Tag Archives: San Luis Obispo deck inspection

SB 326 Balcony Inspections

SB-410 Takes Affect January 1st 2026, Is Your Inspector Compliant With Its Requirements? We Are!

January 1st is almost upon us and every year in California we see new laws come into effect on the first of the year and this year is no different.

You can watch our video here if you prefer

Deck Expert Bill Leys Discusses SB 410 & How It Effects HOAs & Deck Inspection Firms Reports

Notably for HOAs and balcony inspection companies SB 410 will take effect on January 1st and impose certain requirements on HOAs and on balcony inspection companies.

For HOA Boards of Directors, you are affected in several ways; the first being that SB326 reports are now considered to be HOA records, which means an owner can request and review them at any time. Secondly, reports cannot be withheld or redacted and third sellers of a common interest development property now must provide buyers with the most recent SB326 inspection report.

In regards to inspection companies, their reports must include as of January 1st, the date of the inspection, the total number of units in the community. How many exterior elevated elements there are? And I think it would be a good idea to break down how many of each type there are IE stairs versus balcones versus walkways. How many units have exterior elevated elements? How many exterior elevated elements were inspected and whether any safety concerns were identified.

Our engineering partner is already in compliance with these requirements and so we are ready to forge ahead and set the bar with our superior inspections and inspection reports.

Lastly But probably the most important part of sb410 is the requirement for HOAs to have an engineer issue a final report after repairs are made to life safety issues. This final report is needed to be able to enable buyers of property obtain mortgages and sellers of properties to be able to sell without undue delay. Personally, I expect that we will see legal claims brought against HOAs that fail to obtain final inspection reports and unnecessarily delay there homeowners to be able to close a sale.

As always, this is not legal advice. Please obtain the advice of your HOA attorney related to SB 410 sb326 and any other bills that may affect common interest developments related to balcony inspections.

Please contact us for a quote on a final inspection to be able to close out your documents related to your 326 inspections.

home inspections

A Recent Home Inspection Shows Why a Seller Provided Home Inspection Report is Essentially Worthless

The other home inspector missed this “little” issue

A recent inspection we performed for a prospective buyer of a condominium in San Luis Obispo demonstrates perfectly, why you as a buyer need to have your own inspections done at your own cost. This particular inspection found many issues that were glossed over as simply needing patching and painting rather than complete replacement of major components such as windows, doors, decks and subflooring under a shower.

The seller had a pre sale inspection done at their expense and provided that report to the prospective buyer. He had questions and doubts about the report and reached out to us after searching for a waterproofing and building consultant.

Our inspection found that many items the other inspector glossed over in his report as needing “patching and painting” or minor repairs were far from the real situation which was that all the doors and windows were past their useable lifespan and needed to be completely replaced. We found dry-rotted framing on decks, open and exposed framing on columns, dry-rot in the substrate below a shower floor which requires the substrate to be replaced due to fungus infestations.

Major issues that will require tens of thousands of dollars in repairs are now known issues that will need to be disclosed by the seller if the client who hired us doesn’t complete the purchase. This example illustrates perfectly why inspections don’t cost money, they save you money.

If the prospective buyer does move ahead with the purchase they can negotiate concessions, a lower price or credits to account for the costs necessary to fix the problems we found.

Take a look at the photos below to see what we found, and then give us a call at 805-801-2380 to get a quote on your building envelope inspection on the home or building you are considering purchasing.

When you hire William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC, you are hiring an ethical,  experienced company who puts our clients interests ahead of our own.
SB 326 Balcony Inspections

Don’t Take the Bait

I keep seeing some firms offering 20% off a competitors lower price to steal the deck inspection job away.

That should not inspire confidence in their capabilities as inspectors, in fact it should cause your board concern.

We allow ample time to perform the on-site balcony inspections, giving ourselves the ability to really stop and review EEEs that raise our suspicions that something maybe ain’t right as we say in these parts lol. This method has proven to us over and over that careful Inspections take time and by taking our time, we often find hidden problems that a cursory inspection would miss.

