Home inspection companies are one of the first lines of defense in ensuring that the home you purchase is built to last. Home inspections take place while a home is under contract, allowing the buyer and seller to understand what repairs may be needed for the sale to move forward. Understandably, a good home inspector is crucial to this process. Home inspectors should “methodically examine all components of a home and communicate their findings in an understandable and actionable manner,” says Mike Powell, owner of Red Flag Home Inspection.“Integrity and impartiality are key, ensuring [that] they provide an unbiased report that prioritizes the client's best interests.”
Home-buying in Orlando also brings with it some unique environmental challenges, like wind remediation and hurricane resistance. The right home inspection company will know exactly how to evaluate a home for this. If you’re ready to find the best home inspection company for your new Orlando home, keep reading.
Our Top Picks
Best Overall: Hero Inspection Services »
Best Budget: Murray Home Inspection »
Best for All-In-One Service: Inspectagator »
Best for Mold Detection: Elite Mold Services »
Best for Condominiums and Townhomes: Orlando’s Best Home Inspection »
Best Overall
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Hero Inspection Services takes our top spot for the best overall home inspection company in Orlando, Florida, thanks to its quick report delivery, accolades from customers and other local organizations, and value.
Hero Inspection Services delivers reports on the same day as inspections, ensuring clients know what needs to be repaired in their homes ASAP. Uniquely for the Orlando area, Hero has experience inspecting historic homes, paying attention to features like knob and tube wiring, cast iron plumbing, and plaster walls. They’ve also received plenty of praise in Google reviews as well as top rankings and awards from Thumbtack and InterNACHI (International Association of Certified Home Inspectors).
Despite being slightly more expensive than other home insurance companies, Hero is still pretty fairly priced, too – an inspection of a 1960 ranch is only $447. Despite not including pool and spa or sewer inspections in a standard inspection, these add-ons are only $75.
Specs
| Price: | $447 for a home inspection of a 1,263 sq. ft. ranch built in 1960 |
| Services offered: | Standard home inspection, new construction inspection, pool and spa inspection, historic home inspection, mold inspection, sewer scope |
| Service area: | Greater Orlando area |
| Type of report: | Written report |
| Credentials: | Certified Master Inspector, Certified Professional Inspector, Certified Stucco/EIFS Inspector and Moisture Analysis Inspector, Certified and Licensed Mold Assessor, Mold Inspector, Mold Testing, Mold Remediation, and FAA Licensed Drone Pilot |
| Customer reviews: | 5/5 on Google, 4.7/5 on Yelp |
| Experience: | Founded in 2010 |
Best Budget
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Finding the right balance between saving money and getting a thorough home inspection can be difficult. That’s why we picked Murray Home Inspection as the best budget home inspection in the Orlando area.
At $375 for most standard home inspections, Murray’s pricing is clear, easy to understand, and low, and customers consistently praise them for reliable and top-notch service. Murray provides other necessary inspections for the Florida area too, like insurance-mandated wind mitigation and four-point inspections, as well as termite inspections.
However, as it was founded in 2017, Murray Home Inspection is a newer addition to the field of Orlando home inspection companies. In addition, the company has fewer reviews online than others, but they are mostly positive.
Specs
| Price: | $375 standard inspection for any home under 4,000 sq. ft. |
| Services offered: | Standard home inspection, new construction inspection, maintenance inspection, termite inspection, wind mitigation, 4-point inspection, for-sale-by-owner inspection |
| Service area: | Greater Orlando area |
| Type of report: | Written report |
| Credentials: | Licensed home inspector in the state of Florida, and certified for wind mitigations, roof inspections, and 4-point inspections |
| Customer reviews: | 5/5 on Google, N/A on Yelp |
| Experience: | Founded in 2017 |
Best for All-In-One Service
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If you’re looking for a home inspection company that offers a wide breadth of services, try Inspectagator. Inspectagator provides everything from standard home and new construction inspections to more specialized manufactured home foundation and investor inspections, and it offers a variety of non-inspection services, like drone photography and fogging sanitization. Inspectagator even provides some repair services for the issues found in its inspections. This all-in-one approach makes Inspectagator a great choice for customers who don’t want to shop around for different home services.
However, this variety comes at a price – Inspectagator has the most expensive standard home inspection on the list ($485 for a standard home inspection of a 1,263 sq. ft. ranch built in 1960) and some of those specialized add-ons mentioned above can also be expensive. Fogging starts at $149, and wind mitigation starts at $110. Additionally, it’s difficult to get a quote without scheduling the service, and not all pricing is available on its website. However, Inspectagator is recommended frequently on local online forums and it has high ratings on Angie’s List, so it’s still a great pick for the right potential homebuyer.
