Home Inspector Alert/Mike McKinny

**HomeInspectorBC** · 03-19-2010, 06:52 AM

Has anyone on Philly Speaks had any dealings with a home inspector named Mike McKinney. He uses several aliases for his business including Safe Haven Home Inspections and maybe currently operating as Chilmark Home Inspections. He is unlicensed in both Philadelphia and New Jersey and is wanted on several counts for performing bogus home inspections. Please private message me as we are currently forming a posse with local media and law enforcement to get this guy off the streets because he is creating a real nightmare for homeowners across the Delaware Valley. Apparently he likes to troll for victims on the internet with such venues as angies list, the old philly blog and now philly speaks. He was last seen performing an unlawful home inspection in Haddonfield NJ on Tuesday.

BC

**#1MetsFan** · 03-19-2010, 09:10 AM

We used Matt Brown at Chilmark in August 2008. Not sure if that's helpful, but I can tell you that he missed a whole lot.

**rks** · 03-19-2010, 11:03 AM

Originally Posted by HomeInspectorBC

Has anyone on Philly Speaks had any dealings with a home inspector named Mike McKinney. He uses several aliases for his business including Safe Haven Home Inspections and maybe currently operating as Chilmark Home Inspections. He is unlicensed in both Philadelphia and New Jersey and is wanted on several counts for performing bogus home inspections. Please private message me as we are currently forming a posse with local media and law enforcement to get this guy off the streets because he is creating a real nightmare for homeowners across the Delaware Valley. Apparently he likes to troll for victims on the internet with such venues as angies list, the old philly blog and now philly speaks. He was last seen performing an unlawful home inspection in Haddonfield NJ on Tuesday.

BC

i've got a judgement against him...pm'd you. let me know if you want to talk.

**Polar Cub** · 03-20-2010, 05:28 AM

It's scary how many unlicensed inspectors are out there. Just a few days ago at one of my inspections(WDI), a Russian guy shows up in a plain car, no ladder, and procedes to do the home inspection. He even goes as far as saying, " How much are you charge for dis ? And he will do them for 50.00, and home inspection 150.00."
I wanted to dial 911, but, I did tell the agent. She said she knew, and despite her recommendation, they went with their own person.
How can anyone spend 250,000. on a house, and try to save 200. bucks on the most important step of the purchase ? It's just plain stoopid.

**rks** · 03-20-2010, 09:47 AM

unfortunately Mr. McKinney was recommended to me by a friend who had used him and his business card and website listed what appeared to be a license number. It was only after I approached him about the issues I discovered with the house after closing and he blew me off, that I dug deeper and learned that the license number on his card is a fraudulent number (which by the way he's still apparently using). I reported him to the city and was told they can only do something if they catch him in the act of performing a home inspection - not much help. I also filed a complaint with the PA Attorney General (which also went no where because he never responded to them) and then filed a lawsuit against him...an surprise surprise - he never showed up to court.

I thought I was using a reputable guy at the time...he did show up with a ladder and looked to be legit....only once it was too late, did i realize he wasn't. I've done about all i can to report him to both the city of philadelphia and the state of nj, but i got caught in bureaucratic limbo.

**philly704** · 03-20-2010, 09:38 PM

Hi I used Mike McKinney back in July 2009. Can you tell me what he missed in your inspections? Here I thought he did a fantastic job and now I am seriously worried.......

**rks** · 03-21-2010, 12:43 PM

Originally Posted by philly704

Hi I used Mike McKinney back in July 2009. Can you tell me what he missed in your inspections? Here I thought he did a fantastic job and now I am seriously worried.......

Two bedroom Windows were screwed shut and the brick front had a 2 inch bulge between the first and second floors. I needed to hire an engineer then had to install 3 starbolts and replaced the two Windows. This was my first house...had no idea what to look for and apparently neither did he. And he took no responsibility for his omissions.

**reenie** · 03-21-2010, 02:55 PM

I used Mike for both of my homes and could not have been happier-I also did verify his license which is current and up to date, at least in Philly- it is painfully obvious to me that "BC" has a personal agenda, as he is a home inspector and not a very busy one considering his almost constant posts, etc.
get a life dude, and maybe take some spelling lessons as well!!

