A commissioned buyer-leverage analysis of a home inspection report, produced alongside a separately editable repair-request letter tuned to the contract's contingency language. Delivered inside the window that matters.
A home inspection is a thick document full of observations. It is not a ranked list, not a negotiation plan, and not a letter. The Inspection Analysis translates that document into the two artifacts a buyer actually needs during contingency: a written analysis that tells you what you are looking at, and a letter that asks for it. Both are produced together so the narrative in the analysis matches the asks in the letter.
A structured read of the inspection organized around what actually moves a negotiation.
A separately delivered Word document you or your agent can edit, sign, and send to the listing side.
You have an inspection report, an inspection contingency, and a short window to decide what to ask for. You want to know what matters, how much leverage you actually have, and what to put in writing.
You represent a buyer inside contingency and you need a defensible analysis and a clean letter that reads well on the listing side. You do not have time to write both from scratch every deal.
In attorney-review states you want structured input before drafting. The analysis gives you finding-level classification and pattern signals; the companion letter is a working first draft.
Every other professional in the transaction has a structural reason not to spend hours translating a sixty-page inspection into buyer leverage. Shim is the professional whose entire job that is, with no downstream incentive attached to whether the deal closes.
Documents the condition of the house and delivers a report. Work ends there. Not paid to rank findings by leverage, translate severity into negotiation posture, or draft the ask.
Helps draft a response to the listing side, but only earns commission if the deal closes. The structural incentive tilts toward keeping the deal alive, not toward pressing every concession the report would support.
Reviews contingency language and, in attorney-review states, touches the final letter. Paying counsel to spend three hours reading a sixty-page inspection to extract leverage doesn't pencil out for most deals.
Arrives with a clear agenda and often a preferred contractor ready to set the cost narrative. The buyer meets that side of the table without a dedicated counterpart of their own.
Shim is compensated when the commission is accepted and the report is produced. Whether the deal closes, renegotiates, or collapses has no effect on the fee. The only inputs are what the inspection says and what the contract permits.
Email the inspection report and the contingency deadline on the contract. A flat fee of $249 is quoted and invoiced at commission, before production starts.
One operator reads the report end to end, classifies every finding, detects patterns, and builds the seven-section analysis and the companion repair-request letter in parallel.
Turnaround clock starts when we receive your documents. Both deliverables arrive by email, typically same-day. The analysis PDF is final; the Word letter is editable so you, your agent, or your attorney can shape the final version before it goes out.
Every Inspection Analysis follows the same seven-section structure. A redacted sample is available so you can see the shape of the deliverable before you commission one of your own.
Sample
A real seven-section analysis from a prior commission, redacted of buyer and property identifying detail. Useful for seeing how findings are classified, how patterns are called out, and how the companion repair-request letter tracks back to the analysis.
A seller concession on a single major system (roof, HVAC, foundation, sewer line, electrical service) typically clears four figures when the scope is real. One credit that would have otherwise been absorbed recovers multiples of the fee. One defect pattern surfaced before close can be worth an order of magnitude more. The flat fee is set against that reality, not against the hours of production behind it.
Covers both deliverables and the turnaround window. One price, regardless of report length or finding count.
The fee is the same whether the deal closes, renegotiates, or collapses. Shim is not compensated on outcome, only on producing the report that lets a buyer act clearly inside the window.
"I had no idea the HVAC system and the water heater were both at end of life on the same report. The analysis called it out as a pattern and framed exactly how to ask for it. We got a $6,400 credit at closing that I wouldn't have known to push for."
"My agent was great but she had three other deals going. Having the letter already drafted — tuned to the specific findings — meant we submitted our response the same day the report arrived. The seller accepted within 24 hours."
"The analysis flagged a foundation crack pattern that the inspector noted but didn't rank. Shim ranked it Tier 1 and told me why. I walked away from that deal. Turned out the right call — the house went back on market two months later."
PDF is the standard format. Reports from Spectora, HomeGauge, InterNACHI templates, and custom inspector formats all work. If your inspector delivered something other than a PDF, contact us before commissioning and we will confirm compatibility.
Once your commission is accepted and the report is received, production begins immediately. Both deliverables, the analysis PDF and the editable repair-request letter, are delivered by email within 24 hours of receiving your documents. Most commissions are completed same-day. If you have an urgent contingency deadline, note it when you submit and we will confirm the window before accepting the commission.
No. The Inspection Analysis is a structured read of the inspection report that identifies findings, classifies their severity, and frames negotiating positions based on what the report says and what your contract permits. It is not legal advice, financial advice, or a licensed home inspection. Your agent or attorney remains your advisor on the transaction.
Contact us before commissioning. We will confirm whether we can meet the deadline before you submit payment. We do not accept commissions we cannot fulfill inside the window.
Yes. Agents and attorneys commission on behalf of buyers regularly. The analysis and letter are addressed to the buyer and delivered to whatever email you designate. The $249 flat fee is the same regardless of who initiates the commission.
Fill out a short intake form. We respond with acceptance, a turnaround commitment, and a payment link. No documents until we have an accepted engagement.