Specs
| Price: | $485 for a standard home inspection of a 1,263 sq. ft. ranch built in 1960 |
| Services offered: | Standard home inspection, new construction inspections, manufactured home foundation inspection, termite inspection, sewer scope, mold testing, fogging sanitization, balcony inspections, pool and spa inspection, wind mitigation, 4-point inspection, drone photography, septic inspection, investor inspection, walk and talk consultation, commercial inspection |
| Service area: | Orange, Seminole, Osceola, Lake, Volusia, Sumter, Marion, and Brevard counties |
| Type of report: | Written report and walk-and-talk consultation |
| Credentials: | Licensed mold inspectors and remediators in the state of Florida, council-certified microbial Investigator, air system cleaning specialist, Certified Master Inspector |
| Customer reviews: | 4.9/5 on Google, 4.9/5 on Angie’s List, 4.4 /5 on Yelp |
| Experience: | Founded in 2000 |
Best for Mold Detection
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A mold assessment provides a more thorough and remediation-focused investigation than a mold inspection by a home inspection company would. Thus, we picked a standalone mold inspection company rather than a home inspection company. However, our pick, Elite Mold Services, is a sister company to highly rated Central Florida Building Inspectors Inc., ensuring that potential home buyers have easy access to both types of services.
Elite Mold Services gives mold assessments for both residential and commercial buildings that include visual inspections, infrared and moisture scans, temperature and humidity readings, HVAC and attic inspections, IAQ surveys, and exterior inspections. These inspection packages are clearly priced on their website and start at $199 for a limited partial mold inspection. Based on the findings of an inspection, Elite Mold will provide a recommended remediation protocol. However, Elite Mold will not do the mold remediation themselves – customers will need to look elsewhere for this.
Additionally, Elite Mold provides inspections to confirm remediation, as well as a Healthy Home Package that includes a detailed, whole-home assessment of a home’s air quality, toxin presence, and VOC levels.
Specs
| Price: | Whole home mold inspection starting at $289 |
| Services offered: | Mold inspections, partial mold inspections, commercial mold inspections, post-remediation mold inspections, allergen and air-quality testing |
| Service area: | Seminole, Polk, Orange, Volusia, Lake, and Osceola County |
| Type of report: | Digital report |
| Credentials: | Licensed mold inspectors and remediators in the state of Florida, council-certified microbial Investigator, air system cleaning specialist, Certified Master Inspector |
| Customer reviews: | 5/5 on Google, 5/5 on Yelp |
| Experience: | Founded in 2006 |
Best for Condominiums and Townhomes
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Orlando’s Best Home Inspection is the best pick for condo and townhouse inspections thanks to its discounted pricing for townhouse and condo inspections ($325), ensuring that potential buyers of multifamily homes aren’t penalized with pricing that’s set for larger houses. Additionally, while Orlando’s Best doesn’t provide pool, sewer, or crawl space inspections (a downside for buyers of single-family homes), this is less of a problem for condo and townhouse buyers, as most units lack one or all of those features.
It’s easy to find the pricing ahead of time for Orlando’s Best, and the cost of add-ons is available too. Termite inspections start at $140, and 4-point and wind mitigation inspections start at $99.
While Orlando’s Best offers fewer services than other home inspection companies, it provides referrals to recommended specialty companies. However, Orlando’s Best does tack on extra fees for units that are older than 1975 (starting at an additional $75), so buyers of older apartments may want to look elsewhere for a better value.
Specs
| Price: | $325 for a standard inspection of most condos and townhomes under 1,000 sq. ft. |
| Services offered: | Standard home inspection, townhouse and condo inspections, insurance inspections, and warranty inspections |
| Service area: | Orlando, Winter Park, Kissimmee, Apopka, Doctor Phillips, Reunion, Windermere, and Sanford, FL |
| Type of report: | Written report |
| Credentials: | Licensed mold and home inspector in the state of Florida, general contractor, Certified Master Inspector |
| Customer reviews: | 5/5 on Google, 4.5/5 on Yelp |
| Experience: | Founded in 1982 |
The Bottom Line
Orlando has plenty of home inspection companies, but not all of them are worth your time. We think Hero Home Inspections is the best pick for most people, thanks to its fast service and great value. For potential homebuyers on a budget, Murray Home Inspections provides simple and low pricing. Inspectagators is best for those who want an all-in-one home inspection company, while Elite Mold Service offers top-notch mold remediation. For potential buyers of smaller condos and townhomes, Orlando’s Best Home Inspection provides pint-size service at a great price.
