Recomendation needed

There are home inspectors. They must be licensed in New York. I've watched a lot of them and I've never seen one in New York City that was any good. If you go that route anyway, at least get one with the letters P.E. after their name, because then they have a license as an engineer.

What I personally do with my own properties is to hire an electrician to evaluate wiring, and a plumber to evaluate plumbing. Licensed people only of course. I know that's expensive, but especially for potentially hazardous wiring I would not fool around.

Electrical work not up to code, not done by licensed people, may be a problem for the owner if there is an insurance claim owing to a fire from faulty wiring. Not to mention that a fire may be a problem.

apt55: I must respectfully disagree with kharby2. And kharby - here is one that is fantastic.

I have bought and sold both coops and condos - pre-war, post-war, and new construction. Although I know it is unusual for most buyers to bring their own building inspector (seller's brokers don't usually love the idea), I would not consider purchasing a place without a qualified building inspector's approval. I use someone who trust implicitly and who I think is terrific (and no, there's no nepotism here - I don't work in the field, and he's not a family relative or anything like that) - he was recommended to me by my real estate attorney who is very conservative and protective, and I have used him on every purchase.

The company is Accurate Building Inspectors, and he is the owner - Lawrence (Larry) Ubell. Here is a link for you to investigate -
http://www.accuratebuilding.com

I might add, that I strongly suggest that you accompany Larry on the inspection. It takes about an hour. He will talk with the building engineer/super first in the basement where all the systems enter the building and carefully review all the plants. He will then walk the halls, stairways, and the roof to review all that, and finally do a thorough inspection of the specific unit you are buying. He will talk with you about all the details that he is noticing, and I always come away from his inspections with a wealth of knowledge about the building. You will receive an extensive written report a few days later. The cost is based on the unit, usually between $500 and $1,000 dollars.

What if a co-op or managing agent won't let an outside inspector look at the common infrastructure?

crescent22: If that were the case, it would set off alarm bells to me. I'd walk away.

Professional Home Inspection Corp.
718-828-9116 Richard Perri.

^^ what cheslowk said. I and several friends have used Mr. Perri going back a dozen years. He is excellent, and way more detailed than any other NYC inspector I have encountered.

The time to have any mechanical/structural inspection is before you sign the contract of sale, not after.

I appreciate that in this market that is probably impossible, but get your attorney's advice before you spring a complaint like that at the closing table. It's better to resolve it before the big day, usually.

The problem with customers' testimonials in this field is that they don't know what they don't know, they are utterly clueless. It's not like a restaurant review.

It's like trying to pass judgement on how good your emergency appendectomy surgery was; if you're alive, you're probably OK with the quality of the work.

Most customers can't even tell by looking if the building's boiler burns oil or natural gas. Or both. Or if it's steam or hot water. Anybody like that cannot evaluate an inspector.

These inspectors sidestep the most expensive and serious issues with boilerplate language full of qualifiers and escape clauses. When you sign with them, they limit their liability to their fee, or perhaps twice their fee. If they're seriously wrong it's likely to cost the new owner a lot more than that.

If I had a specific electrical issue I would absolutely hire an electrician, who has a license on the line as well as specific and deep expertise.

Further to kharby's assertion "...The time to have any mechanical/structural inspection is before you sign the contract of sale, not after..."

YES. Absolutely. And assuming everything passes muster, the understanding should be that the inspector will return for the final walk-through just before (or the morning of) the closing - but only to do a cursory inspection of the unit itself, and not the entire building again.