Here we answer questions about getting a home or commercial property inspection, give tips on home maintenance, and share our knowledge about common home and commercial property issues. We are here to help you. If you can’t find an answer to your questions here, you can always contact us via our contact page.
One of the first tools I pull out on an HVAC inspection isn’t a gauge or a camera — it’s a thermometer. Delta-T is simple in theory: it’s the temperature difference between the air going into your system and the air coming out. In the real world, it tells me
I’ve already started seeing the confusion out in the field, and 2026 isn’t even fully here yet. Just last summer, I was inspecting a newer build outside Bartlett. Home was barely three years old, seller bragging about the “almost new” HVAC system. Buyer asked a simple question at the end
The phrase independent contractor sounds straightforward. Most inspectors hear it and think autonomy, flexibility, and freedom from corporate control. In theory, it means an inspector runs their own professional practice while partnering with a company for marketing, scheduling, or administrative support. In practice, the model has drifted far from that
As home inspection companies grow, they tend to look more alike. Centralized scheduling. Rigid policies. Standardized reports. Layers of management between the inspector and the client. At Upchurch Inspection, we’ve grown too — but we’ve made intentional choices about how we grow, and just as importantly, what we refuse to
Over the past decade, the home inspection industry has changed. Large, multi-state companies now operate in dozens of markets at once. Scheduling is centralized. Reporting is standardized. Systems are designed to scale quickly. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that model. But as the industry becomes more nationalized, it’s worth asking
Most homes have problems. That’s not a criticism — it’s reality. Homes are exposed to weather, moisture, movement, wear, and time. An inspection that doesn’t identify issues isn’t thorough. But there’s an important distinction that often gets overlooked: Finding problems is not the same as explaining risk. At Upchurch Inspection,
Most inspection companies don’t set out to build something compromised. They build for efficiency.They build for growth.They build for coverage. And for a while, those goals align with quality. Then scale introduces pressure.Pressure introduces shortcuts.Shortcuts introduce silence. Not dramatic silence — subtle silence.The kind that lives between what could be
At some point, most independent inspectors consider joining a larger operation. Sometimes it’s about volume.Sometimes it’s about stability.Sometimes it’s simply fatigue — marketing, scheduling, billing, and admin wear people down. Multi-inspector firms promise relief. And sometimes, they deliver it. But before joining one, there are questions every inspector should ask
Most clients spend more time comparing square footage and paint colors than they do understanding how their home inspection will actually be performed. That’s not a criticism. Buying a home is overwhelming, and inspection companies don’t always make it easy to know what questions matter. Many conversations focus on price,
There’s a moment every inspector eventually faces. It’s not dramatic.It doesn’t come with raised voices or ultimatums.It usually arrives quietly — disguised as “just how things work.” That moment is when you realize that continuing means saying less than you should, explaining things more gently than they deserve, or accepting
Most people think of home inspection as a transaction. A client schedules.An inspector shows up.A report is delivered.Everyone moves on. What almost no one sees is the structure behind that transaction — and how that structure quietly determines what kind of inspection actually takes place. Because inspections don’t happen in
Fast markets create a certain kind of pressure. Not loud pressure.Quiet pressure. The kind that doesn’t say “cut corners” — it says “keep things moving.” And in modern real estate, very few phrases are treated as virtues more often than that. Speed Feels Like Competence — Until It Isn’t A