**rks** · 03-21-2010, 08:45 PM

At the time Mr. McKinney completed my inspection in April 2008, he did not have a valid license in nj or philly and he had no insurance. When last I checked he's still using a fake Philadelphia license number. I have no association with the OP...I have no idea who he or she is. I do know Mike missed some major things on my inspection and because he had no license or insurance all I could do was sue him to try to recoup my losses. If he was a standup guy...he should have responded to me before I sued him and he should have shown up to court to defend himself...he did neither. I'm glad you had 2 good experiences with him - you're lucky. I had one very bad experience with him and would hate to see someone else end up like me- out 4 grand.

I just checked the ASHI website (association of home inspectors) and the Philadelphia license number listed for Mr. McKinney is the same fake number he had 2 years ago. The city does not use that format for license numbers so I'm unsure what number you confirmed with the city.

**philly704** · 03-21-2010, 08:52 PM

Did you get your money back from him? I can understand why you are pisst, I would be too.

Originally Posted by rks

At the time Mr. McKinney completed my inspection in April 2008, he did not have a valid license in nj or philly and he had no insurance. When last I checked he's still using a fake Philadelphia license number. I have no association with the OP...I have no idea who he or she is. I do know Mike missed some major things on my inspection and because he had no license or insurance all I could do was sue him to try to recoup my losses. If he was a standup guy...he should have responded to me before I sued him and he should have shown up to court to defend himself...he did neither. I'm glad you had 2 good experiences with him - you're lucky. I had one very bad experience with him and would hate to see someone else end up like me- out 4 grand.

**rks** · 03-21-2010, 09:36 PM

Originally Posted by philly704

Did you get your money back from him? I can understand why you are pisst, I would be too.

Not a penny..

**HomeInspectorBC** · 03-22-2010, 01:36 AM

REENIE, is a made up account that joined phillyspeaks today.

Again don't take my word for it on licensed home inspectors call the City at 215 686-8686 and find out for yourself or go to the NJ division of consumer affairs website at http://www.state.nj.us/cgi-bin/consu...rofession=1241

**Tail** · 03-22-2010, 01:35 PM

We'll he cant be as bad as the home inspector that Dolan RE in Fishtown recommended to us.

He said everything was fine with the house, just some cosmetic work. The very first weekend after moving in, it rained and we had a flooded basement. The floor joist in living room had sunk about 2 1/2" in center of room. The joists under dining room are rotted in the pockets. When someone is on floor, I can see whole joists moving and put a screwdriver straight through joists without effort. The basement steps had to be torn out and rebuilt. Windows that fell out of frame and had to be completely replaced. All new sewer pipes needed, Roof leaks, hand rails that ripped of walls. Where furniture was, all the hardwood floors were buckled. The list goes on and on and on.

I should have sued. This was my first house purchase too, now I'm much more savvy in what to look for in a house.

By the way any recommendations on a joist person?

**philly704** · 03-22-2010, 05:23 PM

Hi I used Mike McKinney and my experience with him, was really good. He gave me a very detailed home inspection report and the one big thing he pointed out, was fixed because the owners gave me money for the repairs. I tend to always do my research so I called the city of Philadelphia today and he is registered and licensed, so is Chilmark.

BC where are you looking that says he is not licensed?

**Brooke** · 03-22-2010, 06:28 PM

Eeek...libel is not a great thing.

First, inspectors can only inspect what they can see. If you read your contract, you'll see that inspections are limited. Good inspectors should see tell-tale signs of water damage, etc., but sometimes it really *is* the first time something like a basement flood happened (ie. how many of your roofs leaked for the first time during the storm or the monsoon we just got through)...

...That said, my agent at the time recommended me a super crappy inspector I'm sure so the house would just sale through settlement. I had "2-3 years left on the roof" and during the first rainstorm, I had 3 buckets catching the water. There was plumbing not attached to the sewer that was visibly draining into an old outdoor toilet...He found "mold" that was not mold that he claimed was all over. (Luckily, I just figured I'd spray it down with bleach and it turned out to be nothing but flaky old spraypaint).

Anyway, it sounds like he is licensed from Philly704--I doubted the poster with 1 post above too but sometimes an inflammatory post brings a poster to register rather than lurk--and maybe we should start asking how HomeinspectorBC knows of this guy and what stake he has in this.

So HomeinspectorBC, what's your involvement with this guy? Did you clean up after one of his inspections or something? What's the story? You posted this several times and the other posts got deleted because it's considered spam--so you must be pretty passionately against this guy so please share.

