What Does a Home Inspection Cost in California?

The honest answer is a range, because the price depends on the property. But the range should be published, and you should be able to see it before you call. Here is ours.

The published starting prices

Add-ons, when they apply: a pool and spa inspected at the same visit adds $150 to $200, a raised foundation adds $150 to $200, and an additional structure on the same property is $100.

Multi-family buildings and anything over 5,000 square feet are quoted on a call, because the scope varies too much to publish one number honestly. The full rate card is online rather than sent on request.

What moves the final number

Three things, mostly:

• Property type. A condo is scoped to the unit; a detached house includes grounds, exterior and roof.
• Size. Larger homes take longer, and past 5,000 square feet the job changes enough to need a conversation.
• What you add. A pool and spa, a raised foundation, a second structure on the lot.

The starting price is a floor, not a quote. The final figure is confirmed when you book, before anyone comes out.

Why the cheapest inspection is rarely the cheapest outcome

It is a small number in a very large transaction, and treating it as a line to minimise gets the arithmetic backwards.

Consider what the report is for. If it surfaces something the seller then repairs or credits before settlement, it has usually paid for itself several times over - repairs of that kind routinely cost more than the inspection fee on their own. The risk is not overpaying by a hundred dollars. The risk is a shallow inspection that misses the item you would have negotiated on, and you carry that one for as long as you own the house.

Do not let cost deter you from having an inspection, or from choosing an inspector you are comfortable with. The inspector's qualifications - experience, training, professional standing - should be the deciding factor.

What you should be able to check before booking

• How long they have been inspecting, and roughly how many inspections that is
• What they are certified in, and by whom
• How much continuing education they take each year
• Whether they work for you, or take referral work from others in the sale
• Whether you can see a sample report first

For our part: inspecting across Orange County since 2003, over 20,000 completed inspections and more than a thousand hours of inspection training, a Certified Combination Building Inspector with ICC, with at least 20 hours of continuing education a year. There is a sample report, and the rate card is published.

To book, call (714) 371-8422 or request an inspection.