For An Inspection Should I Rely On Rehabber Or Inspector?
Obviously the inspector is more experienced. But met the rehabber while viewing another property on same street, he looked at that specific property for free and excitedly showed me what he's doing to rehab another property on same street. Weeks later, I contacted him and he said he'd look at property in his spare time for me for a minimal fee.
Should I just spend the money and have a inspector look at a duplex-which is the cost of 2 houses to inspect? Any comments are appreciated.
It depends. If you have a contract which is subject to an inspection, usually the language in the contract states that the inspector must be licensed. If that is the case, you will need to get the licensed inspector. If you have not made an offer yet but just want to have the rehabber go along and walk through with you before you make an offer, that is no problem. It always goes back to what is in the contract and what is agreed upon between you and the seller.
I'd say go with the inspector. There's no guarantees on the qualifications of the rehabber. Plus, if you borrow money, they're going to want an inspection, anyway, odds are. Run the numbers on the property, if you feel it's worth your while to invest the money, get the inspector. I wouldn't hire an inspector for just ANYTHING I was looking at buying, but if you're to the point where you're SERIOUSLY considering it, the numbers work, get the inspector.
Good luck with it!!
find a general contractor who can do the inspection..kill 2 birds with 1 stone.
I would only use an inspector. There's another reason besides the fact that the inspector may have more "paper" credentials (licensed as inspector) than the rehabber if you get into a tug with the seller on inspection issues. The rehabber or contractor may have a hidden agenda--wants to buy the property himself. If so, he could try to discourage you from buying it and might not give you an objective evaluation.