**HomeInspectorBC** · 03-22-2010, 06:34 PM

Philly 704 you post are very flattering of a certain home inspector and anytime his name is mentioned you chime in with praises to the high heavens, but your stories/scenarios keep changing about your experiences with this inspector so anything you say is suspect from my perspective. That being said I too called the city of Philadelphia today and this past Friday, the women from the city L & I stated to me that Mike McKinney is not licensed in the city of Philadelphia, Chilmark Home Inspections is not licensed in philly either. Matt Brown of Chilmark Home Inspections is licensed in Philly but that does not transfer to Chilmark Home Inspections or any other home inspector that works for Chilmark and from that company Matt Brown is the only one that can perform a legal home inspection inside the city limits. So what I am saying Philly 704 and please take this the way it is intended. YOU ARE FULL OF SH"T.

Again do not take my word for it call 215 686-8686 prior to hiring any contractor in the city to verify that the business is registered and legally allowed to perform work or inspect your house.

Have a great day.

**rks** · 03-22-2010, 07:00 PM

Originally Posted by Brooke

Eeek...libel is not a great thing.

First, inspectors can only inspect what they can see. If you read your contract, you'll see that inspections are limited.

The things Mr. McKinney missed in my inspection should have been clearly visible to a trained eye - nothing was hidden behind a wall, under the floor or under the roof. As soon as I had a mason stop by to give me a quote for repointing, the first thing he said was "ya know ya got a bulge in the brick don'tcha." And as soon as I had a contractor stop by to look at doing some work he pointed out the windows had been screwed shut to keep from falling out. This was all after my closing so I was unable to negotiate with the seller which was my point to Mike. But he didn't seem to care.

All the information provided to me by Mike - from my agreement, to his business card, to his website indicated he was fully licensed and insured at the time of my inspection. Had I known he wasn't I would not have used him. Only after I discovered the issues and he refused to work with me to come to an amicable resolution, did I begin to dig deeper and discovered that he had no valid license or insurance at the time of my inspection.

Again, I have no association with the OP...I simply am a first-time home-buyer who got taken by an unlicensed home inspector. Now I know what to look for and will do my best to avoid finding myself out an unexpected $4000 the next time I buy a house.

**philly704** · 03-22-2010, 09:00 PM

What is your agenda with smearing someones name in the mud? I have no ties to Mike McKinney, if that is what you are implying.. All i am saying is my experience was a good one. It is not even clear to me why you are claiming my post have changed?

What ever the case is I see two different stories on this forum. One is RKS, who I believe is handling this in a good matter. The other is YOU and it seems perfectly obvious that you are crazy and just want to get back at this inspector for other reasons... So i will repeat Brooke and ask " What is your deal and what has he done to you.?"

RKS answered and he seems valid, you not so much...

Originally Posted by HomeInspectorBC

Philly 704 you post are very flattering of a certain home inspector and anytime his name is mentioned you chime in with praises to the high heavens, but your stories/scenarios keep changing about your experiences with this inspector so anything you say is suspect from my perspective. That being said I too called the city of Philadelphia today and this past Friday, the women from the city L & I stated to me that Mike McKinney is not licensed in the city of Philadelphia, Chilmark Home Inspections is not licensed in philly either. Matt Brown of Chilmark Home Inspections is licensed in Philly but that does not transfer to Chilmark Home Inspections or any other home inspector that works for Chilmark and from that company Matt Brown is the only one that can perform a legal home inspection inside the city limits. So what I am saying Philly 704 and please take this the way it is intended. YOU ARE FULL OF SH"T.

Again do not take my word for it call 215 686-8686 prior to hiring any contractor in the city to verify that the business is registered and legally allowed to perform work or inspect your house.

Have a great day.

**Brooke** · 03-22-2010, 09:05 PM

Yikes--$4k sounds cheap for a bulging front though--did one starbolt take care of it? Once it bulges, a little masonry work won't save it as far as structural engineers have told me over the years. I don't mean to freak you out but if I were you, I might have a structural engineer take a look at it. The authority in this area is Dan Banks--he can tell you plenty of other really historically interesting stuff about your house at the same time. Neat guy.

I am actually personally interested in this guy now...I am going to call tomorrow but is 311 the best number to call? What a pain.

I can't remember if this guy did an inspection or two for me back when I started in real estate--and if so, back then he was with US Inspect or one of the chains. So if he isn't licensed now he was then if he was working for those companies (and if we are talking about the same person).

**rks** · 03-22-2010, 09:18 PM

I did have an engineer look at it - Amy Rivera. She recommended I have 3 starbolts installed and the mason gave me a break because he also repointed the brick. It was also done before I had carpet put in the front bedroom so they cut through the floor and I.didn't have to pay for repairs because carpet covers the damage to the floor.