Things To Consider When Choosing a Home Inspection Company
Insurance Inspections
Florida is known for having a heavy hurricane season, and it’s common for home insurance companies to require certain inspections that test the wind resistance of your home to receive a discount on your premium. One of these is called a wind mitigation inspection. This type of inspection considers seven indicators of a home’s wind resistance: its building code, roof covering, roof-deck attachment, roof-to-wall attachment, roof geometry, secondary water resistance, and opening protection (i.e., windows and doors).
Another common insurance inspection is a four-point inspection. Think of these like a mini home inspection that’s for your home insurance company. Four-point inspections don’t take long, and they look at the “four points” of a home – its roofing, HVAC, plumbing, and electrical systems. If you need one of these for home insurance, look for a company that offers these inspections alongside a standard home inspection – oftentimes, they can be easily added onto an existing home inspection service. Wind mitigation and 4-point inspections can cost from $75 to $150, but they’ll likely cost more if they’re purchased as a standalone service.
Mold Assessment
Another key service to look out for when picking an Orlando home inspection company is a mold or moisture assessment. It’s no secret that central Florida is humid, and excess moisture can wreak havoc on the structure and quality of a home. Mold and moisture inspections look for both the visual signs of mold within the structure of your home as well as the hidden signs – mold spores and air quality – that can be identified with technology.
However, a mold assessment by a home inspector can only do so much. If an inspector notices a lot of mold growth, they’ll likely recommend an evaluation by a certified and licensed mold assessor. The licensed assessor will be able to more clearly investigate the mold problem and provide steps to remediate it. Some home inspection companies have a licensed mold assessor on staff, like Hero Inspection Services, while others will refer you to specialized mold companies they work with.
Reputation and Reviews
Read reviews of home inspection companies carefully, especially three- and four-star reviews – these tend to be the most balanced. You can find a company’s reviews on Google, Yelp, or Angi’s List, and you can go a step further by reading about them on local forums and social networks like Nextdoor. Avoid home inspection companies with a history of unprofessionalism, lack of detail, or poor communication, and also stay away from any companies with customers that mention incentivizing five-star reviews.
When looking for a home inspector, keep an eye out for a few key qualities. Mike Powell, owner of Red Flag Home Inspection notes that “a strong home inspector needs to have a comprehensive knowledge base, meticulous attention to detail, and clear communication skills.” Many times, these can be gleaned from your initial interaction with a company: Are they easy to talk with? Is their pricing clear? Do they understand the type of inspection your home will need?
Pricing and Fee Structure
For some Orlando home inspection companies, figuring out how much you’ll need to pay for a service before booking can be a chore all on its own. That’s why many of our top picks offer clear and publicly available pricing.
Typically, pricing is based on the size and age of a home. A smaller home will cost less to inspect than a larger one, while a home that’s either very new (new construction inspections are much lengthier than regular inspections) or very old will cost more to inspect than one built in the early aughts. If your home has features like a pool, septic tank, or well, expect to pay more too – these systems require additional expertise and inspection. If you’d rather not deal with variable pricing, use our budget pick, Murray Home Inspections. It provides standard inspection at $375 for homes under 4,000 square feet.
Scope of Inspection Services Offered
While what’s included in a standard home inspection is generally the same across Orlando home inspection companies, not all companies provide the same add-on services. If your home requires a certain additional service, like a pool inspection, make sure the home inspection company you choose includes it. Common add-on services include pool and spa inspections, insurance inspections, termite inspections, and sewer inspections.
Less common additional services are things like certified mold inspections and septic or well inspections. Similarly, if you need a certain type of inspection, like a mobile home or pre-listing inspection, pick a company that has plenty of experience in these realms. We like Murray and Inspectagators for specialty inspections like these.
"A good home inspector will have the unique ability to balance what the customer needs to know about the home and what is typical and normal wear and tear for the age of the home,"
says Jay Gregg, director of franchise development at Pillar to Post Home Inspectors.
How We Chose the Best Home Inspection Companies in Orlando, Florida
At U.S. News 360 Reviews, our contributor contacted multiple home inspection experts and reviewed roundups, local forums, local publications, and countless Google and Yelp reviews to pick the best home inspection companies in Orlando, FL. Our contributor looked for home inspection companies that offer locally important services, like wind mitigation and moisture inspections. Additionally, home inspection companies that are not licensed in the state of Florida were excluded. If pricing was not publicly available, our contributor got a quote based upon a three-bed/two-bath 1,238-square-foot ranch built in 1960 in the Lake Terrace neighborhood that was on the market at the time of publication.
WHY SHOULD YOU TRUST US?
Our contributors and editors have years of experience researching, testing, and reviewing products. Rabekah Henderson, the author of this piece, has four-plus years of experience writing for lifestyle and home publications, like The Spruce, Dwell, Apartment Therapy, and Atomic Ranch. Rabekah loves researching to find the best products and services, whether it’s a junk removal service or a home inspection company.