How much does a home inspection cost in St. Louis?

A standard home inspection in St. Louis runs $350 to $600. Add $150 to $300 for a sewer lateral scope on any pre-1980 home and $100 to $150 for a radon test. Plan to spend $600 to $1,000 total.

Can the seller refuse to fix inspection items in Missouri?

Yes. Missouri sellers are not required to make repairs. They can accept your inspection objection, counter it, or reject it. If they reject it, you can proceed as-is or terminate the contract within the inspection period.

How long is the inspection period in Missouri?

The inspection period is typically set in the purchase contract -- commonly 10 days but negotiable. Your inspection objection must be submitted before the deadline. Missing the deadline means you waive the right to object.

Should I get a sewer scope with my home inspection?

Yes, on any St. Louis home built before 1980. Clay tile sewer laterals are standard in older St. Louis housing stock. A camera scope runs $150 to $300. Replacement runs $4,000 to $12,000.

What is the difference between an inspection objection and a request for repairs?

An inspection objection is a formal contract document submitted within the inspection period that requests repairs, price reductions, or closing credits. Always use the formal process -- it preserves your contractual rights.

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Seller Guide

What You Actually Lose Accepting a Cash Offer in St. Louis

George Kindler· Licensed Missouri Realtor· For Sellers

The number most sellers focus on when they receive a cash offer is the closing timeline. Fast, easy, no showings. What most sellers do not focus on until after the fact is the gap between what they accepted and what the home would have sold for on the open market.

In St. Louis, that gap is significant. Cash wholesale offers in this market typically land around 50% of actual market value. On a $200,000 home, that is $100,000. After you account for commissions and closing costs you would have paid on an MLS sale, your net loss from accepting the cash offer is still $80,000 to $90,000 in most cases.

The Gap in Real Numbers

Here is what the comparison looks like on a typical South County St. Louis home worth $220,000 on the open market:

Item	Cash Offer (50% of market)	MLS Sale
Sale price	$110,000	$220,000
Commission (6%)	$0	-$13,200
Title and closing costs	$0	-$1,400
Prorated taxes (est.)	$0	-$1,200
Staging / prep (est.)	$0	-$1,500
Net to seller	$110,000	$202,700
Gap	$92,700

That $92,700 gap is the cost of the convenience. It is real money. Whether it is worth it depends entirely on your situation.

What You Are Actually Trading

When you accept a cash offer you are trading money for:

Speed: Close in 10 to 30 days instead of 45 to 75 days for a typical MLS sale.
Certainty: No financing contingency, no appraisal risk, reduced chance of deal falling through at the last minute.
Convenience: No staging, no showings, no weekend open houses, no keeping the house show-ready for weeks.
Condition flexibility: You do not have to address deferred maintenance before listing.

These are real benefits. The question is whether they are worth $80,000 to $100,000 in your specific situation. For most sellers in most situations, the answer is no. For a seller in genuine distress, facing a hard deadline, or dealing with a property that has serious condition issues that limit the buyer pool -- the answer might be yes.

When the Trade-Off Makes Sense

There are situations where accepting a cash offer at a significant discount is the right decision:

Serious deferred maintenance that prevents conventional financing: If the home has foundation issues, major roof damage, or plumbing/electrical conditions that would fail a lender's appraisal, the effective buyer pool may be limited to cash buyers anyway. Listing on the MLS with these conditions often produces cash offers similar to what the wholesale buyer is offering.
Estate properties with multiple heirs and coordination challenges: The simplicity and speed of a cash close avoids months of managing a property across family members in different cities.
Hard relocation deadlines: If you have a job start date in six weeks and cannot manage a showing process from another city, the time value of certainty may be worth the discount.
Genuine financial distress: If the alternative to selling quickly is foreclosure, the cash offer -- even at a significant discount -- may preserve equity that would otherwise be lost entirely.

Before You Decide

Before accepting any cash offer, run the numbers on what the MLS alternative would actually produce. A conversation with a licensed St. Louis agent about current market conditions, realistic list price, and expected time to close costs you nothing and gives you the comparison you need to make an informed decision.

The Cash Offer Decoder does the same math automatically -- enter the offer details and the investor's repair claims, and it shows you the gap between the cash offer and a realistic MLS net.

See the Gap Before You Decide

Enter your offer and property details. The Cash Offer Decoder shows you the investor's math -- and what you would net listing on the MLS instead.

Open Cash Offer Decoder →

What the Gap Looks Like Across St. Louis Price Points

Using a 50% cash offer vs. a realistic MLS net (after 6% commission, $1,400 title, $1,500 prorated taxes, 2% concession):

Market Value	Cash Offer (50%)	MLS Net	Gap
$150,000	$75,000	$135,100	$60,100
$200,000	$100,000	$181,100	$81,100
$250,000	$125,000	$227,100	$102,100
$300,000	$150,000	$272,900	$122,900

What the Convenience Is Actually Costing You Per Day

A typical St. Louis MLS sale closes 45 to 75 days after listing. A cash close takes 10 to 30 days. The average time difference is roughly 30 to 60 days. On a $100,000 gap, you are paying approximately $1,700 to $3,300 per day for the convenience of closing faster.

When you frame it that way, the decision looks different. Most sellers have more flexibility in their timeline than they initially believe. A 30 to 45 day market exposure period is not a long time relative to the cost of skipping it.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much less is a cash offer than market value in St. Louis?

Cash wholesale offers in St. Louis typically land around 50% of actual market value. After accounting for commissions and closing costs you would pay on an MLS sale, the net difference is typically $60,000 to $100,000 on a median-priced St. Louis home.

Is it worth accepting a cash offer to avoid repairs?

It depends on the scope of the repairs. For minor deferred maintenance, listing as-is on the MLS with appropriate pricing will typically produce a higher net than accepting a wholesale cash offer. For major structural or condition issues that prevent conventional financing, the cash buyer market may be the realistic option.

How long does it take to sell a house in St. Louis on the MLS?

A well-priced St. Louis home typically goes under contract within 7 to 30 days and closes 30 to 45 days after contract acceptance. From list to close, most MLS sales complete in 45 to 75 days. The difference versus a cash close is typically 2 to 4 weeks.

Can I list on the MLS and still get a cash offer?

Yes. Many cash buyers submit offers on MLS listings. The difference is that MLS cash offers from buyers who found you through the open market are typically much closer to actual market value than unsolicited wholesale offers from investors seeking off-market deals.