The buyer's inspection came back wet. Here is how to weigh credit versus fix and keep the deal on the table.
Repair and full remediation, every time. You see both numbers.
Probe data sets the scope - not a salesman, not the finish.
Send your report; we tell you what it actually requires.
The deal was moving. Then the buyer’s EIFS moisture inspection came back with elevated readings, and now there is an addendum on the table asking you to fix it, credit it, or watch the buyer walk.
This is the most common way EIFS homeowners on the Cape Fear coast end up here. Not because the house fell apart, but because it went under contract and a third-party inspection did its job. The clock that was already ticking toward closing just got a second clock stacked on top of it.
You are not the first seller to feel the floor tilt when that report lands. The number in your head is a full tear-off. It usually is not.
A buyer with a wet EIFS report has leverage, but it is not unlimited. What they can reasonably ask for is that the identified moisture problem be resolved, or priced into the deal. What they cannot do is turn one bad kickout into a demand for a full re-clad, unless the data supports a full re-clad.
That distinction is your whole negotiation. If the readings point to isolated intrusion, a corner repair resolves the finding for a few thousand dollars. If they point to widespread damage, that is a different and larger conversation. The report decides which, and getting a straight read on it is the first move.
You generally have two ways to keep the deal alive.
You handle the repair or remediation, provide documentation and a clean re-inspection, and the buyer’s objection goes away. This is cleaner for the buyer and often what their lender wants to see. The tradeoff is time, and time is exactly what a closing does not have. A targeted repair can usually be scheduled and documented quickly. A full remediation may not fit inside the contract window.
You reduce the price or provide a repair credit and let the buyer address it after closing. This is faster and keeps you out of managing a job during a move. The risk is that the buyer’s estimate for the work anchors high, sometimes on a full re-clad quote, when the real fix is a fraction of that. This is where an honest, data-backed scope is worth real money at the table.
EIFS reports do not stay valid forever, and that cuts in your favor if you understand it. Moisture readings are generally treated as current for about 30 days and a full inspection for around 120 days. If the deal drags past those windows, the readings may need to be refreshed. Knowing where you stand on that timeline tells you how hard the clock is really pressing, and keeps the other side from using an expired report as leverage.
Do not walk into the negotiation holding only the buyer’s contractor’s estimate. That estimate was written to protect the buyer, and it may quote the biggest job the readings could possibly justify.
We are a neutral referee. We read the moisture data and tell you what it actually requires, and we quote repair and remediation both so you can see the real spread. A late-90s EIFS home went under contract with wet readings under two windows and a buyer addendum citing a full re-clad estimate north of forty thousand dollars. The probe showed one failed kickout feeding both windows and sound sheathing everywhere else. The seller offered a documented repair and a modest credit. The buyer accepted. The closing held.
That is the outcome most of these have when someone reads the data instead of the fear.
Before you respond to that addendum, send us the buyer’s moisture inspection report through the contact form. We will tell you what it actually requires and give you a number you can negotiate against, fast enough to matter to your closing.
Upload the inspection report or photos of the readings. We tell you what it actually requires - repair or full remediation - honestly, before your closing date does.