Services You Need. One Company You Can Trust.
Buying, selling, or maintaining a home in Southwestern Pennsylvania is one of the most significant decisions you’ll make. Three Rivers gives you the full picture — from the foundation to the roof, the sewer line to the electrical panel — so you can move forward with confidence. One call. One trusted team. Thirty years of Pittsburgh expertise.
- Serving SW Pennsylvania Since 1993
Pittsburgh's Inspection Company — With an Engineer on Staff.
Most home inspection companies send you an inspector with a checklist. Three Rivers sends you a thoroughly trained inspector backed by a licensed professional engineer with over 25 years of structural experience. When something serious is found, we don’t hand you a referral card. We assess it.
We serve residential homeowners, real estate professionals, and commercial building owners throughout Southwestern Pennsylvania. Whether you need a single-service inspection or a full suite of reports ahead of closing, we make the process straightforward, thorough, and clear.
Complete Inspection Services for Every Client We Serve.
For Homebuyers & Residential Owners
For Real Estate Agents
For Commercial Building Owners
A Full Suite of Inspection & Engineering Services
Structural Engineering Reports
Pittsburgh’s housing stock is old, and its hills are steep. Foundation movement, retaining wall failures, bowing basement walls, and settlement cracks are common — and commonly misunderstood. Our licensed professional engineer assesses structural conditions with precision, provides a certified engineering report, and tells you plainly what it means and what to do about it.
Best for: Buyers with foundation concerns, homeowners dealing with settlement or cracking, real estate transactions requiring an engineering letter, commercial property due diligence.
Home Inspections
A Three Rivers home inspection is a thorough evaluation of every accessible system and component of your home — structure, roof, electrical, plumbing, HVAC, insulation, and more. Our inspectors are specially trained, detail-oriented, and backed by in-house engineering expertise that no general inspection franchise can match. We document what we find with clear photographs and plain-language explanations.
Best for: Homebuyers, sellers preparing for listing, homeowners wanting a maintenance baseline, new construction verification.
Pest Inspection Services
Wood-destroying insects and organisms don’t advertise their presence. Termites, carpenter ants, wood-boring beetles, and fungal decay can compromise structural integrity long before the damage becomes visible. Our pest inspections identify active infestations, prior damage, and the conditions that attract and sustain pest activity — protecting your investment and satisfying lender requirements.
Best for: Homebuyers (often required by lenders), sellers seeking a clean bill of health before listing, homeowners in older Pittsburgh neighborhoods with mature tree canopies and aging wood structures.
Radon Testing
Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that seeps up through soil and rock — and Pennsylvania is one of the highest-risk states in the country. It’s colorless, odorless, and the second leading cause of lung cancer in the U.S. The only way to know if your home has a radon problem is to test. Our certified radon testing is accurate, fast, and provides clear results you can act on.
Best for: Any homebuyer or homeowner in Southwestern PA — radon testing should be considered non-negotiable in this region. Also required by many lenders and frequently requested in purchase agreements.
Roof Inspections
Pittsburgh’s freeze-thaw cycles, ice dams, and summer hail events are brutal on roofing systems. A Three Rivers roof inspection evaluates every component — shingles, flashing, decking, gutters, attic ventilation, and penetrations — and combines visual inspection with thermal imaging to detect hidden moisture damage that a surface-only evaluation misses. We’re independent. We don’t sell roofing. Our only job is to tell you the truth.
Best for: Homebuyers, homeowners after a storm event, sellers wanting pre-listing documentation, anyone with a roof over 10 years old.
Sewer Scope Inspections
The sewer line is the most expensive repair most homeowners have never thought about — until it fails. A sewer scope inspection runs a small camera through your lateral sewer line from the house to the main, revealing root intrusion, pipe separation, offset joints, deteriorated clay tile, and blockages that can cost thousands to repair. In Pittsburgh’s older neighborhoods, where cast iron and clay tile lines are the norm, a sewer scope is essential.
