Recently I performed a home inspection for a very kind older woman. Her family was spread out over a few states and she was living in her home alone. Her son found me online to help them assess her property and find a water problem. While performing the inspection she informed me of suggestions her handyman had made to solve a water problem in her basement. The handyman suggested that the basement corner needed to be waterproofed and he wanted to remove all the plants, and dig a trench etc. He also wanted to put a roof over the open basement stairs that had a drain. I am hoping that this was the uninformed best intentions of a young handyman. The water in the basement was coming from a poorly positioned condensate pan in the air handler and the basement drain was around an inch over grade. Since the HVAC system was only a few years old, it is all under warranty, and the cover for the drain in the stairwell shouldn't cost much. The handyman wanted to give her a deal; only 5k to install a roof and waterproof a corner of the foundation. An impartial unbiased informed inspector can save you money. I'm glad to have been able to help, and I hope that the report will help her moving forward.