Oakland County, home of our Southfield office
Our second office is at 29777 Telegraph Road, Southfield, MI 48034, phone (248) 455-6331, and we inspect across all of Oakland County: Southfield, Royal Oak, Ferndale, Farmington Hills, Troy, Novi, Pontiac, Waterford, Rochester Hills, Clarkston, Lake Orion, Oxford, Holly and the townships. The county has 561,348 homes built in every decade, so what we spend the most time on changes with the house: the sewer line, wiring and lead in a 1950s ranch, the flashing and grading in a new subdivision, moisture and mold in a lake cottage that became a year-round home, and radon at the north end of the county.
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.
0%
of Oakland County homes were built before 1980, when lead paint and asbestos flooring, siding and insulation were still in use. We test for both.
0%
of Clarkston radon tests were above the EPA fix-it level of 4 pCi/L, against 12% countywide (EGLE map, 17,707 tests). Test at the north end.
0%
of Oakland County homes date from before 1950: knob-and-tube wiring, clay sewer lines and plaster. Sewer scope and lead test recommended.
What buyers run into in Oakland County
A county of 561,348 homes, built in every decade
The median Oakland County home was built in 1975, 58% of the housing stock is older than 1980 and 13% dates from before 1950 (Census American Community Survey, 2020 to 2024). The 1950s and 1960s ranches in Waterford, Pontiac, Royal Oak and Farmington Hills bring original electrical, galvanized plumbing, clay sewer lines and lead paint, and 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. The newer subdivisions in Oxford, Lake Orion and Clarkston bring builder-grade shortcuts. The inspection is the same; what we spend the most time on is not.
Radon runs higher in the north of the county
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. Countywide, 12% of the 17,707 tests reported to EGLE's radon map came back above the action level (2,076 of 17,707), the same as the statewide average, but the north end is different: Clarkston 19% of 1,212 tests, Oxford 18%, Ortonville 17%, Holly 15%. A 48-hour radon test starts at $200.
Wells, septic and the water test your lender wants
Much of northern Oakland County, from Holly and Groveland through Brandon, Springfield and Addison townships, is on private wells and septic. Oakland County has no county-wide time-of-sale rule and a few townships have their own; 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.
Lake homes, basements and mold
Waterford, White Lake, Commerce, Lake Orion and the Clarkston lakes are full of cottages that became year-round homes one addition at a time. Seawalls, crawlspaces, mixed-era wiring and foundations that were never meant to carry a second story are the usual findings, and damp crawlspaces and finished basements are where we find mold. Thermal imaging, moisture readings and a crawlbot camera for tight crawlspaces are part of every home inspection. 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.
Services and starting prices in Oakland County
Prices are starting points. 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
- Well and septic inspection package, starting at $500 (well alone from $275, septic alone from $300)
- Water testing, starting at $175
- Sewer scope, starting at $150
- Mold testing, starting at $275
- Termite (WDI) inspection, starting at $200
- Thermal imaging, starting at $125
- Lead testing, starting at $100
- Asbestos testing, starting at $300
- Pool and spa inspection, starting at $125
- 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
Oakland County towns we cover
Holly, Clarkston, Ortonville, Oxford, Lake Orion, Waterford, Pontiac, Auburn Hills, Rochester, Rochester Hills, Troy, Farmington Hills, Southfield, Ferndale, Royal Oak, Novi, South Lyon, Milford, Highland, White Lake, Commerce, West Bloomfield, Bloomfield Hills, Birmingham and the townships of Holly, Groveland, Brandon, Springfield, Independence, Orion, Oakland and Addison. If your address is in the county, we cover it.
Questions from Oakland County buyers
Do you cover the south end of the county, like Royal Oak or Southfield?
What about a 1950s ranch in Waterford or Pontiac?
Does Oakland County require a well and septic inspection at sale?
How fast is the report?
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