Inspection Red Flags | The Red Flag Almanac

I · The math

See the warning signs before closing

The Almanac changes the work from guessing at a showing to checking the systems in a usable order.

You are walking through a staged house

You see fresh paint, a clean utility room, and a seller’s list of improvements. You may not know where drainage ends up, what a roof edge is telling you, or whether a renovation was finished carefully behind the trim.

You leave with a list worth discussing

You know where to look from the curb, hatch, basement, attic access, and utility room. You can separate an ordinary maintenance item from a question that belongs in the inspection report, repair discussion, or walk-away calculation.

	Now	With the book
Site drainage	A clean yard with no clear sense of where water goes	A curb-to-foundation read for grading, downspouts, and drainage clues
Roof and exterior	Judging condition from a quick glance upward	Ground-level checks for roof edges, walls, windows, and outside skin
Utility systems	A basement or utility room full of unfamiliar equipment	Visible plumbing, electrical, heating, and cooling warning signs to note
Renovation work	Fresh paint and new finishes taken at face value	Corners, transitions, and repairs checked for flip-work shortcuts
The decision	A vague feeling that something may be wrong	A written list for the inspector, seller, or your own walk-away arithmetic

The gain is not a diagnosis. It is 88 specific checks that give you better questions before you sign.

II · Inside the book

Thirteen chapters, from curb to closing

The Red Flag Almanac follows the route Raymond used through a property: lot and drainage, roof, exterior, foundation, basement or crawlspace, plumbing, electrical, heating and cooling, attic, interior finishes, renovations, the inspection report, and the walk-away arithmetic.

1. The Curb Read: Lot, Grading, and Drainagepp. 3–13

2. Roof From the Groundpp. 14–23

3. Walls, Windows, and the Outside Skinpp. 24–33

4. Foundation and Structure: The Walk-Away Sectionpp. 34–44

5. Basements and Crawlspaces From the Hatchpp. 45–53

6. The Plumbing Read (No Wrenches)pp. 54–63

7. The Electrical Read (Hands Off the Panel)pp. 64–72

8. Heating, Cooling, and the Big Ironpp. 73–81

9. Attic From the Hatchpp. 82–91

10. Interior Finish Forensics: What Fresh Paint Hidespp. 92–100

11. Flip Forensics: Reading a Renovation's Cornerspp. 101–112

12. The Report, the Inspector, and the Negotiationpp. 113–121

13. The Walk-Away Arithmeticpp. 122–164

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III · Who wrote it

Twenty-eight years finding what sellers missed

Raymond Keller walked through more than eleven thousand Mid-Atlantic properties over twenty-eight years as a home inspector. He wrote up the same concealed water problems, contractor shortcuts, electrical defects, roof failures, and structural concerns until the patterns became hard to ignore. Now he records what a homeowner can spot before calling in a professional: what breaks, what gets covered up, and what deserves a closer look before a purchase moves forward.

IV · The offer

$17 once. No subscription. Yours forever.

164 pages · 13 chapters · 88 red flags

The Red Flag Almanac

You are buying Raymond’s working order for reading a house before the inspection report arrives: what to look at first, what to write down, and what deserves professional attention. At $17, it is priced below the cost of learning one avoidable lesson after closing.

$17 $69 Launch price — ends August 31

It can pay for itself the first time an overlooked condition becomes a question before closing.

What you get for $17:

The Red Flag Almanac

A Field Guide · No. I · MMXXVI

$27

BonusPre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

A printable room-by-room checklist of the 88 items Raymond flagged most often in buyer inspections, organized by system and typical repair cost.

$12

BonusContractor Red-Flag Phrase Guide

A two-page reference of the eleven excuses and deflections Raymond heard from contractors during re-inspections, with the honest translation of each and what it means for your timeline and budget.

$9

BonusLifetime updates

Every future revision of this book, free. When a checklist tightens or a price moves, the new edition reaches you at no charge.

$21

Everything together: $69 of material — today $17

You pay today ~~$69~~$17

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Instant download · PDF · 164 pages

Published by Handover Books · secure checkout · your statement will show Handover Books

Read the guide and decide whether it gives you a more useful way to walk through a house. If it does not, request a refund within 30 days of purchase.

V · Questions

The questions worth settling before you buy

Is this a replacement for a home inspection?

No. It is not an inspection report, a code review, or a substitute for a licensed inspector. It helps you notice visible conditions and prepare better questions before and during the inspection process.

Will this apply outside the Mid-Atlantic?

The patterns come from Raymond’s Mid-Atlantic inspection work, but drainage, roofs, foundations, visible plumbing, electrical concerns, heating equipment, and poor renovation work appear in many regions. Local construction, weather, codes, and systems still matter.

Can I use this if I already have an inspector?

Yes. Use it before the showing or inspection to make your own notes. Then bring the relevant questions to your inspector rather than relying on a general feeling that something looked off.

What format is the Almanac?

It is an instant-download PDF with 164 pages. You can read it on a phone, tablet, or computer, or print the pages you want to carry through a property.

What if the guide is not useful to me?

You have 30 days to request a refund. If the guide does not give you a better way to assess a house before purchase, ask for your money back.

Get the guide · $17

Do not let fresh paint make the decision

A house can look settled, clean, and recently improved while the important questions sit in the grading, roof line, utility room, attic, crawlspace, and repair details. Take Raymond’s 88 red flags with you before the next showing.

Get the guide · $17