top of page
Housing Development
  • Firefighter Owned Putting Safety First!
    Reliable Home Services brings over 30 years of fire service experience to the table. Michael, our lead inspector, leverages his firefighting background to conduct comprehensive home safety assessments, ensuring that both conventional and fire safety aspects are meticulously reviewed. His dedication to identifying and mitigating potential hazards is driven by a commitment to the wellbeing of you and your loved ones. Trust Gardendale's most reliable inspector and embark on a journey towards a safer home with Michael McConnell and Reliable Home Services LLC. Make a choice that prioritizes your safety; Your Home is Your Sanctuary, Let Me Protect It!
  • I Am a Certified Master Inspector CMI®
    Michael McConnell, the owner of Reliable Home Services LLC, is a highly qualified home inspector based in Gardendale, AL. He is a Certified Master Inspector (CMI®) with InterNACHI, the leading association for home inspectors. This designation represents the highest level of professionalism and experience in the industry, ensuring that you receive thorough and accurate home inspection services. By scheduling your next home inspection with Reliable Home Services LLC, you are choosing a highly educated and qualified home inspector, committed to providing detailed and reliable insights about your property.
  • I Provide Exceptional Service
    My goal is to provide you with the most exceptional service of greatest value to you. If you hire me, I will give you the right information you need in order to make the best decisions. This may be the most important decision and biggest investment that you'll ever make. And I'm honored to help you at this moment. I will show you how your home works, how to maintain it, and how to save home energy. I will show you everything that I inspect, and everything that you should know about the home or building. I will provide you with an inspection report that is easy-to-read and clear-to-understand. It will have a short summary report included. Infrared Thermal Imaging is provided with each full home inspection. I will also use a moisture meter, GFCI tester, crawlspace gear, and a drone. And in those cases where the crawlspace is difficult to access or unsafe to enter, I have a drone for that as well. I will invite you to join my network of clients who are my neighbors. And I make myself available to my clients at anytime, particularly when they experience a problem with their house. Welcome to the neighborhood!
  • We Inspect Everything Listed Here
    We inspect everything listed in the Home Inspection Standards of Practice, which is available by visiting www.nachi.org/sop.
  • We Inspect Homes and Buildings
    We inspect everything according to the Home Inspection Standards of Practice. And that includes systems and components from the foundation to the top of the roof and everything in between. We can also check for indications of moisture intrusion, water leaks, and material defects. If we find anything wrong, we'll show it to you, explain what the problem is, and why it should be corrected. We may also make recommendations for qualified contractors to take a closer look and make repairs.
  • We Offer Many Different Types of Inspections
    We provide residential and commercial property inspections. We perform inspections according to a Standards of Practice and Code of Ethics. We also provide additional types of inspections, including: Home Inspection, Mold Inspection, Annual Home Maintenance Inspection Pool & Spa Inspection, Sewer Scope Inspection, New Construction Inspection, HUD Permanent Foundation Certification Home Energy Reports Check out our inspection services in detail by visiting our Services page.
  • Material Defects in the Summary Report
    We recommend that you read and understand the entire inspection report and ask question about anything you find in the report. I am responsible for writing in the inspection report the defects that I both observe during the inspection and deem (or consider) to be material. A material defect is very serious and must be further evaluated and corrected immediately by a qualified contractor or professional. I will put those material defects into the summary report. The summary report is not the entire inspection report.
  • Don't Panic! Just Four Things
    Buying a home? The process can be stressful. A home inspection is supposed to give you peace of mind, but often has the opposite effect. You will be asked to absorb a lot of information in a short time. This often includes a written report, a checklist, photographs, environmental reports, and what the inspector himself says during the inspection. All this, combined with the seller's disclosure and what you notice yourself, makes the experience even more overwhelming. What should you do? Relax. Most of your inspection will be maintenance recommendations, life expectancies for various systems and components, and minor imperfections. These are useful to know about. However, the issues that really matter will fall into four categories: Major defects. An example of this would be a structural failure; Things that lead to major defects, such as a small roof-flashing leak, for example; Things that may hinder your ability to finance, legally occupy, or insure the home; and Safety hazards, such as an exposed, live buss bar at the electrical panel. Anything in these categories should be addressed. Often, a serious problem can be corrected inexpensively to protect both life and property (especially in categories 2 and 4). Most sellers are honest and are often surprised to learn of defects uncovered during an inspection. Realize that sellers are under no obligation to repair everything mentioned in the report. No home is perfect. Keep things in perspective. Do not kill your deal over things that do not matter. It is inappropriate to demand that a seller address deferred maintenance, conditions already listed on the seller's disclosure, or nit-picky items.
  • Walk and Talk With Your Inspector
    I invite you to walk with me during your inspection. I will show you everything about your house that's important for you to know. Feel free to ask me questions while we walk around the property. If you have any concerns or questions, feel free to ask me while we're moving through the inspection process. I will work for you during the inspection until you're happy. Don't pay me until after we complete the inspection to your satisfaction.
  • Read the Inspector's Promise
    Choosing the right home inspector can be difficult. Unlike most professionals you hire, you probably won't meet me until our appointment. Furthermore, different inspectors have varying qualifications, equipment, experience, reporting methods, and pricing. Ultimately, a thorough home inspection depends heavily on the individual inspector’s own effort. If you honor me by permitting me to inspect your new home, I guarantee that I will give you my very best effort. This, I promise you.
  • Read the Standards, Agreement, Report, and Book
    Please read the Home Inspection Standards of Practice (www.nachi.org/sop), the Code of Ethics (www.nachi.org/code_of_ethics), the home inspection agreement that we sign before we begin the home inspection at the property, the entire inspection report(s) and not just the summary, and the InterNACHI® home maintenance book that I will give you at the end of the inspection.
  • Understand the Inspector's Responsibility
    The home inspector is not an expert but a generalist. The home inspector can inspect a home and report upon the home’s condition as it was at the time of the inspection. That is the main responsibility of the home inspector. The most important thing for a homeowner to understand is that things will break. As time goes on, parts of the house will wear out, break down, deteriorate, leak, or simply stop working. A home inspection does not include predictions of future events, house warranties, or guarantees that nothing will ever go wrong. Future events (such as roof leaks, water intrusion, plumbing leaks, and heating failures) are not within the scope of a home inspection and are not the responsibility of the home inspector. Who’s responsible? The homeowner. The home inspection and report are based on the observations made on the date of the inspection, and not a prediction of future conditions. The home inspection will not reveal every issue that exists or ever could exist, but only those material defects observed on the date of the inspection.
bottom of page