I don’t think you can generalize that we don’t have good inspectors because a single vent was missed in your attic. As I said earlier, $8/hr will get you a laborer that can dig, cleanup, move lumber, etc. $12-14/hr will get you a production framer. I’m not talking about workers to do some work on an individual house, or guys that you might pick up on a street corner. I’m talking about large developments built by large builders. They have production framing crews that do the same work on each tract home. It’s the equivalent to the assembly line. They are trained, fast, and efficient. They are supervised by a skilled supervisor and their work is inspected by the City/County. Many of them have 10+ years of experience here and in Mexico. The majority of them know what they are doing.
As for your friend in Ramona. Obviously if you’re going to hire a crew to build your own house, you might want some recommendations or maybe check a reference or two.
As for the builders hiring their own inspectors in Florida: apparently Florida law allows that. I’m unaware of a similar law in Calif.
