What to do after the home inspection report

The report came back, and it’s long: dozens of pages, a lot of photos, and “further evaluation” on many of them. Start with safety, then the big things, then the chores; settle what your contract lets you settle; put the rest on the calendar.

What the report is, and what it isn’t

A home inspection is a look at what can be seen, on one day. The InterNACHI standard calls it “a non-invasive, visual examination of the accessible areas of a residential property” (InterNACHI Standards of Practice, revised October 2022). The ASHI standard says an inspection is “not technically exhaustive” (ASHI Standard of Practice, effective March 1, 2014, section 13.1).

Both standards list what the inspector doesn’t have to decide. Under ASHI, that includes how long a system has left, what caused a problem, what fixing it costs, whether anything meets code, and whether you should buy the house. It also leaves out mold, wood-destroying organisms, radioactive substances, septic systems, wells and underground items such as buried tanks (sections 6.2 and 13.2). InterNACHI’s list is much the same, and names radon.

So the report is what one person saw that day, and what they think needs fixing, watching or a closer look. It isn’t a guarantee, a price list or a ruling on code. HUD tells buyers an appraisal “does not replace a home inspection” and that “FHA does not guarantee the value or condition of your new home” (HUD, For Your Protection: Get a Home Inspection).

Read it in three passes

First pass: safety. ASHI asks inspectors to report what is “not functioning properly, significantly deficient, unsafe,” or near the end of its life (section 2.2). For anything about gas, electrical, structure, carbon monoxide, smoke alarms or radon, write down what the inspector saw and who should look next. Don’t decide on your own that it’s minor. Ask.

• Gas, or how a furnace or water heater vents: a licensed heating or plumbing pro, or the gas company. If you ever smell gas, the federal pipeline safety office says to leave and call 911 “from a neighbor’s house or other location well away from the gas leak” (PHMSA).
• Electrical: a licensed electrician.
• Structure, such as foundation cracks, sagging or water in the basement: a structural engineer.
• Alarms: the U.S. Fire Administration says smoke alarms go “inside and outside each bedroom and sleeping area” and “on every level of the home” (USFA). The CPSC says carbon monoxide alarms go “on every level of the home and outside sleeping areas” (CPSC).
• Radon: if the report has no radon result, ask whether a test was done. The EPA says, “If you are buying or selling a home, have it tested for radon,” and “Fix the home if the radon level is 4 picocuries per liter (pCi/L) or higher” (EPA). Your state radon program can tell you how to find a tester (EPA).

Second pass: the big things. Roof, furnace and air conditioner, water heater, electrical panel, plumbing, foundation, windows. Look for “end of its service life” and “further evaluation,” and write down any age the inspector gave. Neither standard requires an estimate of how long something has left, so ask yours what they did. For the life spans the U.S. government publishes, see How long does a water heater, furnace or roof last?

Third pass: upkeep. Caulk, gutters, a dripping faucet, a door that sticks. This is your first list of chores. Where the inspector wrote “monitor,” that’s a date to look again.

What to ask the inspector

1. Which findings would you deal with first?
2. What didn’t you inspect, and why? ASHI asks the report to say (section 2.2).
3. For each “further evaluation”: what kind of specialist, and what should I ask them to check?
4. How old are the roof, furnace, air conditioner and water heater, and how could you tell?
5. Should I test for radon, mold, water quality, asbestos or lead paint here? HUD tells buyers to ask their inspector whether tests like these are relevant for the home.

Before your deadline

If your contract is contingent on a satisfactory inspection, the CFPB says “you have the right to cancel the sale without penalty if you are not satisfied with the results of the inspection” (CFPB, Schedule a home inspection). How many days you have, and how to respond, are set by your contract and vary by state. Check your contract, and ask your agent or a real estate attorney.

Inside that window:

• Ask for repairs or a credit. The CFPB says you “may want to negotiate with the seller about who should make or pay for the repairs,” or ask the seller “to give you a credit for the cost of the repairs.” Whether the seller agrees depends, in the CFPB’s words, on “the terms of your purchase contract and local market conditions.” A written quote turns a credit into a number.
• Book specialists early. The CFPB: “if additional inspections are needed, you’ll want to have plenty of time to get them completed.” The common ones cover what the general inspection leaves out: a camera scope of the sewer line, a structural engineer, a roofer, a heating and cooling pro, a radon test, a wood-destroying insect inspection, and a well or septic inspection where there is one.
• Built before 1978? For most homes that old, federal rules give buyers a 10-day period for a lead paint inspection or risk assessment, unless both sides agree in writing to change it or the buyer waives it (EPA).
• Tell your lender about big findings. The CFPB says “the lender can require that the repairs be made before closing.”
• Ask the building department about permits. If a finding points at an addition, a finished basement or newer wiring, ask the local building department what permits it has on file for the address, and whether they were closed. For a repair you plan, ask what they would need from you.

After you close: a first-year schedule

Turn the report into dates, sorted by when instead of by page.

• The first week: anything from the safety pass not fixed before closing.
• Every month: test the smoke alarms. The USFA says to “Test the alarm monthly.”
• Every year: the CPSC says, “Have the heating system professionally inspected and serviced annually.”
• Each “monitor” item: a date to look again, with the report’s page number.
• Each thing near the end of its life: the year to start getting quotes and setting money aside.
• Each thing the report didn’t inspect: a date to have it looked at.

Keep the report and the photos

Keep the whole report and every photo, not a summary. The next pro will want to see what the inspector saw, and the photos show the house on the day you bought it. Keep each repair receipt with it, so the finding and the fix sit together.

How Homaic does it

Homaic keeps the report as it came. Add the PDF on the website, or forward the email it came in to the house’s mail address. When Homaic reads it as an inspection report, open it and choose Read as an inspection report. Homaic reads it once and lists what it found: the inspector’s findings as to-dos, safety first, each with its page where the report gives one, and the equipment the report names, with make, model and year where it gives them, as things in your house. Keep or drop each one. Nothing is saved until you choose Save, and the report stays filed as the source. Homaic doesn’t read the inspector’s cost estimates.