Madison Heights, Michigan
Looking for a Madison Heights home inspector? We do certified home, commercial, mold and radon inspections in Madison Heights, seven days a week. Home inspection reports come back in 24 hours.
Schedule your inspectionCall 734-331-3269
Services
For buyers, sellers, and homeowners keeping an eye on the place they already own. On new construction we also do pre-drywall inspections and 11-month builder’s warranty inspections. Our certified inspectors walk every major system in your Madison Heights home and tell you plainly what they found — then put it in a photo-rich digital report within 24 hours.
Following the InterNACHI Standards of Practice:
Included free with every home buyer inspection— and none of them require us to sell your information.
SatisfactionIf you are unhappy with your inspector on the day of the inspection, before you have seen your report, tell us and we will make it right — or you owe us nothing.
30-Day WarrantyA free 30-day Guard home warranty trial, negotiated for you with no obligation. Activate it whenever you are ready.
$100 OffThe buyer’s protection guarantee: if the first home we inspect for you does not make it to the closing table, for any reason, we take $100 off any further home buyer inspection within 30 days of the original.
Optional services at an additional cost — not part of a standard inspection. Tap one to see what it covers.
A camera down the main sewer line, watching its condition from the inside — roots, breaks, bellies and blockages no visual inspection can find. More about sewer scope inspections
The wood-destroying organism report VA buyers are typically asked to provide, on the federal NPMA-33 form. Carried out during the same visit. More about Veterans WDO inspections
Up to five air samples sent to an accredited laboratory, added to the same appointment rather than booked as a second visit. More about mold inspection and testing
View a sample report
Offices, retail, multifamily and warehouses in Madison Heights and across Oakland County. Know what condition a building is in before you sign — or stay ahead of problems in the one you already own. Reports in 24 to 72 hours depending on size.
Following the CCPIA commercial standards:
Commonly added to a commercial inspection at additional cost.
Commercial laterals are longer, older and carry more. A camera is the only way to see the condition of the one you are buying. More about sewer scope inspections
Air samples to an accredited laboratory, which matters most in buildings that have sat empty or had a roof or plumbing leak. More about mold inspection and testing
View a sample report
Add either to a Madison Heights home or commercial inspection, or book it on its own. We test and we never remediate, so there is nothing to sell you on the back of a result — the number you get is just the number.
Radon measured in house on a professional continuous monitor; mold samples to an accredited laboratory:
The other things worth testing while somebody is already there.
Carried out after remediation on the treated area and the areas next to it, to confirm what was found. More about mold inspection and testing
A damp basement can have several causes, and the buried sewer line is the one a visual inspection cannot check. A scope rules it in or out. More about sewer scope inspections
View a sample reportMadison Heights housing stock
Madison Heights has roughly 14,279 housing units and about 69% of them are single-family detached. The year a house went up decides more about what an inspection turns up than almost anything else about it, which is why it is where we start rather than where we finish.
More of it dates from the 1950s than from any other decade — 5,527 homes, roughly 39% of the town.
The median owner-occupied home here is valued at $172,500. There are around 476 manufactured and mobile homes in Madison Heights. Those are a different inspection — the questions are about the frame, the anchoring and the skirting rather than a basement. Around 501 homes sit in two-to-four unit buildings, where a shared roof, a shared wall and sometimes a shared furnace mean the report has to be clear about where one unit stops.
This is not a forecast for any one address. It is where a Madison Heights home inspector starts in a home of this age — and whatever we actually find, it goes in the report with photographs.
Housing figures: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2022 five-year estimates.
When Madison Heights was built
84% of homes here run on utility gas, and 9 still heat with oil. If yours is one of them, the tank is the thing to ask about — where it is, and whether it was ever buried. Another 102 use bottled or LP gas.
Local knowledge
Madison Heights answers a question most cities leave you to work out, and it answers it in writing.
Across this region, whether a municipality inspects a house when it changes hands varies enormously, and most cities do not say either way — you have to read the ordinances and infer. Madison Heights states its position plainly on its own certificate of occupancy application: one is not required for the change of ownership or tenancy of an existing residential dwelling unit. There is an important exception for multi-family property, covered below.
The housing is postwar and fairly uniform. Of roughly 14,279 units, about 39% date from the 1950s, 19% from the 1960s and 17% from the 1970s, with a median build year of 1960 and around 69% single-family detached — so there is a meaningful amount of attached and multi-unit housing here too.
A house from 1960 is now around sixty-five years old, which means everything with a shorter service life has been replaced at least once or is overdue. Which is true for a particular property is not something the build year can tell you.
Before you buy
What the City does and does not check
This is worth dwelling on because it is so unusual, and because it removes a common source of confusion.
