I just love the fact that we can get so many opinions and answers to a question that really can’t be answered in a yes/no or right/wrong way.
It’s always interesting and imformative.
IMO…
Yes. You are right.
Let me take a swing at this one.
The process of determining a repair cost is genrally different from the process of determining the condition as an HI.
For example in my Contractor and Estimator days I’d prepare cost estimates for replacing a roof. To do it right and come out reasonably accurate )(meaning a price that didn’t end up costing you money) required time spent in making measurements that HI’s don’t make.
Like all of you I’ve seen roof conditions that I knew were not going to be cheap to repair/replace. But when asked I answer honestly that I don’t know precisely what it would cost and that doing the necessary measurements and calculations isn’t part of their HI.
Because I have the background I considered offering that sort of service at one time but decided against it.I thought about how I feel when a RE agent tells someone they shouldn’t pay more then 299 for a home inspection. I imagined what a real roofing contractor (or any other contractor) would say about me in a similar circumstance. So I decided that pricing is best left to those who are willing and able to do a particular job. In my thought that is the only fair way to be to my customer and to keep on the right side of the local trades.
How about NO WAY Greg
Thats the deal…It’s tempting to be all things to all people.
I can see both sides of estimating, and at the end of the day its a personal choice. However the guys that seem to offer the service are doing it for a professional one-up on competition, and percieved better service. I can’t see how the added risks are good for ones sanity.
For me its about professional boundaries and knowing when to say no. Lets face it clients/ realtors would have us there doing repairs as well if we offered this service.
I give my Clients Dales phone number.
If Asked, I give them a repair cost guide, not an estimate, and advise them to contact a qualfied contractor. The guide is pricing I put together from local plumbers, roofer and such.
I agree I think home inspectors should be very careful when it comes to giving out estimates. I have had Realtors try to force me to do that, and all Realtors have done is bad mouth me behind my back because I am a thorough inspector working in the best interest of my client the buyer. I spend maybe 3 - 4 hours doing the inspection and a lot of time doing a custom report on my computer. I don’t get paid enough to research and do extimates and it is risky.
Even after over 30 years in the real estate business, I don’t provide estimates to repair things. However, in trying to HELP my Clients as much as possible while still covering my own liability in this litigious industry, (http://www.homeinspectorlocator.com/resources/costtorepair.htm).
There are many home inspectors with many years experience in construction as contractors in the construction industry. Each inspector should act according to his experience level. If qualified an inspector may give advice on any subject as well as estimate the cost of repairs. It is unusual that walls need to be opened to estimate the cost of repairs and if this condition exist the experienced inspector would know and recommend this.
Please don’t try to limit the activities of people that are more qualified than you are to your capabilities.
If you are competent and qualified, offer your services to your clients, but not for free.
Any realtor who claims “all inspectors provide repair estimates” has either never read SOPs or is trying to bully you into liability.
Giving repair numbers is one of the fastest ways to get sued. Every contractor prices differently, every region fluctuates, and one bad guess can come back to bite you years later.
I don’t provide estimates for defects. Instead, I send clients to a third-party service. I used RepairPricer in the past, but lately I’ve been using InspectReply-AI because it breaks down repair costs, materials/labor, and recommends top-rated local contractors, which clients love.
Bonus: they offer an affiliate setup for inspectors, so instead of me doing unpaid estimating work, the system handles it and I stay out of the liability business entirely.
That’s the only sane way to handle repair estimates in this industry.
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I agree with your premise 100%: a home inspection is visual and non-invasive, so an inspector attaching “hard” cost estimates to hundreds of line items is asking for trouble. If someone treats that number like a bid, it’s flawed from the start and it increases inspector liability for something outside our scope.
That said, buyers and agents are going to keep demanding something during short contingency windows, so the question becomes: what’s the least risky way to help without pretending it’s a contractor estimate?
In my opinion, the answer is repair cost ranges, not fixed prices — clearly labeled as ballpark guidance only — and then pushing clients toward licensed contractors for invasive evaluation, final scope, and warranty. The range helps clients prioritize and renegotiate faster, but the contractor still owns the real estimate and the accountability.
I’ve seen tools like “InspectReply-AI” used for this where you upload the inspection summary and it produces regional cost ranges in under ~10 minutes and then suggests 3rd-party contractors based on reviews. That approach is closer to “guidance + next steps” than pretending the inspector is writing bids. It also keeps the liability where it belongs: with the trade experts who actually open things up and warranty the work.
When I was an active contractor, I’d periodically have potential clients approach me with an estimate developed from a similar service. Always, my actual quote or bid was 2 times or more than the estimating service price. The client already had a cost in mind and was less than happy with reality. No matter what the estimating services claim in terms of accuracy, I think it’s very risky to provide estimates. A HI has the same level of expertise to provide a construction estimate as does the realtor! Like you said, the client should contact a contractor.
@jboni Are you affiliated with “InspectReply-AI” in any way?
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The more “Non Standard of practice items” you add to your inspection reports, the more you are driving the legal liability nail into your own coffin. Wish all of us as Certified Home Inspectors could stay in our lane to avoid having degrade our standards of practice, and to stop kissing these damn Realtors ass anymore then we need to.