Home Inspection Report Checklist
Five things to check in your report before you trust any of it.
Buying in Texas? Foundation, termite, and disclosure rules add nine more checks. See the Texas-specific checklist
Buying in Michigan? No inspector license, no statewide septic code, and radon rates well above the national average add nine more checks. See the Michigan-specific checklist
Buying in Maryland? A seller's right to disclaim known defects, plus ground rent and Bay-area septic rules, add nine more checks. See the Maryland-specific checklist
Buying in Indiana? A meth-lab database, mine subsidence zones, and one of the highest radon burdens in the country add nine more checks. See the Indiana-specific checklist
Buying in Colorado? Water rights, expansive soil, wildfire insurability, and abandoned mine hazards add nine more checks. See the Colorado-specific checklist
Buying in Florida? Condo milestone inspections, sinkhole coverage, wind mitigation credits, and flood disclosure add nine more checks. See the Florida-specific checklist
Buying in California? Natural hazard disclosure, wildfire insurance, Mello-Roos taxes, and seismic retrofit gaps add nine more checks. See the California-specific checklist
Buying in Virginia? Caveat emptor disclosure, a new septic inspection law, Chesapeake Bay buffer rules, and karst terrain add nine more checks. See the Virginia-specific checklist
Buying in North Carolina? Mineral rights disclosure, a disclosure-form loophole, coastal wind insurance, and post-Helene flood risk add nine more checks. See the North Carolina-specific checklist
Buying in Louisiana? A civil-law defect warranty, mineral rights that can expire automatically, coastal land loss, and the state's insurance crisis add eleven more checks. See the Louisiana-specific checklist
Buying in New York? A 2024 disclosure law change, co-op board approval, mansion tax cliffs, and oil tank liability add ten more checks. See the New York-specific checklist
Buying in Minnesota? City-mandated Truth in Sale of Housing evaluations, well disclosure law, radon exposure, and disclosure-statute carve-outs add nine more checks. See the Minnesota-specific checklist
Buying in Tennessee? A buyer-controlled disclosure waiver, karst sinkhole risk, New Madrid earthquake exposure, and separate radon licensing add eight more checks. See the Tennessee-specific checklist
Buying in Missouri? Caveat emptor disclosure, over 16,000 documented sinkholes, New Madrid earthquake exposure, and zero inspector regulation add seven more checks. See the Missouri-specific checklist
Buying in Nevada? A non-waivable disclosure law with treble damages, HOA super-priority liens, Las Vegas Valley land subsidence, and seismic risk add eight more checks. See the Nevada-specific checklist
Free · 2-page PDF · no spam
- Five checks that take fifteen minutes with the report open
- Catches gaps between the walkthrough and the written report
- Where to look next when something doesn't add up
What's inside
- Confirm every space you'd expect is actually in the report.Attic, crawl space, basement, electrical panel. If the listing or the inspector mentioned it out loud, it should show up in writing somewhere.
- Check whether the report's length matches how long the inspection took.A three-hour walkthrough that turns into two pages is a mismatch worth a phone call.
- Compare what the inspector said out loud to what ended up in writing.If you took notes during the walkthrough, pull them out and read both side by side.
“This gets you far enough to know when to ask a harder question. It won't tell you whether ‘recommend monitoring’ is really nothing or really something, how to read a structural engineer’s report, or what a finding is actually worth at the negotiating table. That’s the difference between noticing a report was softened and knowing what it was softened from. That’s Don’t Use Their Inspector.”
Questions buyers ask
What should I do if my home inspection report seems incomplete?
Compare the report against what the inspector actually said during the walkthrough, and confirm expected spaces like the attic, crawl space, basement, and electrical panel appear in writing. Under ASHI's Standard of Practice, inspectors can skip crawl spaces under 24 inches of clearance or attics blocked by insulation, so ask why a gap exists before assuming it's an oversight.
What does “recommend monitoring” mean in an inspection report?
Hedge phrases like “recommend monitoring” or “consider at your discretion” are vague by design, and can mean anything from a non-issue to a real problem the inspector wasn't willing to state plainly. If a finding worried you during the walkthrough, don't let softened language talk you out of that reaction.
Can I get a second home inspection or a specialist evaluation?
Yes, and it's common to schedule one within your inspection contingency window if the general inspector flags something outside their expertise, like a sewer line, roof, or foundation concern. Get a written estimate from a contractor before accepting a seller's verbal assurance that a finding “isn't a big deal.”
Sources
Get the checklist, free
One click to download. The full Don't Use Their Inspector is also free if you want to go deeper.