How to make your inspection report more useful to buyers

Start from the minimum

The standards set the floor. InterNACHI's Standards of Practice say a report shall identify, in writing, defects within the systems it covers that the inspector observed and deems material. ASHI's say the report states systems and components that are not functioning properly, significantly deficient, unsafe, or near the end of their service lives, with recommendations to correct, or monitor for future correction, the deficiencies reported. States add their own: Illinois rules require the report to say whether each reported deficiency should be corrected or monitored.

A report can meet every one of those and still leave a buyer confused. The tips below are about the space between compliant and useful.

Ten ways to make it more useful

1. Put a summary up front

One page: the safety items, the significant defects, and the items to budget for soon. It is the page a buyer and their agent work from when they decide what to ask for, so make it stand on its own.

2. Write each finding the same way

What it is, where it is, why it matters, and what to do: "Outlet beside the upstairs hall bathroom sink: did not trip when the GFCI test button was pressed. An outlet near water that does not trip is a shock hazard. Have a licensed electrician replace it." The same four parts every time make a 40-page report scannable.

3. Make the recommendation specific

"Further evaluation recommended" is honest, but say by whom: a licensed electrician, a roofer, a structural engineer. That is also the line a buyer pastes into a repair request.

4. Separate defects from maintenance

A missing GFCI and a dirty furnace filter are not the same kind of item. Mark maintenance items as maintenance, so they do not inflate the defect list or the negotiation.

5. Photograph every label

The data plate on the furnace, the water heater, the air conditioner, the electrical panel and each major appliance. It shows what you saw, and it gives the buyer the model and serial number they will need for manuals, parts and recalls.

6. Record ages where you can read them

InterNACHI's standards say you are not required to determine the service life expectancy of a component, and InterNACHI's standards also say being near the end of its useful life is not in itself a material defect. Still, a manufacture year read from the label is a fact, and buyers plan around it. State the year and say where it came from.

7. Use photos that explain

Wide shot for where, close-up for what, an arrow or a circle for the exact spot. A photo the buyer cannot place is a phone call.

8. Say what you could not inspect

Locked rooms, a roof too steep to walk, systems that were off. Saying it plainly protects you and tells the buyer what to follow up before closing.

9. Write for the person who will live there

Plain words, no codes the reader has to look up, no jargon without a short explanation. If your software uses ratings or abbreviations, define them once at the top.

10. Add the notes that last past closing

InterNACHI's standards say a report may include additional comments and recommendations. A short section of upkeep for this house (filter size, the alarms, the dryer vent, the gutters) is the part of the report a buyer will still be using a year from now. Our maintenance tips guide has a starting list.

Delivery

Get it out on time: Illinois rules set 2 business days after the inspection, and Texas rules two days from completion or full payment. Send it to your client, who decides who else gets it: InterNACHI's code requires the client's prior written consent before releasing it to a third party.

Questions people ask