Lessons Learned From More Than Two Decades as a NJ Home Inspector
By John Martino
Board-Certified Master Inspector
LookSmart Home Inspections, LLC
After more than 8,000 home inspections since 2002, I’ve stopped believing in perfect houses.
That may sound strange coming from a home inspector, but it’s probably the most important thing houses have taught me.
One of the questions I hear most as a NJ home inspector is whether a house is “good” or “bad.” People often expect NJ home inspections to provide a simple yes-or-no answer, but things are rarely that simple. Over the years, I’ve come to realize that houses are not nearly as fragile as people think, and they are not nearly as perfect as people hope.
I’ve inspected beautiful homes with expensive hidden problems and ordinary-looking homes that were exceptionally well maintained. I’ve inspected homes that were over one hundred years old and homes that were less than ten years old. The same lesson keeps repeating itself.
Most houses are just houses.
And that’s not a bad thing.
In fact, I think many buyers would enjoy the process a lot more if they expected a house to be imperfect. Houses age. Systems wear out. Things break. That’s normal. Homeownership isn’t about avoiding maintenance. It’s about managing it.
One thing that has earned my respect over the years is water.
Water doesn’t need drama. It doesn’t need a burst pipe or a flooded basement to cause damage. Most of the time it works quietly. A missing gutter extension, poor grading, a roof leak, condensation in an attic, or a small plumbing leak can slowly cause damage for years before anyone notices.
Water is patient.
Given enough time, it usually wins.
That’s why cosmetic defects rarely keep me awake. Loose hinges, nail pops, minor drywall cracks, and worn paint are all normal parts of homeownership. Water intrusion, on the other hand, has a way of turning small problems into expensive repairs.
People are often surprised when I tell them that old houses don’t bother me very much anymore.
Poor maintenance does.
Some of the best homes I’ve inspected were built in the 1800s. Some of the most neglected homes I’ve seen were less than ten years old. Age alone tells me very little. Maintenance tells me almost everything.
Houses rarely wake up one morning and suddenly decide to fail. Most problems develop slowly because small issues were ignored for years. A loose gutter, a damaged downspout, missing caulk, or poor drainage doesn’t seem like a big deal today, but after enough years, little things become expensive things.
Experience has also taught me that many of the most expensive problems are hidden.
Everyone notices kitchens and bathrooms. Everyone notices countertops, flooring, and paint colors. Very few people think about underground sewer lines, drainage around the foundation, retaining walls, concealed moisture, or improper renovations hidden behind finished walls.
Some of the prettiest houses I’ve inspected have worried me the most.
Fresh paint and beautiful furniture don’t tell you what is happening behind the walls, inside the attic, or underground.
Likewise, some houses that buyers almost walked away from turned out to be wonderful homes with only ordinary maintenance concerns.
Another thing that still surprises people is how many issues I find in newer homes.
Many buyers assume new construction means perfect construction.
It doesn’t.
In fact, some of the more interesting issues I find during NJ home inspections are in newer homes. Builders are human. Contractors are human. Municipal inspectors are human. Mistakes happen. Missing insulation, drainage problems, electrical defects, plumbing leaks, and attic ventilation issues are things I regularly encounter.
New doesn’t mean perfect.
It simply means newer.
People often ask me if I would walk away from a house.
Honestly, very few houses truly scare me.
Roofs wear out.
Furnaces age.
Water heaters fail.
Sewer lines deteriorate.
Every system in a house has a lifespan.
That doesn’t necessarily make a house bad. It simply means that ownership comes with responsibilities.
One thing I wish more buyers understood after reading their NJ home inspection report is that the goal isn’t to find a perfect house.
It’s to understand the house you’re buying and to have realistic expectations about homeownership.
Sometimes buyers become discouraged when they receive a long report. That’s understandable. But a report doesn’t mean you’ve found a bad house.
It means you’ve found a used house.
Roofs wear out.
Water heaters leak.
Windows age.
Houses settle.
Maintenance never ends.
That’s true whether the house is five years old or one hundred years old.
The buyers who seem happiest years later are not the ones who found perfect houses. They’re the ones who entered homeownership with realistic expectations and understood that every house requires care.
After all these years, I’ve come to believe that understanding is far more important than perfection.
Perhaps that’s the biggest lesson houses have taught me after more than 8,000 inspections.
Most houses are not disasters.
Most houses are not perfect.
Most houses are simply waiting for someone to care for them.
And if you do, most of them will take care of you.
John Martino is a Board-Certified Master Inspector and owner of LookSmart Home Inspections, LLC. Since 2002, he has performed more than 8,000 NJ home inspections throughout northern and central New Jersey. As one of the most experienced NJ home inspectors, he helps buyers understand the strengths and weaknesses of the homes they are considering. His goal has always been to provide thorough, educational, and unbiased NJ home inspections that help clients make informed decisions.