Between 2015 and 2021, Lou Rubino inspected two homes in Flatlands — two jobs, each with a written report, and the photographs below come from them. The reports describe a colonial and a gothic, about 90 years old.
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Lou’s two summaries flagged 25 items Repair or Replace, most for the exterior (11), roof, chimney and attic (7) and kitchen (3). Each report, newest first, as Lou wrote it up.
2021, a gothic: 15 items flagged: 8 exterior; 4 roof, chimney and attic; 2 rooms. As recorded: gambrel roof, slate, seen from: ladder, framed with 3 x 10 rafters; attic: no storage, gable vents and soffit vents ventilation; cement stucco cement stucco siding, chimney: brick and masonry stucco; masonry block foundation, masonry block and supporting walls; 40 gallon (1-2 people) electric water heater (kitchen); 200-amp circuit breakers (Eaton), BX wiring, copper supply pipes, public water; casement windows, carpet and vinyl floors, wood cabinets, granite counters. Flagged, in Lou’s words: “Old slate roof removed in 2024 and architectural shingle installed but no ice cleats installed for steep slope”; “Left rear upper roof near back wall shingle are not laying flat and have raised edges”; “Right rear upper roof near back wall shingle are not laying flat and have raised edges”; “Right front roof over front entrance needs metal diverter to short gutter, not done”; “Left front roof over front entrance needs metal diverter into short gutter, not done”; “Right front upper roof needs short leader and gutter to lower gutter and diverter installed on lower short gutter, not done”; “Left front upper roof needs short leader and gutter to lower gutter and diverter installed on lower short gutter, not done”; “Right rear upper roof near rear wall, no leader and gutter installed”; “Left rear upper roof near rear wall, no leader and gutter installed”; “Rule of thumb is for every 25' of gutter a down spout and leader pipe is needed especially for large pitched roofs”; “Right side upper roof gable, needs a diverter to gutter”; “Left side rear gutter, needs down spout and leader pipe, on forward side of roof gable”; “Right side door frame paint is peeling”; “Termite damage to left front door and inside frame”; “Right rear window has broken glass”; “Roof shingle on shed are falling off”; “Safety Item: Smoke and carbon-monoxide detectors should be changed every 5 years, not renewed after last inspection”; “Right front upper roof broken and loose slate”; “R/S rear main roof rear broken slate”; “Right rear upper roof, near dormer slate is loose & broken”. Also noted: “Stucco on chimney repaired in 2024”; “Safety Item: Steel plate in front walkway has dropped causing a trip hazard”; “Whole house trap In kitchen floor near sink”; “Water heater is 26 years old”; “Rear stage office is powered by BX cable pig tailed to ceiling boxes”; “Sub panel in basement left rear room”; “See Gordon balancing chart and Gordon venting valve sizes”. On the day: 85°F, hot and humid, damp ground, rain in the three days before; the house faces south. Not inspected that day: ceilings; floors; insulation in attic; insulation under floor system; roof structure and attic; visible electric wiring in attic. Not present in this house: cooling and air handler equipment; dishwasher; food waste disposer; gas/lp firelogs and fireplaces; microwave cooking equipment; normal operating controls; outlets & light fixtures; presence of installed cooling source in each room; range hood; roof ventilation; solid fuel heating devices; sump pump; trash compactor; vapor retarders; ventilation fans and thermostatic controls; windows.
2015, a colonial, about 90 years old: 10 items flagged: 3 roof, chimney and attic; 3 exterior; 3 kitchen. As recorded: gable and flat roof, 3-tab fiberglass and rubber membrane, seen from: walked roof; attic: scuttle hole sealed shut, gable vents ventilation; clapboard vinyl siding, chimney: brick; poured concrete foundation, 2 x 10 floor framing, supporting walls, crawlspace: no access; 40 gallon (1-2 people) gas (quick recovery) water heater (basement, utility room and washer dryer room); 100-amp circuit breakers (General Electric), BX wiring, copper supply pipes, public water, window AC; double-hung windows, parquet and hardwood t&g floors, wood cabinets, laminate counters. Flagged, in Lou’s words: “Rear hatch to flat roof located in closet of right rear bedroom. Hatch was sealed shut”; “Back face of chimney brickwork needs to be pointed. One flue pipe is damaged. No rain caps present”; “Hole for down spout between buildings is too small to accept all the water that is running off both roofs”; “Down spout pipe and leader is too small”; “Gutter for lower roof is filled with leafs and debris”; “Front storm door hits frame and lock is loose”; “Front concrete step is broken and pulling away”; “Front brick stoop loose brick and open joints”; “Base cabinet door is missing to left side of sink”; “Main setting timer is broken”; “On of knob switch is broken”; “Water damage and cracked”; “Water damage to ceiling in sun porch left front corner. See item 1.4 to correct water problem”; “See picture of hardwood tread with no joints and bull-nose edge”; “Handle missing from door to front hallway”; “Marble Saddle broken at doorway from front hallway to living room”; “Door handle loose from kitchen to basement entrance”; “Towel bar missing and left side holder missing”; “Door missing from sink cabinet”; “Asbestos like insulation on steam pipe in basement in pipe enclosure down middle of basement ceiling”. Also noted: “Hatch located in front bedroom closet. Attic was inaccessible hatch covered over and sealed”; “Water supply pipe in house is too small”; “Dining room and two bedrooms only”. On the day: 36°F, clear, frozen, damp ground, rain in the three days before; the house faces east. Not inspected that day: insulation in attic; microwave cooking equipment; plumbing water faucets; roof structure and attic; ventilation fans and thermostatic controls; visible electric wiring in attic. Not present in this house: ceramic floor; dishwasher; food waste disposer; gas/lp firelogs and fireplaces; insulation under floor system; outlets; presence of installed cooling source in each room; solid fuel heating devices; sump pump; trash compactor; windows.
“Flagged” is HomeGauge’s Repair or Replace mark, not a verdict on the house. See a complete report.
Related: The Brooklyn page · What an inspection costs · Schedule an inspection.
All three photographs are from Lou's own Flatlands inspection reports, chosen because they show a building component and nothing that identifies a property or an owner.
Median year built in zip 11234: 1953 (Brooklyn: 1943). Of 35,167 units, 31% predates 1940; 4% is from 2000 on. Next come the 1960s at 21% and the 1950s at 18%. 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: 90 years old. (ACS)
89% utility gas, 3% fuel oil or kerosene; fuel oil 3% against 7% county-wide. NYSDEC logs Brooklyn home oil spills under the borough, not Flatlands. A tank is unlikely. An abandoned tank is most likely in a house that was converted from oil. Buried tanks are outside the standards New York sets for a home inspection, so the seller’s answer matters. (ACS, NYSDEC)
32% two-unit buildings, 30% attached single-family houses, 16% detached houses; 67% owner-occupied (Brooklyn: 30%). Two- to four-unit buildings are 42%; a multi-family house means shared systems, separate meters and what each unit controls. (ACS)
Brooklyn (reported by borough): 528 basement tests, average 2.07 pCi/L, 54 at 4 or above (10%). First-floor tests there: 116, average 0.88. The highest basement reading was 41.2 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)
486 flood-insurance claims from zip 11234 since 1978, most in 2012 (205): 37th of the 189 zips on these pages. A claim count describes the zip, not the house; 2012 was the year of Hurricane Sandy. 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 Brooklyn, 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: Bergen Beach · Canarsie · Flatbush · East Flatbush · Sheepshead Bay · Parkville · all 250 towns.
His Flatlands file goes back to 2015. Yours would not be the first.
Not sure yet? Read what New York requires of your inspector or see a real report.