What's in a Jeremy Fishnick Home Inspection Report: A Section-by-Section Walkthrough

A home inspection report should do two jobs. On the day you get it, it should tell you what matters so you can make a decision before your contingency deadline. And three years later, when the water heater starts making noise, it should still be useful enough that you pull it up to check what I wrote about it. One client told me she still uses my report for reference years after her inspection, and that's the standard I write to. I'm Jeremy Fishnick, owner of The Complete Inspection in Lancaster, Wisconsin, and a licensed Realtor as well. This is what you'll find in one of my reports, section by section.

How the report is built

My reports are digital, delivered promptly after the inspection, and organized so you can read them two ways. Up front is a summary that pulls out the items that need attention, sorted by how serious they are. Behind it is the full report, system by system, with photos and often short videos of what I found. Every item includes what I saw, why it matters, and what I recommend: repair, further evaluation by a specialist, monitor, or simply be aware. Brandon M. described it in his review as "detailed, well-organized, and delivered promptly," which is the goal every time.

A note on what the report is not. It's a visual inspection of accessible areas on the day I was there. I don't open walls, move the seller's furniture, or predict the future. I do tell you where I couldn't see and why, so you know the limits of what you're reading.

The summary

This is the page most buyers read first and the page their agent uses to write a repair request or decide whether to proceed. I separate items into categories along these lines:

• Safety concerns. Things that could hurt someone: exposed wiring, missing handrails, a gas leak, a furnace venting problem, a deck that's pulling away from the house.
• Major defects. Items that are expensive or affect the structure or a major system: an aging roof, a failed water heater, foundation movement, a non-functioning furnace.
• Items needing repair or further evaluation. Things a tradesperson should look at or fix, where I can see a symptom but the full diagnosis requires someone with tools I don't bring, like a sewer camera or a chimney scope.
• Maintenance and minor items. The long tail: caulk, grading, a dripping hose bib, a missing cover plate. Useful for your to-do list, not for a negotiation.

I'm careful about what goes where. A report that calls everything a major defect is useless for making decisions. So is one that buries a cracked heat exchanger on page 40.

Section by section

Roof

Covering material and its condition, flashing at chimneys and walls, valleys, vents, gutters and downspouts. I walk roofs when it's safe to do so and use other methods when it isn't, and I tell you which. In this area I see a lot of steep, complicated roofs on older homes and a lot of hail and ice-dam history, so I pay attention to edges and valleys.

Exterior

Siding, trim, windows and doors from outside, decks and porches, steps and railings, and grading and drainage around the foundation. Grading gets its own attention because water running toward a Wisconsin basement is the source of so many downstream problems.

Structure and foundation

Foundation walls, visible framing, floor structure, posts and beams, evidence of movement or moisture. Many Driftless homes sit on limestone or early block foundations, and knowing the difference between an old, stable crack and an active one is a big part of this section. I wrote more about that in Foundation Cracks in Wisconsin Basements: Which Ones Matter and Which Ones Don't.

Electrical

Service entrance, panel type and condition, breaker sizing and labeling, grounding and bonding, visible wiring type (including knob-and-tube or aluminum branch wiring if present), outlets tested throughout the house, GFCI and AFCI protection where expected, and smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. The panel photos in this section are often the most useful ones in the whole report for an electrician giving you a quote.

Heating and cooling

Furnace or boiler type, approximate age, visible condition, filter, venting, and operation during the inspection. Air conditioning is tested when outdoor temperatures allow it. I note fuel type, and on rural properties that includes propane tanks and who owns them. I don't dismantle equipment, so when I see signs of trouble I recommend an HVAC technician do a full service and evaluation.

Plumbing

Water supply material and condition, drain and waste lines, water heater, fixtures, functional flow at multiple fixtures at once, and visible leaks. On well and septic properties I document the pressure tank, wellhead, and visible septic components, and I recommend the lab testing and septic evaluation that go beyond what a home inspection covers. More on that in Buying a Home With a Well and Septic in Rural Wisconsin.

Interior

Walls, ceilings, floors, windows, doors, stairs and railings, and evidence of moisture or past leaks. Stains on a ceiling get traced to their source if I can find it. Windows get opened. Doors get latched.

Kitchen and appliances

Built-in appliances operated through a basic cycle, cabinets, counters, sink and disposal, range hood venting. I don't test every setting on every appliance; I confirm it runs and note obvious issues.

Attic, insulation, and ventilation

Insulation type and approximate depth, ventilation, signs of moisture or past ice damming, exhaust fans that terminate in the attic instead of outside (very common), and visible framing and sheathing condition.

Basement, crawl space, and garage

Moisture, sump pump operation, visible structure, floor drains, the garage door opener and its safety reverse, and the fire separation between an attached garage and the house.

Radon and other testing

Radon testing is a separate service that runs over several days, and I recommend it on every home around here. Results are reported separately when the monitor comes back. I explain why in Radon in Southwest Wisconsin: Why I Recommend Testing Every Home.

What happens after you get it

I'm available by phone after I send the report. Buyers often call with "how worried should I be about item 14," and that conversation is part of the service. If you're working with me as your agent, we go through the summary together and decide what's worth asking the seller to address and what's simply the cost of owning a house. Jennifer N. put it well: "incredibly thorough and explained everything that was of concern." Thorough is the easy part. Explaining it so you can act on it is the job.

Talk to Jeremy

If you need a home inspection in Lancaster, Platteville, Cuba City, Fennimore, Dodgeville, or anywhere in southwest Wisconsin, I'm Jeremy Fishnick with The Complete Inspection. Call or text 608-732-2564 to schedule, or learn more about how I work at jeremyfishnick.com.