True North Home Inspections

Keven is an awesome dude. When we first saw him, after we booked him over the telephone we were worried if this very young looking professional could deliver? We thought we had a rookie on our hands, but he turned out be one tough cookie. He assured me that he is an old pro and had more than a decade of experience doing home inspections. Turned out be first of our very good experiences of the hectic process of house buying. He gave us an outstanding inspection and his report was very detailed. He patiently explained the problems he saw and the possible solutions to each. The seller was mightily unimpressed and I am sure he will leave a vitriolic review for Kevin, but we got everything fixed thankfully. He has the gizmos to find out problems in every corner and crevice. All my friends were mighty impressed with his detailed report and some even asked for his number as they were planning to enter the house hunting game.
We have had friends show us their unimpressive inspection reports and praise ours. Kevin not only inspected the roof carefully, but also comprehensively checked the attic. he even pointed out details which I thought were minor and unimportant at first glance and explained the dangers of neglecting them.
When he saw me panicking he also calmly made me understand that the house was one of the better ones he had seen and the issues easily resolvable.
He does nitpick (in a good way, because the house we thought to be spic and span ran several pages of fix it issues) but he tells you which one is a red flag and which one is not, which was extremely helpful for this perplexed first timer.
He is very friendly and affable and we refer him to all our friends planning to blow away their life savings on that dream home.
We cannot thank our lovely agent Roslyn enough for referring Keven.

We are in the process of buying our second home and our realtor recommended True North Home Inspections. I would HIGHLY recommend anyone who is having a home inspection to use Keven. He is worth every single penny spent. He is very thorough and walks you through the inspection. He was very prompt and we had a summary of our inspection the same night along with pictures and videos of things he found within the home. He uses an infrared camera and is able to see things you would not see without one. I cannot say enough good things about him. I will never use another inspector and 100% recommend him to anyone.

Keven is exactly what you want in an inspector: detail oriented, hard working, professional, experienced (12+ years), unbiased and knowledgeable. He got to the house early and got to work right away. He was recommended to us by a friend and was able to get in on short notice (next day) and tight timelines (8 am).
He was able to explain things he was seeing that might be cause for concern and back it up with solid evidence and experience. He could then give recommendations for what things were the most serious, to repairs that could happen down the road.
We gave Keven a BIG job. It was a house over 100 years old, with an addition, and a lot of different era remodels. He could not only point out small issues that we never would have noticed, and why we should take note of them, but could point out quality of upgrades that had been done, where the previous contractor may have cut corners, and explain reasons behind why something like «sluggish drainage» could be indicative of a bigger problem.
It gave us such peace of mind to go over the initial finding of the report on site and as he inspected the house where he could answer any questions we might have, but the final report he sent the next morning was impeccable. Easy to understand, good use of photos and embedded with explanatory videos. My husband and I aren’t particularly knowledgeable about home structures and so to not only have the information, but the explanation, put us in a great position to negotiate with the home seller.
Keven’s professionalism & ability to remain objective is what really impressed us. When giving his report onsite our real estate agent began to push back aggressively on his findings of water in the basement and mold in the attic, trying to make the issues seem less serious than they were, and attribute them to the house’s age to make a sale. Keven was able to calmly explain his observations, back them up with video he had taken, and reiterate his concern that these were health & safety concerns that would just need to be fixed regardless of the age of the house. He wasn’t recommend that we buy or don”t buy the house, or that the seller would have to make the repairs, simply that they were big issues that would need to be addressed by SOMEONE. He was very objective and he didn’t back down when our real estate agent got very aggressive.
Plus, he utilized cutting edge tools to get us the most accurate information. He wasn’t depending on the tools to do his job for him, but using them as a way to back up his finding and go deeper in the inspection. The thermal camera helped find missing insulation, drainage issues, etc. His report was done on-​site and had clear image call outs, videos, thermal imaging and thorough descriptions of everything he called out.
We would ABSOLUTELY recommend True North Inspections to anyone looking for an objective, thorough, professional inspection that will give you peace of mind that you’re going into a purchase 100% informed.

We were given a stack of cards to decide which home inspector we wanted to use and so of course first thing we did was look on here to see who was the best fit for the job. Keven had all amazing reviews and of course these reviews were not lying! He was as amazing as it gets! When he arrived he wouldn’t do our inspection because we couldn’t get the heat and the water turned on as our house was winterized and he didn’t want us to waste our money on an incomplete inspection, that was his first big win over with us. Then he was nice enough not to even charge us to come back out because it wasn’t our fault that the companies wouldn’t turn on the heat and such for us. He rescheduled with us and came back and did a fantastic job of checking out our new home. He used thermal imaging and showed us where heat was escaping water damage and everything! He was also very nice and defiantly didn’t disappoint. He has defiantly made buying our first home a great experience and making sure that we don’t get into a house that isn’t worth buying and I hope he is still in the business several years down the road if we decide to move because we will 100% be using him again when and if we get a new home!