On the City’s certificate of occupancy application, under standards set at Section 15.03 of the Zoning Ordinance, the position is stated directly: a Certificate of Occupancy is not required for the change of ownership or tenancy of an existing residential dwelling unit. Elsewhere in this region we have generally had to establish that by reading ordinances and finding nothing. Here the City says it.
Now the exception, which matters more than it looks. The same document lists change of ownership of a commercial or multi-family property among the situations that do require a certificate, along with newly constructed buildings and additions, new businesses, change of name or ownership of an existing business, and significant operational changes. So if you are buying a duplex or a small apartment building rather than a single house, you are in the category that needs one. The City also states that existing certificates expire immediately upon any change in the use, ownership or occupancy of an individual tenant space, structure or site.
Where a certificate is required, applications are reviewed by the City Planner for zoning and site plan compliance, the Building Official for building code and the Fire Marshal for fire code, and the Building Official and Fire Marshal carry out on-site inspections before final issuance. A certificate is not issued until the work covered by a permit, site plan or other City approval has been completed in accordance with the approved plans.
For an ordinary house purchase none of that applies — which puts the whole job on the inspection you commission. A home buyer inspection covers the roof, structure, foundation, drainage, electrical, heating and cooling, plumbing and the accessible interior, photographed and written up with how urgent each finding is.
Sixty-five years on
With a median build year of 1960 and about 39% of the housing from the 1950s, most properties here are somewhere between sixty and seventy-five years old.
Roof coverings, furnaces, air conditioning, water heaters and windows all have service lives far shorter than that. Every one of them has been replaced at least once or is running past its design life, and the electrical service and supply plumbing have had six decades to be extended, altered or partly renewed.
We will not guess which. Two houses of the same age on the same street can be entirely different by now depending on what each owner chose to renew, and the only way to tell them apart is to look. The inspection establishes what is actually installed, what condition it is in, and how urgent each finding is.
With around 69% single-family detached, there is also a real amount of attached and multi-unit housing here. If you are buying a condominium or an attached home, the boundary between what is yours and what belongs to an association decides who has to act on any finding — tell us the property type when you book so it is scoped correctly.
Permits and records
Madison Heights does plenty of inspecting — just not of houses changing hands.
The Community and Economic Development Department administers permits and inspections for construction, alterations and change of use, and publishes its adopted building codes so you can see which standards apply. On a house of this age, permit history is worth checking before you commit — particularly for a roof, a furnace, an electrical service upgrade or a finished basement.
The usual caution applies in both directions: a permit does not establish that work is in good condition today, and nothing on file does not establish that work was done badly. It tells you what was declared and inspected at the time.
What we assess outside the house is how it manages water: accessible grading, gutters and downspouts and where they discharge, foundation conditions, the basement or crawlspace and sump equipment where present, documented as found. Radon testing and mold inspection and testing can be added to the same visit.
The buried line
Where no municipal inspection happens at sale, the things nobody routinely looks at become more important rather than less.
The private sewer lateral runs underground from the house to the public system and no visual inspection can see inside it. Six decades or more is ample time for tree roots to find a joint, for ground movement to displace a section, or for repairs to have been made that nobody now remembers. We will not name a material from a build year, because no authoritative source establishes what Madison Heights laterals are generally made of.
A sewer camera inspection records what is actually inside — roots, cracks, displaced joints, bellies or blockages where they exist, and a clear run where they do not. It is added to the same visit rather than booked separately.
Alongside it, commercial building inspections follow the CCPIA standard for offices, retail, multifamily and warehouse property — relevant here, since a multi-family purchase is also the case where the City does require its own certificate.
Local information from City of Madison Heights — Certificate of Occupancy application · City of Madison Heights — permits · City of Madison Heights — adopted building codes. Municipal requirements change — verify current details with the municipality.
Radon in Oakland County
Zone 2 is the middle EPA category — the predicted average indoor level across the county sits between 2 and 4 pCi/L. What a zone cannot tell you is anything about one house: 29% of tests actually run in Oakland County still came back at or above the EPA’s 4 pCi/L action level. The zone describes a county. The only result that describes your basement is the one measured in it.
We place a continuous monitor for 48 hours and read the result on site — no mail-in kit, no lab wait. How radon testing works · Oakland County radon and inspection coverage
Zone from the EPA Map of Radon Zones. Elevated-result share from the Michigan Indoor Radon Program.
Why choose us
Five reasons people here pick us as their Madison Heights home inspector.
Family owned since 2009, more than 16,000 inspections completed and over 2,000 five-star reviews across Michigan. We also handle home buyer inspections, commercial building inspections, mold testing and radon testing.