Your balcony inspection is not something you should take lightly; there’s a lot of liability and if something goes awry, selecting the wrong deck inspector company with a contract that heavily favors them with clauses that excludes them for their errors and omissions will cause your HOA to assume liability.

I’ve heard of one company that has a forty page contract; ours is nine for comparison. A forty page contract sounds like a nightmare that no average consumer can reasonably understand in my opinion.

Don’t rush to the conclusion that all balcony inspection companies are the same; they aren’t.  Let us show you why we are setting the bar in performing #SB326 inspections in Southern California. Reach out for a free proposal and a conversation on how we approach this critical inspection with you.

Deck Inspections

A Video Message In Time To Help Keep Your Thanksgiving Safe!

Watch this quick video about using fire pits, turkey fryers and grills on combustible decks… To ruin the plot line, do not use turkey, fryers, fire pits or grills on any decks.

Please be safe this Thanksgiving holiday and don’t grill, use a fire pit or fry the turkey on your deck!

SB 326 Balcony Inspections

Santa Monica Condo Board Selects William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC to Perform Their SB 326 Inspection

We’re pleased to announce that we were awarded the contract to perform a SB 326 inspection for a condominium complex on Pacific Street in Santa Monica. The three story building with decks stairs and walkways requiring inspection received several bids from competitors.

The Board after reviewing the bids and each firms credentials, selected our bid over the others, citing that our bid included a guarantee that our engineer will personally inspect the EEEs, that we don’t perform repairs and that our inspection team’s bonafides gave them the confidence in awarding the job to William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC.

These walkways and stairs are EEEs as defined in SB 326 and will be inspected by the best inspection team in the industry.

Of course it might also have helped that the Associations Board has an engineer serving as president and recognized that qualifications matter. Our engineer is an award winning structural engineer with years of experience doing structural inspections.

Don’t leave your critical inspections to the lowest priced inspection company, there’s too much risk in thinking all inspectors are the same. They are not.

Our team has a waterproofing expert with over 20 years of experience in waterproofing and inspections. We guarantee in writing that an engineer will perform the inspection personally and that we don’t bid on any repairs as it’s a conflict of interest. Call today and ask for Bill Leys 805-801-2380.

We aren’t the biggest inspection company, but we are rated highly by our clients and peers as being one of the most diligent.

SB 326 Balcony Inspections

Bill Leys Gives an Update on CAI-CLAC’s Move to Fix SB326

Warning – language.

Termed controversial by one well known attorney in the HOA industry, Bill pulls no punches when it comes to seeing what’s going on and calling out the grifters that flooded the inspection market. We’ve made multiple complaints to state agencies, pissing off the bad apples, been sued to shut us up by POS pretend deck inspectors who use the bill to sucker HOAs into expensive repairs, we’re going to remain controversial and wear that label as a badge of pride.

Watch our video on our thoughts on  CLACs plans to fix SB326. We’ve seen so many issues, from insurance companies denying associations insurance coverage if they have structural issues with their EEEs, to banks denying buyers mortgages on condos with EEE issues to the grifters plaguing the balcony inspection industry using the bill to literally steal from HOAs.

Had enough of the companies that are unethical, devious and sordid? Find out why William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC gives written guarantees that our award winning structural engineer will inspect the EEEs, that we will not bid on any repairs because that’s unethical and why with our experience and professionalism your HOA will be in good hands.

Call today 805-801-2380 and start your SB 326 inspection with William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC.

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SB 326 Balcony Inspections

Signal Hill Condo Selects William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC To Perform Their SB 326 Inspection

  • Board Treasurer Says Our Detailed Proposal Stood Heads Above Competing Firms
  • Our Expertise & Guarantee That Our Structural Engineer Performs the Inspection Stands Out Over Other Firms

We’re happy to announce that we were selected to perform balcony inspections at a mid rise HOA in Signal Hill by the Board of Directors. Our detailed proposal and years of experience gave the Board of Directors the confidence that we were the best choice out of the five firms bidding.

