How much should a pre-sale independent inspection cost?

spoon059 wrote:
Wow, some of these prices quoted are more than I paid for my home inspection for a $400K house 8 years ago!!!

OP, unless you are getting a guarantee from an inspector I wouldn't pay that much. If it were me I would take it to a trusted shop (kinda hard from 500 miles away) and pay an hourly rate to have a trusted mechanic inspect it. Its a class B, I don't know of too many issues with a leaking class B. I would be more concerned with condition of engine, transmission and appliances.

Your sticks & bricks Home inspection - normally does not include a warranty or "guarantee" on/for anything.

The inspector lists the items he finds which need attention or repair.
(For example a leaking faucet in a bathroom, roof is about due to be replaced, etc.)

Usually for an additional fee, at close of escrow, a warranty can be purchased. (Has nothing to do with the Home Inspector).

items covered, and the length of the warranty may vary - usually about 6 months to one year. (And yes - worthwhile! Mine replaced several A/C components when it failed. Parts alone were way more than the cost of the warranty)

Although a MH may have many of the same appliances as a S&B,
it doesn't have an engine & drive train.


OP - As a poster suggested - go there yourself.
Line up a mobile RV service. Do a walk-thru *with* them.
Have the MH checked by a local mechanic.

*Don't* expect or pay for any kind of "warranty" from anyone..:S

.

Inspection services are not going to guarantee that the RV is free of problems. The seller may wish to guarantee or warrant the vehicle for a set amount of mileage or time but that is rare.
Observation or inspection done by a skilled third party has it's place but is not a guarantee against future problems. I'd suggest that anyone purchasing a used vehicle, RV or other, have a reasonable repair and maintenance budget in mind.

jplante4 wrote:

spoon059 wrote:
If it were me I would take it to a trusted shop (kinda hard from 500 miles away) and pay an hourly rate to have a trusted mechanic inspect it.

And more often than not, this is the problem. You see a coach on RVT or RVTrader, it looks nice, but it's a round trip plane ride and a night in a hotel to just look at it. If you could find a third party to just go look at it and say if it's worth pursuing, there's some value in that. I know there are a few RV.net members that live close to PPL and have volunteered to do just that. No one asked for a guarantee from them.

We have a similar problem buying airplanes. You really need to do a pre-buy inspection to make sure, among other things, that the plane is airworthy. So you arrange with a local (to the plane) A&P mechanic to look at it, or pay for your A&P to travel to where the plane is. The consequences of not doing this are huge financially. No one asks for a guarantee. It's assumed that the certification of aircraft mechanics is guarantee enough.

My thoughts exactly. That's 2 days hard driving by myself, 2 nights in a hotel, meals for 2.5-3 days. Can't do it for $500. I am mainly concerned about the mechanical aspects--engine, tranny, and major appliances, in the RV. This does have a slide & I am concerned about potential leaks/problems there. I understand it's likely to need minor repairs, and a carpet/upholstery cleaning. I just don't want a bad tranny or blown engine up front.

This is a small motorhome on a Chevy chassis, it's what I would like to have.

This is why I decided to only buy an RV that I could inspect first before having it inspected by a shop. That way I knew I was willing to risk a couple hundred bucks getting an RV checked out after making sure it was all that the seller claimed it to be. All too often, I found that the seller was overly optimistic when describing their RV to me even with pictures that seemingly backed up their claims. I'd hate to shell out $500 and get a report that says it was a piece of junk although admittedly it is better than not shelling out for the inspection, buying it and finding it to be a piece of junk. I couldn't have afforded to do that more than twice on something that I didn't end up purchasing. My opinion is to look at it yourself first and then pay to have it inspected.

spoon059 wrote:
If it were me I would take it to a trusted shop (kinda hard from 500 miles away) and pay an hourly rate to have a trusted mechanic inspect it.

And more often than not, this is the problem. You see a coach on RVT or RVTrader, it looks nice, but it's a round trip plane ride and a night in a hotel to just look at it. If you could find a third party to just go look at it and say if it's worth pursuing, there's some value in that. I know there are a few RV.net members that live close to PPL and have volunteered to do just that. No one asked for a guarantee from them.

