Home Inspector in Utica, MI

Utica is a small city with a long history wrapped inside much newer suburbs, and that combination makes for an unusually varied inspection. The old village core near Auburn and Van Dyke holds genuinely old housing — early twentieth century and older in places — while the surrounding development is postwar ranch and modern condominium. Two houses a few blocks apart can need completely different attention.

The Clinton River is the other defining feature. It runs right through the city, and proximity to it drives a set of findings I look for specifically: basement and crawlspace moisture, sump pump condition and discharge, foundation drainage, and grading that sends water toward the structure instead of away from it. If a property sits near the river, I want to know how it has handled the last several wet springs, not just how it looks on a dry day in the fall.

In the older core homes, the story is layers. Most have been updated at least twice, and my job is separating the update that was done properly from the one that was done cheaply. New panel with the original branch wiring behind it. New bathroom on a drain line that was never re-sloped. New furnace on ductwork that was never rebalanced. I document what was actually replaced and what was left alone.