Sounds like the veneer itself might be the real problem here, not the bentwood shape. Heritage maple is pretty brittle stuff and it doesn't like getting steamed or bent much without cracking along the grain. Maybe a softer species or a thinner veneer would've held up better in the press.

A standard home inspection in Alberta is visual only, so unless there is a clear access point the inspector is not going to cut into drywall. That part is normal and it is written into most inspection contracts. Where your guy went wrong was the sump pump corner, since a line running there often leaves staining or a musty smell you can catch without opening anything. I get why you are upset about the $2,100, but a regular inspection is not the same as a mold or moisture test, and those cost extra. Next time ask for a thermal camera scan on the basement walls, it runs about $150 more and shows old leaks behind drywall pretty fast.

Glad someone else went through the same thing. I was the same way for years, singles every Wednesday, bagged and boarded, the whole routine. Then I sat down with a full run one rainy weekend and it was like reading it for the first time, no cliffhangers to sit on, no month long gap killing the flow. The writer actually gets to build something and you feel it when you are not waiting thirty days between beats. My pull list still exists but it is way smaller now and I do not miss the boxes taking over the closet.