or sellers having him prepare a pre-sale inspection to include in their disclosure packet. He is forthright and yet not overwhelming. You can believe that if there are problems Bill will find them and even better he will have suggestions for how to remediate them. Suzon knows details about where and how you can contact the people who Bill recommends and some of the appliances and gadgets that he thinks might be useful. She is windfall to talk with and to troubleshoot as needed. Bill recently inspected my 16 year old home. I loved how he discussed it and how clearly he made recommendations. Five stars are not enough for Star Inspection Group and Bill Londagin but that's all that Yelp allows so hats off and 5 Stars!! read more

When you look at a house for sale, everything looks great. Most of the time the seller and realtor have gone to great lengths to make the house look perfect. As buyers we were definitely looking at all the "trimmings," imagining ourselves having a storybook life in our new home. To make sure we kept our perspective, our realtor recommended a home inspection. She told us Star Inspection Group was the way to go. Boy was she ever right. Star sent us Bill Londagin who walked us through every detail of the home we had chosen. He pointed out things we never would have known to look for, both good and not-so-good, and he let us know what was important and not-so-important. His whole manner was just so wonderful. He never talked over our heads, took time to explain anything we didn't understand and empathized with our concerns. Bill was even available to answer questions we didn't think of until a week later. But the service didn't end there. The next day we had a complete written report, including photos with a list of recommendation that we had discussed the day before. Very professional. It was a fantastic tool not only to aid us in our decision to buy but also to negotiate prior to buying. We definitely recommend Star Inspection Group and Bill Londagin in particular to anyone in the home-buying process. read more

Brian did an inspection for us before we put our house on the market. He was certainly thorough and professional. It was clear to me that he knows the housing stock in the area, the local building codes, and was able to spot things I didn't expect. He actually caught something in the foundation that a structural engineer had missed, but later confirmed. I'll certainly use him when it's time to buy. read more

I called Star Group after viewing their website, among other home inspection company websites. The website is detailed and provides good disclosure. I called another home inspection company that had been very highly recommended to me, but the home inspector who was recommended was not available. So, my second choice was Star Group. I called the main office; they had a professional manner. I requested for the inspector to have both CREIA and ASHI credentials -- if you want this (and I did), it appears you need to ask for it. Our experience with our Star inspector was very good. He was attentive and methodically checked everything -- found some things that the condo HOA had not maintained. The real estate broker was present and wanting to make the deal she was less than happy when our Star inspector pointed out some things that should be taken care of - however, our inspector handled it diplomatically, but was not deterred from saying what he had to say - one of which was that the water tank was not secured properly in the event of a earthquake, and some things on the roof needed to be attended to. The inspection report was provided on time and it was thorough. I would heartily recommend the Star Group. Cost is fair, not the least expensive, but selectively, you pay for what you get, and with something as important as a pre-buy home inspection, you really need an outfit that knows what they are doing. read more

We had a good experience with Star. The office staff was accomodating when I needed to change the inspection time. The inspector arrived early, so when I got there he already had stuff to say about the house. He seemed to know his stuff and he explained everything well. We didn't end up getting the house because of things the Star inspector and the pest inspector said were wrong, but we will use Star again when we settle on the next potential house. read more