Lagasse Jos E Company

realizing that i’ve now recommended these guys as home inspectors about a dozen times to people looking to buy a home, i figured it was about time i looked them up and wrote a review.
a couple of caveats: first, while i usually like to utilize/​visit a business at least twice before sharing my thoughts, i’ve only used these guys once. i’m not planning on having a home inspected in the next few years, so take that for what you will. second, i should point out i hired these guys back in mid-​2005 so, again, bear that in mind (hey, if i knew about Unilocal in the oh-​five, i’d have written a 5 star review in ’05).
nevertheless, i have since recommended lagasse to several people and everyone who used them was happy. i myself found them through the recommendation of my then-​current boss. i figured if they could inspect his 5500 sf. shack in sharon with the radon problem, they could handle my 700 sf. condo.
what i got was:
— very professional staff who set everything up (with the realtors, the sellers, and the building);
— a phone call while the inspection was occurring to see if there was anything specific i wanted checked or double-​checked;
— a phone call after the inspection with a detailed oral report;
— a 3-​page written report that went over each and every room, window, fixture, appliance, wall or whatever in the apartment, in the electrical room on my floor, in the tel/​cable room on my floor, the roof, the lobby, the garage, the boiler room, and the laundry room;
— recommendations on what needed to be replaced immediately and what could wait; and
— approximate life of the appliances, roof, heating/​cooling unit and the like.
in short, the report covered, in detail, anything i could possibly have thought of, and more.
lagasse is more expensive than many of their bigger competitors but i’ve never seen anyone more thorough. and, let’s face it, with the price of real-​estate in the boston area, you definitely do not want to end up with the money pit — you saw what it did to shelley long’s career.
bottom line: these guys will kick the tires for you. hard. before you’re stuck with it.