After the Home Inspection, What Happens Next?

The inspection is done. The inspector has left, and in the next 24 to 48 hours you will receive a written report that may run 40 pages or more. What you do with that report — and how fast you do it — will determine whether your purchase moves forward, whether you save money, or whether you exit the deal entirely.

Here is what happens after a home inspection, step by step.

You Receive and Review the Report

The inspection report categorizes every finding the inspector observed. Most reports use a severity system — safety hazards, functional defects, and maintenance items — though the exact language varies by inspector and reporting software.

Read the full report before your next conversation with your agent. Highlight findings that fall into the safety and functional defect categories. Maintenance items — a dripping faucet, worn weatherstripping, a single burned-out GFCI outlet — are typically your responsibility as the incoming owner and not worth raising with the seller.

Pay particular attention to any item that includes a recommendation to consult a specialist — a structural engineer, a licensed electrician, or a licensed plumber. Those recommendations signal that the inspector identified something beyond the scope of a standard inspection. You may need to bring in a specialist before deciding how to proceed.

Your Inspection Contingency Window Starts Counting

Most purchase contracts include an inspection contingency — a defined period (commonly 7 to 14 days from the inspection date) during which you can request repairs, negotiate credits, or exit the contract with your earnest money returned. This window is often the most important deadline in your entire transaction.

Once the contingency window expires, your right to exit based on inspection findings typically disappears. You become committed to the purchase at the contracted price regardless of what the report showed.

Do not let the contingency window pass without taking deliberate action. If the inspection turned up significant findings and you are not sure what to do, the right move is to gather contractor estimates within the window — not to wait until you have perfect information.

You Decide What to Ask For

This is the step most buyers get wrong. The instinct is to send the seller a list of everything the inspector flagged. That approach routinely kills deals and rarely results in everything being addressed.

A more effective framework divides findings into three tiers:

Tier 1: Health and safety items. Active gas leaks, mold remediation, hazardous electrical panels (Federal Pacific or Zinsco), radon above 4.0 pCi/L. These are non-negotiable. You ask the seller to repair these or provide a full credit equal to remediation cost. If a seller pushes back on a genuine safety hazard, that itself is information about how this seller operates.

Tier 2: Functional defects. Failed HVAC systems, roof at end of life, broken windows, plumbing leaks, sewer line collapse. These are asset impairments — the house is worth less than you thought because a major system needs replacement. You request a credit equal to a realistic repair estimate. You do not ask the seller to manage the repair; you take the credit and hire your own contractor post-closing.

Tier 3: Deferred maintenance and cosmetic items. Everything else. You note these for your own planning. You do not bring them to the negotiation table. Asking for caulking, stair railing tightening, and a broken attic fan on the same request as a structural defect dilutes your credibility and gives the seller's agent ammunition to dismiss the whole list.

You Submit a Formal Request

Once you know what you are asking for, your buyer's agent submits a formal amendment or addendum to the purchase agreement. This document lists each requested item and specifies what you are asking — repair, credit at closing, or both.

Be specific. "Credit for HVAC replacement" is not specific. "Seller credit of $9,500 at closing based on attached contractor estimate for furnace and air conditioner replacement" is specific. Attach estimates where you have them. The more concrete your request, the harder it is for the seller to negotiate you down to nothing.

The Seller Responds

The seller has three choices: agree, counter, or reject. In most markets, sellers will agree to legitimate safety hazards and offer a partial credit on functional defects. A seller who refuses to acknowledge a failed electrical panel is a seller worth walking away from — the liability does not change because they refused.

Negotiation at this stage is normal. If you asked for $12,000 in credits and the seller counters at $6,000, that is not a rejection — it is the starting point of a conversation. Know your floor before you begin: what is the minimum credit that makes the purchase viable for you at the contracted price?

You Sign an Amendment or Invoke Your Contingency

If you reach agreement, you and the seller sign an amendment to the purchase contract documenting the agreed credits or required repairs. Those credits typically appear as a seller concession on the closing disclosure, reducing your out-of-pocket costs at closing.

If you cannot reach agreement — or if the inspection revealed defects so severe that no credit would make the purchase viable — you invoke your inspection contingency to exit the contract. Your earnest money is returned. You move on.

The Home Inspection Checklist at firsthometoolkit.com/home-inspection-checklist/ includes repair cost estimates for every major system, a three-tier negotiation framework, and ready-to-send negotiation email templates so you walk into the post-inspection period knowing exactly what each finding is worth and how to ask for it.