We have a similar problem buying airplanes. You really need to do a pre-buy inspection to make sure, among other things, that the plane is airworthy. So you arrange with a local (to the plane) A&P mechanic to look at it, or pay for your A&P to travel to where the plane is. The consequences of not doing this are huge financially. No one asks for a guarantee. It's assumed that the certification of aircraft mechanics is guarantee enough.

spoon059 wrote:
Wow, some of these prices quoted are more than I paid for my home inspection for a $400K house 8 years ago!!!

OP, unless you are getting a guarantee from an inspector I wouldn't pay that much. If it were me I would take it to a trusted shop (kinda hard from 500 miles away) and pay an hourly rate to have a trusted mechanic inspect it. Its a class B, I don't know of too many issues with a leaking class B. I would be more concerned with condition of engine, transmission and appliances.

I dunno...$500 seems reasonable given that my shop charges $110 p/h for work. how long should it take to thoroughly inspect a MH? less than 5-hrs @ $100 per would be a savings.

Wow, some of these prices quoted are more than I paid for my home inspection for a $400K house 8 years ago!!!

OP, unless you are getting a guarantee from an inspector I wouldn't pay that much. If it were me I would take it to a trusted shop (kinda hard from 500 miles away) and pay an hourly rate to have a trusted mechanic inspect it. Its a class B, I don't know of too many issues with a leaking class B. I would be more concerned with condition of engine, transmission and appliances.

Darsben - looks like you have a hair across your butt for inspectors. Too bad. Don't use one.

jplante4 wrote:

darsben wrote:

jplante4 wrote:
I do 2 types of inspections; a buy/don't buy for $300 and a full inspection for $1500.

The buy/no buy is basically a look it over. Check the roof, look for water damage, check the tire dates and overall condition. I take a bunch or pictures and look for obvious damage or signs that the rig has been hit. I'll list all the equipment and the models and do a quick recall check.

The full inspection takes a full day. I run everything, check the electrical, water and propane systems, inspect the roof, and drive it if it's a motor home. Fluid analysis is $100 extra.

Check this site to see if there's a certified inspector in your area.

Click

What is your guaranty? If you miss something and the rig gets bought do you reimburse?

See Inspection agreement
http://rvinspection.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/RVIC_Inspection_Agreement_Copyright_2014.pdf
specifically NUMBER 4. In fact in my reading of the agreement I believe most of it is to release the inspector from liability of any kind

Well, that's why you buy errors and omissions insurance. You'll find inspectors that guarantee omissions and then put all kinds of disclaimers in the report to cover their butt ("System not fully tested due to weather conditions")

I'm not listed on RV Inspection connection so I don't use that agreement.

What's my protection from you getting buyer's remorse and going after me for some issue you found with the coach after you bought it?

A yes blame the customer.

darsben wrote:

jplante4 wrote:
I do 2 types of inspections; a buy/don't buy for $300 and a full inspection for $1500.

The buy/no buy is basically a look it over. Check the roof, look for water damage, check the tire dates and overall condition. I take a bunch or pictures and look for obvious damage or signs that the rig has been hit. I'll list all the equipment and the models and do a quick recall check.

The full inspection takes a full day. I run everything, check the electrical, water and propane systems, inspect the roof, and drive it if it's a motor home. Fluid analysis is $100 extra.

Check this site to see if there's a certified inspector in your area.

Click

What is your guaranty? If you miss something and the rig gets bought do you reimburse?

See Inspection agreement
http://rvinspection.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/RVIC_Inspection_Agreement_Copyright_2014.pdf
specifically NUMBER 4. In fact in my reading of the agreement I believe most of it is to release the inspector from liability of any kind

Well, that's why you buy errors and omissions insurance. You'll find inspectors that guarantee omissions and then put all kinds of disclaimers in the report to cover their butt ("System not fully tested due to weather conditions")

I'm not listed on RV Inspection connection so I don't use that agreement.

What's my protection from you getting buyer's remorse and going after me for some issue you found with the coach after you bought it?