Features
Science background an asset for Winnipeg’s only Jewish home inspection specialist
By MYRON LOVE Readers of the Free Press may recognize the name, Ari Marantz. For the past 20-plus years, Winnipeg’s only Jewish home inspection specialist has been writing a regular weekly column, “Ask the Inspector”, on the subject he knows best.
“It started when a previous “Homes” editor was set to retire,” says the son of Bill and Brenda Marantz of his gig as a Free Press columnist. “Someone passed my name along and I thought I would give it a try. It has worked out well and has been really good exposure for my business (Trained Eye Home Inspection).”
He adds that he tries to keep the column fresh and up-to-date. “I really appreciate getting questions from readers,” he notes.
The real irony for Marantz is that his wife, Ilana Simon, is the professional writer in the family. In the past, he points out, she used to write a food and recipe swap column for the Free Press. (She is currently Director of Communications and Marketing at the University of Manitoba’s Rady Faculty of Health Sciences.)
While Marantz studied zoology at university and has a degree in Science, the building trades have always been his real passion. During his university years, he worked summer jobs part time, first at Beaver Lumber (sales clerk) and later at Brown and Rutherford (a historic lumber yard).
After university, he began his own construction company. “I started with fences and decks and other outside projects,” he recounts. “I did mostly residential renovations.”
He worked as a contractor for about 15 years before switching to home inspections. “Being a contractor is a challenging occupation,” he observes. “It was particularly difficult during the period when house prices were flat and interest rates were at an all-time high.”
Setting himself up as a home inspector meshed well with his experience and skill sets, he notes.
His science background also helped, he adds.
Marantz qualified for his new role through a home study course created by Toronto-based Carson Dunlop and Associates. “I was one of the first graduates,” he reports. “Today, their program is offered throughout North America. A lot of colleges follow their curriculum.”
A proper home inspection should take two to three hours – depending on the age of the house, Marantz points out. “We examine all the major systems – the plumbing, heating and electrical, the attic and the roof. The foundations are the biggest concerns.”
Most home inspections should take place before you take possession of your new home, he advises. “You will want to know what the potential problems may be before you move in.
“When I started Trained Eye Home Inspections,” he recalls, “the average wait for a home inspection was three or four days. We are a lot busier these days, Now, when someone puts in an offer on a house and wants a home inspection before buying, the home inspection has to be done almost immediately because the offer is often time limited.“
For first time home buyers, he adds, bringing in a home inspector prior to purchase is especially important because there is a lot to learn about owning a home.
It is also useful, he adds, for people building a new home to be in contract with a home inspector at the beginning of the construction process to ensure that potential problems are identified and resolved before the house is completed.
He reports that he has been especially busy these past few weeks between the ground shifting more than usual due to the previous dry weather and the many flooded basements caused by the torrential rains of the past few weeks.
While Marantz may be the only home inspector of the Jewish persuasion in Manitoba, he notes that he has come to know several other Jewish home inspectors across North America. This came about through his membership and involvement in the Canadian Association of Home and Property Inspectors, where he was Manitoba President, National Vice-President, and a National Director for many years.
He is also a member of the American Society of Home Inspectors.
Outside of work, Marantz enjoys spending time with his family, including his sons Jesse (who, with his wife, Lauren, are parents to three-year-old Jack), and Evan (and girlfriend Ravit). He also enjoys the family cottage at Winnipeg Beach in the summers and keeps in shape with golf in summer and hockey – he plays twice a week – in season.
Features
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Features
Musings from Dizengoff Street – by Bruce Brown
(August 8, 2026)
Outside Basimta Café in Central Jerusalem. Love the red shirt against a tiny sea of black. Not sure I am shrugging because of the ultra-orthodox uproar over a Jerusalem café operating on Shabbat or the lack of an ultra-orthodox uproar over a Jerusalem café operating on Shabbat. For the last six weeks Israeli headlines shouted about the cafe chaos. With the ultra-religious blocking entrances and storming the café. While shouting ‘Shabbos! Shabbos!’ Upsetting the secular amongst us just wanting to enjoy our Saturday iced matchas. So the wife and I thought we would check it out. And. Yes. Buy something to support the business. Uproar. Not. Blocked entrances. Not. Storming the café. Not. Albeit there were police barriers separating the devout protesters from the coffee drinkers. The protesters being just a few dozen black clad, pious Jews. Mostly teenagers. And yes. Shouting ‘Shabbos! Shabbos!’ Certainly underwhelming in its reported mayhem. Reminds me of the famous saying misattributed to Mark Twain – “If you don’t read the newspaper, you’re uninformed. If you do, you’re misinformed.” But I did enjoy my iced matcha.
