We just sold our home and saw the buyers inspection report for negotiating. It is very frustrating that buyers are using the inspection to 'drop the price' of the home instead of using it as a tool to identify the integrity of the structure and mechanics.

In the report we saw, it states items that need to be fixed, such as:

Attic NEEDS more ventilation
Sidewalks NEED to be replaced
Garage NEEDs to be re-wired.

I thought they should only list what is wrong instead of offering advice on what needs to be done. Should the report state items such as:

Attic has no ventilation
Sidewalks are broken and uneven
Garage does not have electricity.

Isn't it the responsibility of the inspector to state how he finds the condition of the house and to not state what, or how, things need to be fixed?

Building Inspectors, along with Mortgage Loan Originators, remain one of the only Real Estate related professions which IS NOT LICENSED in most jurisdictions; so there is no universal standard that must be met . . . . just satisfying that member of the Public who is paying the Inspector's Fee - The Buyer.

Sometimes they find more than is necessary to satisfy the Buyer because of an underlying motivation - you don't get sued for deals that die because of the Inspection.

It's very unusual for the Seller to obtain a copy of the COMPLETE Inspection Report - usually just excerpts are provided that facilitate the Buyer's bargaining position. Consider yourself the exception !

Just some observations.

Look at your contract - Ours says "Items must be preforming the function as intended with no NEED of immediate repair".

Inspectors should keep this in mind but many do not - so it's up to us, the agent, to keep this in mind for our clients. Also remember that it is not up to the sellers to bring items in a house up to code (lots of inspectors and agents too will try to pull this one).

But, yes you are right you will see all kinds of "unneeded" things on an inspection report. Protects the inspector from liability.

Most inspectors won't (and shouldn't) state HOW things should be repaired/corrected, but they definitely should be stating that specific items need to be replaced, repaired or corrected.

CA is one of those states where the seller is entitled to a complete copy of all reports prepared on their property.

Home Inspectors are hired to report the conditions of a home.

If there are visible, or even probable defects, it is the responsibility of the home inspector to list these sorts of items because this is what he/she gets paid to do. They don't want a home buyer to come back after a home purchase and say, "you never listed these defects in your home inspection report."

Not only do they list defects, they also recommend what should be done to fix the problem. They don't want a buyer coming back and suing them because the inspector didn't tell them certain things should have been fixed.