inspections for apartment complex

[Mike Dymski]

When I purchased a 25 unit complex, I did not have a good solution for the property inspection (spoke with a bunch of brokers and inspectors). My options were (1) $50/door from a company that I felt was going to use a checklist approach and not focus on the important stuff and (2) $225/door from an SFR inspector that I have used before and is good (but would be costly). I have a 4-plex under contract in the same complex and took a different approach with this inspection. I asked the SFR guy to do a mechanical/structure only inspection with no report and bill me hourly and I met him for the last 30 minutes to go over findings. Perfect solution and one that I can scale for larger properties. I don't have enough scale to where I currently have a single contractor that can walk/inspect 25+ unit properties; so, this guy will work in the interim...maybe permanently. Just thought I'd share in case others have run into this challenge.

[Gino Barbaro]

@Mike Dymski

The prices for inspections vary widely.  On our first 25 units, we were quoted over 4,000 for an inspection.  I live in NY and even for NY that is really expensive.  We shopped around and settled for an inspector who came in far below and did a thorough job.  Those reports are valuable because there are pictures that show any problems.  A picture is worth a thousand words.  If there is a leaky pipe, the seller will see it and you can negotiate to have it fixed. In the end, the inspection usually pays for itself with all the different deferred maintenance you find.

We recently purchased 156 units and used the same inspector. He charged 20 per door, and went through every unit.  We were pleased with the job and the price.  

You just need to keep looking for the right inspector.  ASHI website has a listing of home inspectors.