Cantilevered Balcony at A Signal Hill Condo Association

We are so happy to hear strong praise like this as it reinforces our belief that we are one of the best qualified firms in the balcony inspection industry.  Our guarantee of no conflicts of interest, our guarantee that a structural engineer personally performs the inspection and that our 20+ years of prior experience in waterproofing as deck contractors is a deciding factor, along with competitive rates for Boards faced with enormous pressure to get in compliance with SB326’s requirements to inspect.

Let us show you why we are one of the best firms in the balcony inspection industry and let us earn your business with our professionalism and expertise. Get in touch today by calling 805-801-2380 and talk to Bill Leys with no obligation.

SB 326 Balcony Inspections

What Are the Biggest Red Flags  Consumers Should Look For When Hiring an  SB326 Deck Inspection Company?

Great question — SB326 inspections (balcony/deck inspections for multifamily housing in California) are a big deal, and unfortunately, not every company advertising them is legitimate. The biggest red flag consumers should watch for is:

🚩 If the company performing inspections also performs repairs.

Here’s why:

Conflict of interest – The law (SB326/SB721) was designed so that inspections are objective and not influenced by profit motives from repair work. If the same company inspects and repairs, they may be financially motivated to exaggerate problems or recommend unnecessary work.

At William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC we guarantee in writing that we do not have any conflicts of interest. 

🚩 Compliance issues – The statute is clear: inspections must be done by a licensed architect, structural engineer, or a qualified building inspector who is not associated with a repair contractor. If someone is offering both, they may not be following the law.


Other red flags to watch for:

🚩No license disclosure (can’t prove they’re an architect, engineer, or building inspector). Who will be inspecting? An engineer or architect, or just some random people who may not be qualified in any way shape or form.

At William Leys Waterproofing Consultants LLC we guarantee that a structural engineer that we partner with will perform the physical inspection. Some companies flirt with danger by hiring subcontractors who do the inspection, and then those companies have an engineer robo sign your report.

🚩 Low-ball pricing far below market rates — often a sign they’re using inspections as a “loss leader” to sell repair work.

This is exactly right, and that’s what they are doing. We’ve done second inspections for clients and they were very happy to learn that the repairs the other company said had to be done in an emergency basis was exaggerated.

🚩Vague or incomplete reports — a proper SB326 inspection requires documented findings, photographs, and repair recommendations (if needed).

🚩 High pressure sales tactics — pushing you to sign a repair contract right after the inspection.


👉 Bottom line: Choose an independent, inspection-only professional who has no stake in whether repairs are needed. That independence is what protects you and your HOA from unnecessary costs.

At William Leys Waterproofing Consultants, as our client, we only work in your best interests.

Reach out today to get a quote and see the difference in our professionalism, due diligence and expertise. This is why we’re known as the deck experts.

SB 326 Balcony Inspections

Bill Leys Explains Why Job Site Visits are Essential For Bidding on SB326 Inspections

While on a property in Orange county I made this short video on why we walk properties before we give an HOA a bid on their SB 326 inspection.

Watch our short video as I explain why I want to walk your HOA before bidding your SB 326 inspection.
Deck Inspections, SB 326 Balcony Inspections, Uncategorized

Protect Your HOA With Our SB326 Inspection Certification

If you have been following our blog for any time now you know that we have been railing against the practice that is roiling the inspection industry where unethical inspection companies are using Engineers or Architects to robo sign reports that they have written after they have done the inspection. Sb326 clearly requires a licensed architect or engineer to perform the inspection however some companies are trying to deliberately circumvent that requirement and are using contracted labor to do the inspection instead of an architect or engineer.

We made up this form that you should ask your inspection company to fill out and certify/attest that their inspections follow the letter of the law and that a architect or engineer shall be performing the inspection.

The SB326 inspection certification form will give your HOA some legal protection (inquire with your attorney as to what limits there might be) from liability if a company tries to slip one by you. An example is a report that we saw from empire works where the report was clearly written by empire works and there was a letter attached to the report by the architect saying that empire works perform the inspection and that that architect concurred with their findings. Our discussions with attorneys has determined that the report does not meet the requirements of 326.

Download it here for free! The first doc is in word form. For the PDF version click the second that says  Inspection Certificate PDF

Inspection Certificate word versionDownload
Inspection Certification PDF version Download