“Be Ambitious” is one of Porch Group’s core values. So, with that in mind, in early 2023, I very ambitiously pitched the concept of a YouTube series where I shadow home inspectors in the field… across the whole country. Admittedly, it was a huge ask, so I was blown away when the project was approved. What followed was roughly two months of living in an Airstream, 8,000+ miles of hard travel, and 8 incredible inspections with the best Inspectors in the business spanning Virginia, Tennessee, Mississippi, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and Minnesota.
Two of those episodes have dropped with another dropping imminently, so you can and should catch up here, and listen to the accompanying podcast here. Next up, in early 2024 we’ll visit Texas in a two-city inspection tour featuring Houston and Austin. From there, we’ll head west to the arid climate of Phoenix and the Southern Rockies of Santa Fe.
While the road was long… it was equally rewarding. I witnessed some fascinating homes running the gamut from a Queen Anne Victorian Bed & Breakfast in St. Paul, MN to Pueblo-style adobe brick homes in Santa Fe, NM. In fact, it was the appeal of showcasing these homes for the greater public that inspired The Ride Along.
Home and Garden style content has been hugely popular for more than a decade now, and yet real estate shows are often captured from the perspective of house flippers or house hunters. At some point in the show, a brief mention of a home inspector pops up, but always in the context of a troubling problem that’s been uncovered. This only reinforces the negative notion that inspectors are scary deal killers, while totally ignoring the fact that they’re FAR more accurately (and more approachably) classified as knowledgeable communicators and educators.
They see hundreds of homes every year, and thousands in their careers. They climb roofs, and army-crawl in crawlspaces. When it comes to the bones of a home, they’re every bit as passionate as house flippers. And when it comes to helping home buyers, they’re every bit as dedicated as realtors.
So, whether you’re a homeowner, buyer, seller, agent, investor, or inspector, come join The Ride Along in 2024 and experience incredible homes in incredible places through the unique eyes of some of the most fascinating people in the industry: home inspectors.
Brad Lowery is a licensed home inspector in the state of Florida as well as the creative mind behind The Porch Wraparound podcast and The Ride Along video series, both of which are focused on bringing the stories of home inspectors to life.