Home Inspection in Philadelphia County, PA
InterNACHI and ASHI certified home inspection across Philadelphia, from the rowhome blocks of Fishtown, Northern Liberties and Bella Vista to the older stone housing of Chestnut Hill, Mt. Airy and Germantown. Photo-documented report in 24 hours, starting from $325. Call 610-348-6728 for a free estimate.
Inspections typically scheduled within the week. Bob returns every call within 24 hours.
Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania
Home inspection across Philadelphia County
Written by Bob, owner and inspector, All Seasons Home Inspections ·
A home inspection in Philadelphia starts at $325 and covers foundation, structure, roof, electrical, plumbing, HVAC and the exterior envelope, with a photo-documented digital report delivered within 24 hours. Bob inspects every property personally, including rowhomes, twins and the city's older detached housing.
Philadelphia is a rowhome city, and the rowhome changes what an inspection is. Your house shares structural walls on one or both sides, your roof is flat or very low slope rather than pitched, your joists bear into masonry you cannot see, and your drainage is tied into a system that predates everyone involved. None of that is a problem in itself. All of it is a reason the inspection has to be done differently.
The city's housing is also older than the suburbs around it, with much of the stock in Fishtown, Northern Liberties, Fairmount, Bella Vista and Queen Village dating from the 1880s to the 1920s. Chestnut Hill, Mt. Airy, Germantown, Roxborough and East Falls add stone construction and detached housing on larger lots. Northeast Philadelphia is different again, largely post-war and more suburban in form.
Who does your inspection
Bob, owner and inspector
Every Philadelphia County inspection is performed by Bob personally. Not a technician, not a subcontractor, and not a different person each visit. He has been inspecting homes in Philadelphia County and the greater Philadelphia region since 2003, and he works to ASHI and InterNACHI Standards of Practice. All Seasons does not perform repairs or remediation of any kind, so there is no financial reason to find a bigger problem than you have.
Why does the flat roof matter so much on a Philadelphia rowhome?
A pitched roof sheds water whether or not anyone maintains it. A flat roof does not; it relies entirely on its membrane and its drainage staying intact, and when either fails the water has nowhere to go but into the structure. This is the single most consequential system on most city rowhomes and the one most often near the end of its life at the point of sale.
Bob looks at the membrane type and condition, the perimeter and parapet detailing, and how the roof actually drains, because standing water on a low-slope roof is a finding in its own right. Where a roof is not safely accessible he says so rather than describing a surface he did not stand on.
The parapet wall is the related item. It takes weather from both faces, its coping is frequently the first thing to fail, and water entering at the top of a party wall can appear as damage two floors down and one house over.
What does a shared party wall mean for the inspection?
In a rowhome your floor joists typically bear into the party wall, which means the condition of that masonry is a structural question, not a cosmetic one. Deteriorated mortar at a joist pocket is a genuine concern and is not visible from a finished interior.
It also means that what happens next door happens to you. A neighbouring vacant property with a failing roof, or an adjacent renovation that opened the wall, can produce problems in the house you are buying. Bob notes the condition of adjoining properties where it is visible and relevant, because on a city block that context is part of the picture.
The practical consequence for buyers is that some questions cannot be answered from inside your own four walls. An honest report says which those are rather than implying complete coverage.
How do you inspect a renovated or flipped city property?
Philadelphia has a great deal of recently renovated housing, and the quality range is wide. A well-executed renovation is a genuine advantage. A cosmetic renovation over unaddressed structure, wiring or drainage hides the exact problems a buyer most needs to know about, behind new finishes that read as reassurance.
Bob's attention on these properties goes to what is behind and beneath the new work: the service and panel, the visible framing and its modifications, the basement or cellar walls, and whether the systems match the scope of what was clearly spent upstairs. New kitchen cabinets and a hundred-year-old service tell a story worth noticing.
Where finished surfaces prevent inspection, that limitation is stated. An inspection report that quietly omits what could not be seen is worse than useless in a renovated property, because it reads as an all-clear.
What does a home inspection cost in Philadelphia?
Inspections start from $325, set by size, age and the systems needing evaluation rather than by neighbourhood. A two-storey rowhome in Fishtown and a large stone twin in Mt. Airy are different jobs.
Bob quotes on the phone before booking and will tell you honestly whether your property calls for anything beyond a standard inspection.
All Seasons performs no repairs and no remediation. Nothing Bob finds turns into work he is paid for, which is the whole basis on which an inspection is worth commissioning.
Home inspection in Philadelphia County from $325. Same inspector every time. Report in 24 hours.
Every town Bob serves
Which Philadelphia County towns does Bob cover?
Bob personally inspects homes in every Philadelphia County town listed here. Each has its own page with local detail on the housing stock and the issues that come with it.
- Home inspection in Chestnut Hill
- Home inspection in Germantown
- Home inspection in Manayunk
- Home inspection in Mt. Airy
- Home inspection in Northeast Philadelphia
- Home inspection in Philadelphia
- Home inspection in Roxborough
- Home inspection in Fishtown
- Home inspection in Northern Liberties
- Home inspection in Fairmount
- Home inspection in East Falls
- Home inspection in Bella Vista
- Home inspection in Graduate Hospital
- Home inspection in Queen Village
- Home inspection in Brewerytown
Need a different service in Philadelphia County? See mold testing in Philadelphia County or air quality testing in Philadelphia County, or browse every area Bob serves.
Common questions
Philadelphia County home inspection questions
Who does my Philadelphia inspection?
Bob, personally. There are no subcontractors and no rotating technicians, so you get the same inspector every time and can talk directly to the person who examined your property rather than to whoever answers the phone.
Do you inspect the flat roof?
Yes, where it can be reached safely, and it gets real attention because on a rowhome it is the system most likely to cause expensive damage. If a roof cannot be safely accessed, the report says exactly that rather than describing it from the ground.
Can you tell what is happening inside the party wall?
Only what the accessible evidence shows. Bob reports the visible condition at joist pockets, in the cellar and at the parapet, and states plainly where a conclusion cannot be drawn. Nothing gets buried in jargon to paper over a limitation.
How should I read the report on a flipped house?
Findings are separated into immediate safety concerns and ordinary maintenance, and limitations are listed explicitly. On a renovated property the limitations matter as much as the findings, because they tell you what the new finishes are covering.
Will the report help me negotiate?
Yes. It gives you a photographed, plain-language basis to negotiate, accept, or walk away, which carries weight in a market where a lot of properties are sold on presentation.
Which parts of the city do you cover?
Every neighbourhood listed on this page, across Center City, the river wards, Northwest Philadelphia and the Northeast. Same-week appointments are normally available.
Sources and further reading
Standards this inspection is performed to
- InterNACHI Standards of Practice for home inspections: nachi.org/standards.htm
- ASHI Standard of Practice and Code of Ethics: homeinspector.org Standards of Practice
- Pennsylvania Home Inspection Law, 68 Pa.C.S. Chapter 75: legis.state.pa.us Chapter 75
- US EPA guidance on radon testing during a real estate transaction: epa.gov/radon
A home inspection reports the condition of accessible systems on the day of the inspection. It is not a warranty, and it does not predict future failure. Observations described on this page are from All Seasons inspections in Philadelphia County.
How do I schedule a home inspection in Philadelphia County?
Same-week appointments are normally available throughout Philadelphia County. Call Bob directly and he will tell you what your situation actually needs.
Serving Philadelphia, Montgomery, Bucks, Chester & Delaware Counties. All major credit cards accepted.