We hired one to do an inspection before they put up the drywall, and then plan to hire one again to check everything before we close.
My thoughts were that even though builders have warranty, the contractors and workers can still make mistakes. And once drywalls are put up, you will never know if everything is installed correctly until problems show up years later.
And as for before closing, I feel safer if an inspector is to look over everything for us because a lot of things aren't easy to spot to the untrained eye.
Just my 2c.
