First inspection report is back, so now I'm picking which specialist to pay
1926 bungalow, 2 bed 1 bath, 168k, my first rental and I've been reading about screening for a year while apparently not reading enough about inspections. Inspection was 475 and took three hours, which felt fair for how much he talked me through.
The report says "recommend further evaluation by a qualified specialist" in five separate places. Foundation (stair-step crack in the block, one corner, about 3/16 inch), electrical (60 amp service, no visible knob and tube but he couldn't see into the ceiling), the chimney (unused, mortar deteriorating at the crown), possible asbestos on the old duct wrap in the crawl, and the sewer, which he didn't scope because it wasn't in the base fee.
Quotes I've collected in a day and a half:
- Sewer scope, 250, available Thursday
- Structural engineer, 650, earliest next Tuesday which is after my option period
- Electrician evaluation, free if I let them bid the panel upgrade, and they quoted 2,800 for a 200 amp service sight unseen
- Asbestos sampling, 400 for two samples plus lab
- Chimney sweep with camera, 300
That's 1,600 in specialists on top of the 475, which is roughly 1.2% of the purchase price, and I have seven days left. I can't do all of them before the option expires and I don't want to extend, because the seller has already had one buyer walk and the agent has mentioned that twice.
What I keep going back and forth on is which two of these actually change my decision versus which ones just give me a number I'll spend anyway. The engineer feels like the one that could kill the deal, and it's also the one I can't schedule in time. Free electrician evaluation from someone who wants the job is not really an evaluation. And I have no idea whether a 3/16 crack in one corner of a 99 year old block foundation is a Tuesday problem or a shrug.
If the engineer can't come until after the option period, do I pay for the extension I don't want, or do I make the call on the crack with what I have?