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Once you’re under contract, the inspection period is where a lot of buyers get nervous, and I get it. You just found a house you love, and now someone’s showing up with a flashlight to tell you everything wrong with it. So let’s talk through how this actually works in North Carolina.
Getting the inspection scheduled
As soon as we’re under contract, I recommend booking your inspector right away. Good ones book up, and you don’t want to be racing your due diligence deadline trying to get someone out there. A general home inspection typically takes 2-4 hours depending on the size and age of the home, and I always encourage clients to be there for at least the last 30 minutes so the inspector can walk you through what they found in person.
What the report actually tells you
Every home has issues. Even new construction. The report isn’t a pass/fail, it’s a list of findings ranked by severity, from “keep an eye on this” to “this needs to be addressed.” Older homes around here, especially anything with a crawlspace, tend to flag moisture or ventilation items pretty often. That doesn’t mean walk away, it means we look closer.
How repair requests work in NC
In North Carolina, repair requests are handled in writing, typically on the Due Diligence Request and Agreement. This is the form where we list what you’re asking the seller to fix, credit, or adjust, and where the seller responds. If you both agree, you both sign it, and it becomes part of your contract. If the seller won’t agree to everything, we negotiate until you reach a deal or you decide to walk.
Here’s the piece that matters most: timing. Your due diligence period is the window where you can terminate for any reason or no reason at all. That’s your leverage. Once it ends, you lose that right, and your earnest money is generally at risk. That’s why I want repair requests out early, with enough time to finish negotiating before the deadline, not the day it expires.
What happens after the seller agrees
Agreed-upon repairs are completed before closing, and you have the right to verify they were done in a good and workmanlike manner. Ask for receipts or documentation from whoever did the work, and we’ll check the repairs at your final walkthrough.
And if you can’t agree?
If the seller won’t budge on something that matters to you, you can walk away during your due diligence period. You’ll lose the due diligence fee, but you get your earnest money back, and more importantly, you’re not stuck buying a house you have real reservations about.
My honest take
Don’t sweat the small stuff, a loose doorknob or a GFCI outlet isn’t worth blowing up a deal over. But safety issues, structural concerns, or big-ticket items like roof or HVAC age, those are worth having a real conversation about. I’ll always tell you which is which before you have to decide anything.