Best for: Any buyer of a home built before 1980, homeowners with slow drains or recurring backups, anyone purchasing a home in Pittsburgh’s inner-ring neighborhoods where original sewer infrastructure is still in place.
Thermal Imaging Inspections
Our professional thermal imaging inspection uses FLIR infrared camera technology to reveal what the naked eye simply cannot see — hidden moisture intrusion, missing insulation, electrical hot spots, HVAC failures, and air leaks inside walls, ceilings, and floors. Every anomaly is documented with paired visible and infrared images. It’s non-invasive, it’s thorough, and it routinely finds problems that change the outcome of a transaction.
Best for: Homebuyers wanting maximum protection, homeowners investigating high energy bills or suspected leaks, anyone with an older Pittsburgh home where hidden moisture damage is a legitimate concern.
The Three Rivers Difference
What Sets Us Apart from Every Other Inspection Company in Pittsburgh
We aren’t just inspectors—we’re your trusted guide through the home buying or selling process. Here’s what sets us apart:
An Engineer in the Building
No other general inspection company in Southwestern Pennsylvania gives you seamless access to a licensed professional engineer as part of the same team. When something serious is discovered — a foundation crack, a sagging roof structure, a retaining wall in distress — we assess it. Right then.
Independent. Always.
We don't sell repairs. We don't have a roofing division, a pest control contract, or a financial relationship with any contractor. Our only product is honest, accurate information. That independence is what makes our reports worth having.
One Company, Every Service
Coordinating a home inspection, a sewer scope, a radon test, and a pest inspection across four separate vendors is a logistical headache during an already stressful transaction. Three Rivers handles it all — one call, one schedule, one report ecosystem, one company accountable for everything.
Thirty Years of Pittsburgh Knowledge
We have assessed over 15,000 structures in Southwestern Pennsylvania. We know what Pittsburgh homes look like when they're healthy — and when they're not. That pattern recognition, built over decades in this specific market, is something no national franchise can replicate.
Reports That Hold Up
Our reports are thorough, well-documented, and written in plain language. They hold up in negotiations, in insurance claims, in permit applications, and in engineering reviews. We write them as if they'll be read by a judge — because sometimes they are.
Common Questions About Our Services
Can I schedule multiple services at once — like a home inspection and radon test together?
Absolutely, and we recommend it. Scheduling your home inspection, radon test, sewer scope, and any other services simultaneously saves time, reduces the number of access appointments, and keeps your transaction timeline on track. Call us and we’ll build a package that fits your situation.
Do you work with buyers, sellers, or both?
Both. We perform pre-purchase inspections for buyers, pre-listing inspections for sellers, and stand-alone service inspections for current homeowners who want to know the condition of their own home. We also serve commercial property owners and real estate investors.
How soon can I get an inspection scheduled?
We work to accommodate your timeline. Call us at 412-331-5665 and we’ll find the earliest available slot that works for your schedule and your transaction deadline.
How long do these add-on inspections take?
Do you provide written reports?
Yes — every service we provide includes a written report with photographic documentation. Reports are written in plain language and delivered promptly after the inspection.
Do you inspect commercial properties?
Yes. Our inspection and engineering team works with commercial building owners, investors, and property managers throughout Southwestern Pennsylvania. Call us to discuss the scope and requirements of your specific property.
Why do you have a structural engineer on staff?
At Three Rivers, our inspection and engineering team works together under one roof — they’re not two separate departments, they’re one integrated team. That means when a significant structural concern is found during an inspection, you don’t wait weeks for a separate engineering appointment. You get a certified assessment from our licensed PE in the same visit or shortly thereafter, because the structural and inspection expertise at Three Rivers are built into the same company from the ground up.
Are you affiliated with any repair contractors?
No. Three Rivers is an independent inspection and engineering firm. We have no financial relationship with any contractor, repair service, or remediation company. When we identify a problem, we tell you about it and let you choose who to hire to fix it.