I see Keven with True North very often since my employer is hired frequently to inspect sewers for presold houses. I also meet multiple other home inspectors as well. I have never seen the same amount of thoroughness and professionalism that Keven brings to every inspection. The amount of times I hear Realestate agents rant and rave about him makes me feel good to go out of my way to refer him. I was talking to an agent one day and he said «I even find myself getting upset when my clients do not hire Keven».

Our friend recommended Keven to inspect a house we were interested in buying, and we owe that friend a drink.
Keven was polite and prompt when I contacted him to schedule the inspection, and that professionalism continued throughout our contact with him. He showed up on time to our inspection and immediately go to work. During the inspection, he pointed out the more significant concerns and allowed us to read the report on his fancy tablet so we could ask questions about any of the smaller issues.
Also, when we found a homeless woman in the house (!!!), he stayed collected and had a sense of humor about it (as did my husband, realtor, and I). (But seriously, wtf??? Less stable folk would have been unpleasant in the circumstances.)
Our inspection started at 9 AM, ended by noon, and he had our completed report emailed to by 1:30 PM. The work was thorough and it included images from his thermal imaging gun. (Amaaaazing tool! It comforted my husband to know there were no rodents in the walls, because he would have seen those mofos with the gun.)
We don’t use home inspectors every day (or ever before now), but our friends told us the his prices were even better than theirs though the houses they inspected were smaller and newer.
In sum, hire the heck out of him.

We are buying an older home which many of you may know that comes with it’s own set of special issues. Keven was awesome! He totally shifted some stuff around to make our inspection work, as I was set on having him do our inspection and didn’t want anyone else. He does a thorough full inspection which includes a pest inspection and he does a thermal inspection. He walked us through everything and answered all of our questions. He found things we wouldn’t even have thought of as being an issue. We were able to view most of the report while he was doing other things, and he had a full report to us the next day with a detail summary attached as well. He put together a binder for us that included everything you would need to know about your house and also fits the finished report. Between the technology that he uses and his overall knowledge Keven did not disappoint. I couldn’t be happier with the service we received and if your getting a home inspection done all I can say he would be worth the wait if he’s booked. You will not find a better home inspection anywhere.

Keven was excellent to have as a home inspector. We were thoroughly impressed by his comprehensive approach to each area and his professionalism, knowledge and willingness to educate and inform us throughout the inspection process. The first house we brought him in to inspect we ended up walking away from, largely due to some of the not-​so-​apparent things that Keven found.
His inspection report contained relevant photos with areas of concern circled and commented on, including thermal images where appropriate, and a pest inspection to boot.
In my opinion, «competitive» doesn’t begin to describe his pricing; it’s more like «sets the bar for everyone else to try and come close to matching.»
When we found another house that we wanted to buy, it wasn’t even finished being built but we knew we needed to get it under contract fast. Despite many people commonly foregoing an inspection on brand new houses, there was no question that we wanted Keven’s keen eyes to come in and give us his opinion. Despite his inability to inspect everything due the incomplete nature of the house, he found many areas that we were then able to work with the builder to ensure they were done properly.
He even gave us an unsolicited discount for repeat business, and then offered to come back once the house was fully finished and complete the areas he was unable to inspect the first time around, free of charge.
I can’t imagine how he could have exceeded our expectations any further.

My fiancé and I are in the process of buying our first house, so of course one of the first things we wanted to do was have the house inspected. After looking through a few inspectors, I came across Keven Swartz at True North Home Inspections in the Unilocal forums, after someone had asked for recommended inspectors in the area. We decided to go with Keven after seeing that someone found him to be thorough and reliable, and also his prices were hard to beat, considering his inspection also includes pest inspection (which is normally an extra charge). He also offers a thermal imaging inspection (part of the original price!) of the house, which is helpful in finding leaks, missing insulation, heat loss, etc. that are not apparent to naked eye.
Keven showed up early for the inspection and was absolutely wonderful. He was friendly, professional, and extremely thorough in his inspection of the house. He was totally willing to explain things to us, and how important they were in terms of being fixed immediately or in the future. He also had a laptop with him and would constantly update any issues with the house, along with photographic evidence, so we could look at his report while he was still inspecting other areas.
The inspection lasts 3 hours, so you know you are getting a thorough look at the house. I’m so glad that pest inspection was also part of his services because after Keven went through the crawl space, he found evidence of some rodents that we would probably never have found otherwise until it turned into a bad infestation.
Our house is 2150 sq. ft. and 27 years old, and for all of his services it only cost $ 395, which is amazing in comparison to some of the other inspectors around here. We were beyond happy with our experience and I cannot recommend Keven enough!
If you want a great inspector who is super friendly and personable but also extremely professional and well-​priced, go to Keven. You will not be disappointed.