We do not sell mold remediation or radon mitigation, so there is nothing to gain from a result that comes back bad. The number you get is just the number.
Radon, mold, sewer scope and wood-destroying organism inspections go on the same appointment as the home inspection rather than costing you a second morning.
Most people do, and it is the most useful hour of the whole purchase. Ask anything while we are standing in front of it.
InterNACHI and CCPIA certified, with four Certified Master Inspectors and National Home Inspector Examination passes on the team — none of which Michigan requires. The standards we inspect to are published and you can hold the work against them.
Including weekends, because inspection windows sit on closing dates and closing dates do not care what day it is.
Reviews
I recently hired Trademark for a full home inspection on a new purchase, including sewer scope and radon testing. It was a phenomenal experience from beginning to end. Our inspector, Mitch, did a fantastic job explaining all the findings, and the digital report with photos and videos was superb. Would definitely recommend without hesitation.
Salina HamiltonOak Park, MIWe had Mitch inspect our prospective house and he was amazing. He was thorough, patient to answer my questions and provide feedback on what areas he would recommend having a follow up expert and why. The office was responsive and I was able to book multiple services to be done in the same visit (inspection, radon test, sewer scope).
Chris PlaweckiOak Park, MIExcellent sums up the entire experience, from the initial call to set up the appointment with staff that was informative and helpful, up until the actual inspection that was very professional and thorough with any and all questions I had answered. I would highly recommend Trademark to anyone who needs inspection services. Thanks again Curt, my inspector, for an excellent job.
Johnny Thomas JrSouthfield, MIWhat happens
Questions
No, and unusually the City says so outright rather than leaving you to infer it. Its certificate of occupancy application states that a Certificate of Occupancy is not required for the change of ownership or tenancy of an existing residential dwelling unit. Across this region most municipalities do not state their position either way, so this is welcome clarity — and it means the inspection you commission is the only one examining the house on your behalf.
Yes, and this is the exception that catches people. The same City document lists change of ownership of a commercial or multi-family property among the situations that do require a Certificate of Occupancy. So the residential exemption covers an existing dwelling unit — it does not cover a multi-family purchase. The City also states that existing certificates expire immediately upon any change in the use, ownership or occupancy of a tenant space, structure or site. If your purchase is multi-family or commercial, factor that process into the timeline.
Where one is required, applications are reviewed by the City Planner for zoning and site plan compliance, the Building Official for building code compliance and the Fire Marshal for fire code compliance, with additional staff involved case by case. The Building Official and Fire Marshal then carry out on-site inspections before final issuance, and follow-up inspections may be required. A certificate is not issued until work covered by a permit, site plan or other City approval has been completed in accordance with the approved plans.
Mostly postwar. Of roughly 14,279 housing units, about 39% date from the 1950s, 19% from the 1960s and 17% from the 1970s, with a median build year of 1960 and around 69% single-family detached. A typical house is therefore sixty to seventy-five years old, which is well past the expected service life of an original roof covering, furnace, air conditioning condenser and water heater. Which of those have been renewed is exactly what an inspection establishes.
It is worth doing on a property of this age, particularly for a roof, a furnace, an electrical service upgrade or a finished basement. The Community and Economic Development Department administers permits and inspections for construction, alterations and change of use, and the City publishes its adopted building codes. Read what you find as context rather than proof: a permit does not establish that work is in good condition today, and nothing on file does not establish that work was done badly.
It is worth considering, and there is a specific reason here. Where no municipal inspection happens when a house changes hands, the things nobody routinely looks at matter more rather than less. The private lateral has been in the ground sixty years or more, it is buried, no visual inspection can see inside it, and we would not guess a material from a build year. Putting a camera down the line documents roots, cracks, displaced joints, bellies or blockages where they exist, and is added to the same appointment.
Yes. You can book a Madison Heights home inspector with us seven days a week, and we cover the rest of Oakland County too.
A home inspection report reaches you within 24 hours. Commercial buildings are 24 to 72 hours depending on size, a radon result comes at the end of the 48-hour test, and mold samples come back from the lab in one to three business days.
More on cost, timing and what is included on the FAQ page.
Police, fire, rescue, military and educators — our way of saying thank you for your service. Enter code HERO at checkout.
Claim the Hero DiscountNeed a Madison Heights home inspector and not sure we reach you? Call 734-331-3269 and we will tell you.
Permits, assessing and property records for Madison Heights are handled by Madison Heights, Michigan, not by us.
From the blog
October 22, 2017
May 18, 2024
Your local Madison Heights home inspector, seven days a week. Home inspection reports in 24 hours.
