Between 2014 and 2017, Lou Rubino inspected two homes in Fieldston — two jobs, each with a written report, and the photographs below come from them. One of the two name a style: a colonial, about 86 years old.
Rated 4.9 on Google as of November 2026 · U.S. Army veteran owned · NY licence #16000039568 · 516-330-3870
Lou’s two summaries flagged 22 items Repair or Replace, most for the roof, chimney and attic (6), exterior (4) and garage (4). Each report, newest first, as Lou wrote it up.
2017, a colonial: 17 items flagged: 4 roof, chimney and attic; 4 exterior; 4 garage. As recorded: gable and flat roof, architectural, slate and asphalt/fiberglass, seen from: walked, framed with 2 x 8 rafters; attic: pull down stairs and no storage, fiberglass, below and r-19 insulation, gable vents, soffit vents and passive ventilation; brick and clapboard full brick and aluminum siding, chimney: brick; brick foundation, 2 x 8 and 6" x 8" steel i beam floor framing, supporting walls; hydronic heat on gas, hot water off the boiler; 200-amp circuit breakers (Siemens), BX wiring, copper supply pipes, public water, air conditioner unit; casement, double-hung and thermal/insulated windows, hardwood t&g and tile floors, wood cabinets, granite counters. Flagged, in Lou’s words: “Shingle roof is about12 years old”; “Slate roof is original 83 Years old”; “Moss forming in channel of roof strip left rear”; “Cement chimney cap is cracked around edges”; “Right rear leader pipe to garage is rusted out, elbow and splash block missing”; “Garage gutters full of debris, water and tree branches invading gutter”; “Gutter is crushed left front”; “Could not support weight hinged connections loose and no felt under ends to avoid floor damage”; “Right side stone window sill, above A/C sleeve repair, is out of level”; “Left side lentil irons over windows is rust jacking brickwork”; “Left side upper lentil irons over windows is rust jacking brickwork”; “Left side upper rear window, shutter missing”; “Lentil iron over garage side door is rust-jacking”; “Rear door to breezeway has water damage at bottom”; “Front door needs sanding and varnish”; “Front door dead-bolt not working”; “Front stoop bluestone treads rear joint are cracked”; “Front stoop, lower riser right side brick missing”; “Front stoop blue stone flagging loose and open joints”; “Rear stoop to breeze-way platform is bellied”. Also noted: “Limited visibility and access”; “Front and rear railings need to be painted”; “Rear basement entrance gate anchors pulling from wall”; “Rear basement railing is loose”; “Blue stone in front walkway are laid in soil and move”; “Rear basement entrance, block side walls are cracked and pushing in from hydraulic pressure”; “Basement window wells block and stone copping are loose”; “Caution: Front asphalt walkway, tree roots have heaved up asphalt causing trip hazard”; “Left rear section of driveway near garage is cracked and dropped in elevation”; “Laundry outlet is not GFCI protected”; “Sink and tub are slow draining”; “Shower control valve handle loose and screws missing from back cover”; “Sink cabinet kick plate formica broken”; “Tub is slow draining and stopper control lever not working”; “Mixed manufacturer breakers”; “Ground cable from breaker panel is not clamped to water main”. On the day: 46°F, light rain, cloudy, wet ground, rain in the three days before; the house faces NW. Not inspected that day: ceilings; floors; insulation under floor system; plumbing water faucets; visible electric wiring in attic. Not present in this house: gas/lp firelogs and fireplaces; microwave cooking equipment; occupant door from garage to inside home; range hood; trash compactor; vapor retarders; windows.
2014, about 86 years old: 5 items flagged: 3 structure; 2 roof, chimney and attic. As recorded: rock foundation, 3"x 8" floor framing, masonry block, crawlspace: crawled. Flagged, in Lou’s words: “Poor leader and gutter drainage are some of the main problems with water mitigation into basements especially on a house with a very large roof”; “Insulation falling down in some areas in crawl space and is installed upside down as noted in original report”; “Non, Soil in rear crawl space near entrance is damp at top of scale on meter”; “Soil at rear wall in crawl space is damp at top of moisture meter”. On the day: 78°F, clear, damp ground, no rain in the three days before; the house faces east.
“Flagged” is HomeGauge’s Repair or Replace mark, not a verdict on the house. See a complete report.
Related: All towns · What an inspection costs · Schedule an inspection.
All three photographs are from Lou's own Fieldston inspection reports, chosen because they show a building component and nothing that identifies a property or an owner.
Median year built in zip 10471: 1957 (Bronx: 1954). Of 9,453 units, the 1960s built the most, 30%; 4% is from 2000 on. Next come the pre-1940 houses at 25% and the 1950s at 21%. An older house is not a worse house, but its wiring, plumbing and roof were installed under different rules and replaced piecemeal, which is what the inspection looks for. Lou’s reports here: 86 years old. (ACS)
65% utility gas, 20% fuel oil or kerosene; fuel oil 20% against 24% county-wide. NYSDEC logs Bronx home oil spills under the borough, not Fieldston. Ask about a tank, and for closure papers. A tank can be buried in the yard or sit in the basement, and a removed one should come with paperwork. Buried tanks are outside the standards New York sets for a home inspection, so the seller’s answer matters. (ACS, NYSDEC)
51% buildings of 50 or more units, 18% buildings of 20 to 49 units, 16% detached houses; 57% owner-occupied (Bronx: 20%). With 68% of units in buildings of 20 or more, many purchases here are apartments: the inspection covers the unit, and the roof, plant and risers belong to the board. (ACS)
Bronx (reported by borough): 101 basement tests, average 1.73 pCi/L, 8 at 4 or above (8%). First-floor tests there: 43, average 1.13. The highest basement reading was 20.9 pCi/L. EPA’s action level is 4 pCi/L, and it advises testing every home whatever the area’s results. Radon testing is optional. (NYSDOH)
34 flood-insurance claims from zip 10471 since 1980, most in 2021 (7): 122nd of the 189 zips on these pages. A claim count describes the zip, not the house. Flood zones follow the address. Check the address on FEMA’s map. (OpenFEMA)
The NYC Department of Buildings. Look the address up on BIS or DOB NOW. Your attorney usually runs the search. The inspection reports the condition of what is there and flags work that typically needs a permit, such as a finished basement, a dormer or a moved panel, so you know what to ask about.
The New York City Construction Codes, the NYC Department of Buildings records and NYC water and sewer: county-wide, written once. They are the same for every town in Bronx, so they are set out there with their sources instead of on each page.
Lou quotes the actual property, not a flat rate — what drives the price is size, age and what is included. The written report arrives the same day as a rule; a large or complex house can run to the next morning. Call or text 516-330-3870.
Lou covers Long Island, the five boroughs and Westchester from his base in Wantagh, and the archive behind these pages shows where that work has actually concentrated.
Nearby towns Lou has inspected: Riverdale · Kingsbridge · Woodlawn · Wakefield · Williamsbridge · Morris Heights · all 250 towns.
His Fieldston file goes back to 2014. Yours would not be the first.
Not sure yet? Read what New York requires of your inspector or see a real report.