(August 6, 2026)
Here we go again. Another round of forever negotiations. As someone who negotiates for a living. The way things are going in the straits. If I had to recommend a book on the subject to a new hire. Between The Art of the Deal, A Presidential Edition by Donald J. Trump or The Real Art of the Deal by the Mullahs of Iran with a special forward by the IRGC. Well. I would choose the latter.
(August 3)
Bravo Yoav Segalovitz, Liberal Yesh Atid MK and Monsour Abbas, United Arab Ra’am MK and party head. For breaking a glass ceiling where a Jewish lawmaker joins an Arab political party. No less a political earthquake in my little shtetl. Which can significantly impact coalition block arithmetic and posturing and strategy in the upcoming elections. Now Ra’am can be considered a legitimate ‘Zionist’ partner when forming coalition blocks and potentially pushing the ‘center left/right’ party over the 60 seat majority threshold. In our crazy parliamentary democracy defined by a multi-party (about fourteen!!), proportional representation system. To paraphrase Winston Churchill, Israel’s proportional representation model of governance is the best parliamentary democracy system except for all other forms of working democracies. Stay tuned for more amateurish political musings as we move towards Israel’s 26th national election – five of them held since 2019.
(August 1)
Although both sides say they are open to diplomacy. Neither really trusts the other. And American military action, or its threat, continues. I read headlines in the middle of the night -it’s a nervous habit lately– that the Dynamic Duo of Trump and Netanyahu may again strike in unison. Possibly this weekend. Yikes! Prompting me, at 2:30 AM, to dash around the house stocking my safe room. Bottled water. Canned food. Medicines. Documents. The beat goes on….
If it’s crazy here. It’s insane in Italy. With a recent online ‘Jew Hunt’ in the Milan area. Before being removed, the digital forms urged reportings of Israelis and Italian Jews staying in local hotels. The infamous Global Sumud Movement -yes, the one coordinating ‘peace and humanitarian’ flotillas to Gaza- was somehow connected. Although they deny involvement?! This deranged decree was looking to identify Zionist tourism and Zionist neo-colonization in Italy. I’ll stick with stocking the saferoom.
Then there’s New York Mayor Mamdani, a Global Sumud Movement supporter, threatening to arrest Prime Minister Netanyahu if he comes to New York. But since discovered he has no legal right for such a grandstanding, antisemitic, anti-Israel, anti-Western, anti-democratic antic. Maybe Mandami should be arrested! Or at least impeached. For being a grandstanding, antisemitic, anti-Israel, anti-Western, anti-democratic mayor.
Here’s a post Bruce sent us Friday, July 31:
WARTIME MUSINGS
Should credible threats against FLOTUS and ‘FSOTUS’ (first son..) not be justification to attack first.
As for yesterday’s summit. Netanyahu really can’t win. Explainer. If Trump now attacks without victory its ’cause of Netanyahu. If Trump now attacks with victory its ’cause of Trump. And, in Israel, if Trump doesn’t attack -victory or not- Netanyahu failed in his eighth meeting with Trump. And if Trump does attack -victory or not- half the country will vilify Bibi anyway. Missing a permutation?
Ya. I know. Kinda’ need a definition of victory for that musing to work.
And here in my little shtetle. We go to sleep unsure if there will be a code red in the middle of the night. And if not. We wake up thinking it will be tonight. How do you define stress?
Seemed like an appropriate way to end this musing.
Bruce Brown is a former Winnipegger who made aliyah to Israel over 35 years ago. Bruce first began writing for us – in his own inimitable style, in 2012, during what was known as “Operation Pillar of Defense.” His occasional musings on aspects of life in Israel that were far from what you’d typically read in other reports from Israel were hugely popular – both in the print Jewish Post & News and on this website.
We’re now glad to report that Bruce is back writing for us – this time on a regular basis. We will post Bruce’s reports as they arrive – with the date of each post at the beginning of that post.
Here’s some information about Bruce – and awards he’s received for his writing:
Bruce Brown. Canadian born. Now living in Israel (for a long time). Bruce works in Israel’s hi-tech sector by day and, in spurts, is a somewhat inspired writer by night. He received the American Jewish Press Association’s award for writing excellence in 2019 and 2025. And wrote the 1998 satire, “An Israeli is….” Bruce’s musings are political, social, economic and personal. With lots of biting, contrarian, sardonic and irreverent insight.
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