Person Engineering

If a lender has asked for a foundation certification on a manufactured home, this is the firm that does them. Person Engineering specializes in FHA, VA, and HUD foundation certifications for manufactured and mobile homes — the sealed engineering letter a loan won’t close without.

The price is a flat $500, with the additions inspection included. That matters more than it sounds. National firms typically advertise $425 to $450 for the foundation inspection and then bill another $100 to $150 for the additions inspection, which effectively every loan requires. Local North Carolina engineering firms generally start around $750. One flat number, no add-ons.

Turnaround is two to four business days from scheduling to a sealed letter, signed by a licensed North Carolina professional engineer.

Travis Person runs the firm out of Waynesville, which puts Asheville and Buncombe County in the normal working week rather than on a dispatch route from the middle of the state. Most firms doing this work in North Carolina are concentrated around Raleigh and Charlotte, so a mountain job often means paying someone to drive four hours. That’s the gap this business exists to fill.

Alongside the certifications they handle foundation and footing inspections, additions inspections for manufactured homes, and engineer certification reports carrying a PE stamp.

Coverage runs across Western North Carolina, including Asheville, Black Mountain, Weaverville, Arden, Fairview, Candler, Leicester, Swannanoa, Barnardsville, and Woodfin.