What a home inspection actually covers

Illinois has required home inspectors to be licensed since 2003 under the Home Inspector License Act. Getting the license takes sixty hours of approved education, supervised field inspections, and a state exam built on the National Home Inspector Examination plus Illinois law. Licensed inspectors work to a written standard of practice. Ask for the license number; Nick can point you to inspectors he has watched work.

The major systems, visually and where accessible: roof, structure and foundation, exterior and grading, electrical, plumbing, heating and cooling, windows and doors, attic and insulation, and the interior. It is a snapshot of visible condition on that day. It is not an appraisal, a code inspection, or a guarantee about what is behind the drywall.

The granite and the stainless steel you saw yourself. Nick was looking at the outlets, the electrical panel, and the grading around the foundation, and on his showings he points out things like outlets that are not GFCI protected. That is a today problem or a five-year problem, and he tells you which before you write. The inspection then confirms and expands that list with tools and time a showing does not allow.

That is the part first-time buyers are not ready for. A clean house of any age produces a list. The skill is sorting it: routine maintenance, a repair worth negotiating, or a significant issue that changes the deal. Many repairs get negotiated with the seller before closing. A long report does not mean walk away; it means read it with someone who has seen a few hundred of them.

Buyers get tempted to waive the inspection in a competitive situation. Nick's answer is that understanding the condition of the house is one of the strongest protections you have in the whole transaction, and the corridor rarely demands you give it up. There are ways to write a competitive offer without going in blind; ask him before you consider it.

Next step for buyers: what buying a house in Illinois actually costs, or the six steps Nick walks every buyer through.