STL Home Buyer Journey
George Kindler
13 Years Of Real Estate Experience At Your Fingertips
Most buyers have never been to a home inspection before they buy their first home. Here is exactly what happens, what an inspector covers, what the report looks like, and what to do with it.
In Missouri, the standard purchase contract gives buyers an inspection period -- typically 10 days after the contract is executed. The inspection must be completed and any inspection objections must be submitted to the seller within this period. Missing the inspection deadline waives your right to object to condition.
Schedule the inspection as early in the inspection period as possible. You want maximum time to get repair estimates if you plan to negotiate.
A licensed home inspector in Missouri checks the following systems and components:
Yes. Always. Your presence at the inspection is how you get the education that makes the report useful. An inspector pointing at a HVAC unit and explaining that it is 16 years old and showing signs of heat exchanger cracking is more useful than reading "HVAC showing signs of wear" in a report. Ask questions. Take notes. Take photos.
The inspection typically takes 2.5 to 4 hours depending on the size and age of the home. Plan to be there for the full duration and to spend 20 to 30 minutes at the end reviewing findings with the inspector.
Modern home inspection reports are detailed documents, often 40 to 80 pages with photos of every finding. Inspectors use a categorization system -- typically "safety concern," "repair recommended," and "monitor" or equivalent. The report will have items in every category on any house that is more than five years old. That is normal and does not mean the house is a disaster.
Your job is to identify the items that are material -- that is, items that are expensive to address, represent safety hazards, or indicate systemic problems -- and separate them from the routine maintenance items that would appear on any inspection of any home.
Within the inspection period, you have three options. You can accept the home as-is and proceed. You can submit an inspection objection to the seller listing specific items and requesting repairs, price reductions, or credits. Or you can terminate the contract and receive your earnest money back.
An inspection objection is a negotiation, not a demand list. Focus it on the material items -- the expensive, the safety-related, and the systemic. A seller who is presented with a 40-item objection list covering every minor maintenance note in the report will respond very differently than one presented with a focused three-item list with documented repair estimates.
How to build a negotiation position from inspection findings. How Repair Costs Should Affect Your Offer Price → → What to look for before the inspection -- during the showing. Walkthrough Checklist → →Questions about what you are reading? I answer personally -- no team, no handoff.