Home inspections in Bay County, from Bay City to Pinconning
We inspect across all of Bay County from our Grand Blanc office: Bay City, Essexville, Auburn, Pinconning, Kawkawlin, Linwood, Munger and the townships. Bay City has some of the oldest housing in Michigan and the whole county sits low and flat next to Saginaw Bay, so the add-ons that matter here are lead and asbestos testing, the sewer scope, a mold inspection for basements that fight the water table, and the well and septic package with the FHA or VA water test in the townships.
Every inspection is done by a certified inspector, comes with thermal imaging and a drone view of the roof when the weather allows, and the digital report is in your inbox the same day. A home inspection starts at $425; the final price depends on the size and age of the home, which is why the instant quote asks for the address.
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of Bay County homes were built before 1980, when lead paint and asbestos flooring, siding and insulation were still in use. We test for both.
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of Bay County homes date from before 1950, most of them in Bay City and Essexville: knob-and-tube, clay sewer lines, plaster. Sewer scope and lead test recommended.
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of Bay County radon tests were above the EPA fix-it level of 4 pCi/L, low for Michigan (EGLE map, 284 tests). A 48-hour test settles it for your house.
What buyers run into in Bay County
Bay City's pre-1950 housing: lead, asbestos and original systems
The median Bay County home was built in 1963, 75% of the county's 48,659 housing units went up before 1980 and 31% date from before 1950 (Census American Community Survey, 2020 to 2024). Lead paint was legal until 1978 and asbestos was still common in flooring, siding, insulation and ceiling texture into the 1980s, so anything of that age gets a lead test (from $100) and, if you plan to pull up floors or siding, asbestos sampling: flooring installers, including Home Depot's, will not pull up pre-1980 vinyl or linoleum without an asbestos test (Home Depot's own installation guidance says so), so we sample flooring, siding and insulation and send it to an accredited lab. In Bay City and Essexville plan on knob-and-tube remnants, galvanized pipe, plaster and clay sewer lines as the norm.
Wet basements and mold
Bay County is flat, low and close to the bay, and basements here are the wettest we see: sump pumps that never rest, block walls that weep and finished basements that hide it. Thermal imaging and moisture readings are part of every home inspection, so hidden moisture behind a finished wall shows up in the report with a picture. Our mold inspection (from $275) is done by an IAC2-certified inspector: thermal imaging and moisture meters to find the source, spore-trap air samples and surface samples, and accredited lab results that name the species. The EPA's rule of thumb is that anything that stays wet longer than 24 to 48 hours will usually grow mold, and a finished basement hides exactly that.
Wells, septic and the water test your lender wants
Outside Bay City, Essexville and the villages, much of the county is on private wells and septic systems. There is no county-wide time-of-sale rule for wells and septic in Bay County; a few townships and most lenders have their own requirements, so give us the address and we will tell you what applies. The well and septic package starts at $500, or the well alone from $275 and the septic alone from $300. VA loans require a water test on any private well and FHA lenders ask for one in most cases. We pull the sample, send it to a certified lab and deliver the results in the format the lender wants, usually in 2 to 7 business days. The water test starts at $175 and covers coliform bacteria, nitrates, nitrites, lead, arsenic and more.
Radon
Michigan EGLE (the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy) says about 1 in 4 homes in Michigan tests above the EPA action level of 4 pCi/L. Bay County runs low: 6% of the 284 tests reported to EGLE's radon map came back above that level (17 of 284), with Bay City at 4% to 10% on small samples. Low is not zero, and a 48-hour radon test (from $200) runs during the inspection.
Services and starting prices in Bay County
Prices are starting points. Add-on services (radon, well and septic, water, mold, sewer scope, termite, lead, pool and spa) are priced as shown when added to a home inspection; booked on their own they are quoted separately. Asbestos sampling starts at $300 with or without a home inspection. The final price depends on the size and age of the home, and the instant quote gives you a firm number before you book. Commercial building inspections are quoted by the building.
- Home inspection, starting at $425
- Radon testing, starting at $200 when added to a home inspection
- Well and septic inspection package, starting at $500 (well alone from $275, septic alone from $300) when added to a home inspection
- Water testing, starting at $175 when added to a home inspection
- Sewer scope, starting at $150 when added to a home inspection
- Mold testing, starting at $275 when added to a home inspection
- Termite (WDI) inspection, starting at $200 when added to a home inspection
- Thermal imaging, starting at $125
- Lead testing, starting at $100 when added to a home inspection
- Pool and spa inspection, starting at $125 when added to a home inspection
- Pre‒listing inspection, starting at $425
- New build blue tape inspection, starting at $525
- Investor property verification, starting at $250
- Soil testing, starting at $250
- Asbestos testing, starting at $300
Bay County towns we cover
Bay City, Essexville, Auburn, Pinconning, Kawkawlin, Linwood, Munger and Bangor, Monitor, Hampton, Frankenlust, Portsmouth, Merritt, Williams, Kawkawlin, Fraser, Beaver, Garfield, Gibson, Mount Forest and Pinconning townships. If your address is in the county, we cover it.
Questions from Bay County buyers
Do you inspect in Bay City?
What should I add on a 1900s house in Bay City?
Do you inspect and test the sump pump?
Can I be there for the inspection?
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