Your inspection report just landed in your inbox. It's 60 pages, has hundreds of photos, and seemingly every other line says "recommend further evaluation by a qualified contractor." You have 5 days to negotiate, you've never bought a house before, and your agent is asking what you want to do. Where do you start?
This guide walks you through how to actually read a home inspection report — what matters, what doesn't, what's worth negotiating, and what to ignore. The examples below are anonymized findings from real Southeast Michigan inspections we've performed.
Every well-written inspection report starts with an executive summary or "summary of major concerns" section, usually on page 1 or 2. This is the inspector's highest-priority list. If your report doesn't have one, ask your inspector to send you a 10-bullet summary of the most material findings. (Ours always include this.)
Read the summary first. Don't get lost in the hundred-page detail report until you've absorbed what the inspector themselves flagged as most important.
Every finding in your report belongs in one of four categories:
Things that could hurt someone — exposed live wiring, missing GFCI protection in wet locations, missing handrails on stairs, broken or missing window glass, gas leaks, carbon monoxide concerns, missing smoke detectors. These get fixed before move-in regardless of cost. They're almost always small dollars.
Real example: A 1962 ranch in Madison Heights had a 60-amp service panel still in use with double-tapped breakers and aluminum branch wiring. Total finding: $2,200 to upgrade to a 200-amp panel and AFCI/GFCI protection. Negotiated as a credit at closing.
Things that are failing right now or will fail within 1–2 years. A water heater past its design life with rust at the base. A roof at end-of-life with active leaks. A 30-year-old furnace with cracked heat exchanger. These are real money and worth negotiating hard on.
Real example: A 2,400 sq ft colonial in Plymouth had an 18-year-old furnace with rust streaks at the heat exchanger and a CO reading of 35 ppm at the supply registers. Replacement cost: $5,800. Seller installed a new furnace before closing.
Things that work today but won't last as long as you thought when you made the offer. A roof that has 5 years of life left instead of 15. A water heater that's 10 years old with 2 years of life left. A driveway with major crumbling. These are negotiable depending on how the price was set and what you assumed.
Real example: A pre-listed Sterling Heights home was advertised as having a "newer" roof. Inspection revealed it was a 22-year-old asphalt shingle roof in obvious end-of-life condition. Buyer renegotiated $8,000 off the price.
Caulk needs replaced. Touch-up painting. A loose deck board. A damaged screen. These should be in the report so you have a punch list when you move in, but they're not negotiation items. If you bring 60 cosmetic items to a negotiation, the seller (and your agent) will tune you out and you'll lose leverage on the things that actually matter.
The single most-misread phrase in inspection reports is "recommend further evaluation by a qualified contractor." Inspectors are required to flag certain findings for specialist review even when they're not material. This phrase means three different things depending on context:
If you're unsure which category a "further evaluation" item belongs in, call your inspector. We expect to spend 20–30 minutes on the phone with most clients after delivery walking through the report. If your inspector won't take that call, that's a red flag.
From the four buckets above, build a tight list of 5–10 items to negotiate. Resist the urge to make a 40-item list. Sellers respond to focused, well-documented requests; they shut down on shotgun lists.
For each item, attach a specific request:
Always attach a contractor estimate or a clear cost basis to your dollar requests. "$5,000 to replace the furnace" lands very differently than "$5,000 because I read the report."
We've seen buyers blow up deals fighting over $200 worth of caulk and a broken closet door while ignoring an aging roof and an undersized electrical panel. Pick your battles. The inspection report's job is to give you complete information; your job is to use it strategically.
If you're a Problem Experts client, your inspection includes a post-delivery phone call where we walk through every finding, separate the noise from the signal, and help you build your negotiation list. If you got an inspection from someone else and it's confusing, we offer second-opinion consultations. Call (734) 359-7993.