They say it’s an ill wind that blows nobody good.
The coronavirus pandemic was an ill wind that severely damaged the world’s economy.
But it blew good times for Wes Donahue’s Premier Home Inspection.
He had been working at Swedish Match for about 13 years in 2019 and selling real estate on the side.
“I noticed that I had a knack for inspections,” Donahue said. “I was always pointing out deficiencies to buyers.”
And, he said, “I noticed that it was taking people 10 to 14 days to get an inspection, so I decided to do it myself.”
He opened Premier Home Inspection about seven months before COVID hit.
“COVID was actually good for me,” Donahue said. “It was so good that I was able to quit my job at Swedish Match after 14 years and concentrate on this.”
But, he said, “I like to interact with people. I couldn’t do that during COVID. I like having the interpersonal communication back.
Donahue still sells real estate, but the home inspection business is his primary focus.
“I mostly work for buyers,” he said, “but sometimes the sellers want to get ahead and get an inspection to speed things up.”
The American Society of Home Inspectors says the list of what gets inspected includes the home’s heating system, central air conditioning system (temperature permitting), interior plumbing and electrical systems, the roof, attic and visible insulation, walls, ceilings, floors, windows and doors, the foundation, basement and structural components.
“We do a full environmental workup for radon, mold, lead and asbestos,” Donahue said. Radon is increasing in this area.”
The Environmental Protection Agency says, “Radon is a radioactive gas that forms naturally when uranium, thorium, or radium, which are radioactive metals break down in rocks, soil and groundwater.”
It’s estimated to cause between 3% to 14% of all lung cancers.
Donahue is checking the crawl space beneath a house as he talks.
He’s using a Crawl Bot with a camera that sends pictures back to his FPV controller.
“I’ve had it for about a year,” Donahue said. “Before that I had to crawl under houses to inspect them. I still do sometimes.”
He just hired another inspector.
“That makes two of us,” Donahue said. “I’m expanding into Indiana next year. We’ll go as far north as Santa Claus and north of Evansville.”
He said he tries to stay within 90 minutes of Owensboro.
“I average about 300 house a year,” he said. “It takes about three hours to do an average house.”
Donahue said, “I don’t put anything in my reports that I can’t back up. I don’t go back and change anything. I like to work to help the appraiser.”
He said customers now get a complete report the day of the inspection.
EMEA Tribune is not involved in this news article, it is taken from our partners and or from the News Agencies. Copyright and Credit go to the News Agencies, email news@emeatribune.com Follow our WhatsApp verified Channel
