A chimney inspection built for a home sale is the Level 2 visual and camera check, covering the firebox, crown, cap, flashing, and the full flue interior. It’s the deeper of the three levels of chimney inspection. Lenders and agents want it in writing.
What a real estate inspection actually covers
A standard annual check gets by on a flashlight and a mirror. A sale doesn’t. Whoever reads this report next wasn’t in the room when it happened: a lender, a title company, an agent who’s never set foot in the attic. The report has to stand on its own.
That’s the full level 2 chimney inspection service: firebox, damper, smoke chamber and smoke shelf, crown, cap, spark arrestor, and visible flashing. Then the camera goes in. It runs the full length of the flue, joint by joint.
A mirror stops at the first bend. A camera doesn’t. If a general home inspection already flagged something vague, like a smell or a stain with no obvious source, that’s exactly when the camera earns its keep, sale or no sale.
What it costs
| Item | Starting price | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 inspection | $59 | The diagnostic step. Credited into the job if you move forward with anything it turns up. |
| Level 2 inspection (camera scan) | Priced on site | No flat rate to publish. Depends on flue length, how many bends the camera has to clear, and roof access. |
| Chimney cap installation | from $350 | The most common finding: missing, rusted through, or mesh torn open. |
| Chimney crown rebuild | from $350 | Second most common: a cracked or spalling crown, visible from the roofline. |
| Basic chimney cleaning | from $199 | Heavy creosote or soot nobody mentioned at the listing walkthrough. |
Those five numbers cover most of what turns up in an escrow inspection. Anything bigger, like a full reline or masonry work beyond the crown, gets its own number in person. Nobody guesses over the phone. To see why, check the inspection price first, since it breaks down every starting number on one page.
Call (916) 833-2959 and ask for the $59 inspection before anyone agrees to a repair credit pulled out of thin air. It’s open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., seven days a week, and you’ll be negotiating off a real figure instead of a guess.
How a chimney finding usually resolves in escrow
A finding in an inspection report is a negotiation, not a deal-breaker. Almost always. It settles one of three ways. The seller credits the buyer at closing, the seller fixes it before the final walkthrough if the calendar allows, or the price moves a little and the house sells as-is.
Here’s the part that actually decides which way it goes. A vague line in a general inspector’s report does more damage than the real problem. “Evidence of moisture intrusion at the chimney, recommend further evaluation” sounds like it could be anything, and nobody in the room has a number yet.
Put “from $350” next to it, and it’s a line item again.
I’ve watched a $350 crown crack nearly stall a closing because it sat unpriced for a week. Once there’s a real figure attached, most people stop treating it like a red flag and start treating it like paperwork.
The finding that spooks people most is usually the cheapest one to fix. A crack across a crown photographs dramatically, but it’s rarely the thing that should worry anyone.
When you don’t need this
If the chimney already had a Level 2 inspection within the past year and there’s a written record of it, hand that over instead of paying for a second one. If the fireplace is a sealed gas unit vented straight through a wall with no masonry chimney behind it, there’s nothing here for a camera to scan. And if the buyer is waiving both the general and specialty inspections outright, that’s their call to make, not something to talk them out of.
What a general home inspector’s report actually means
A general home inspector’s report almost never says the chimney is fine. It says something closer to “recommend evaluation by a qualified chimney professional,” and that line isn’t a red flag by itself. It’s a fact about the inspector’s tools.
From the roof, a ladder and a flashlight get you the crown, the cap, and the flashing. They don’t reach the flue’s first bend. They definitely don’t reach the smoke shelf, the ledge tucked behind the damper where debris and old creosote collect for years because nobody thinks to look there. That line in the report is what gets a chimney specialist a phone call instead of a guess.
For agents: why this belongs on your referral list
Most of what lands on this page didn’t come from a homeowner searching on their own. It came from an agent who’s been through this before. The clock is the real problem. Not the crown.
Book the $59 inspection the week an offer is accepted, not the day before the contingency period runs out. That gap is what turns a finding into a negotiated credit instead of a fire drill three days from closing.
There’s no dispatcher and no rotating tech to coordinate around. Michael runs the inspection, reads the flue on camera, and gives a real number on the spot. He’s the same person from the first call to the final walkthrough if repairs are part of the deal. For a longer walkthrough of what to expect at each stage of a sale, the realtor guide to chimney inspections covers the timeline in more detail.
Real estate inspections around Sacramento
What’s actually behind the chimney changes by neighborhood more than most buyers expect. A 1960s tract house in Carmichael or Rancho Cordova usually hides a prefabricated metal fireplace with a chase cover, not masonry. That’s a completely different repair path, and most sellers have no idea which one they own until someone tells them.
Older stacks in Midtown and East Sacramento are frequently unlined brick, built before anyone required a liner. That’s where the camera earns its keep.
Newer builds change the question entirely. A newer build out toward Roseville usually means a sealed gas appliance with a second-floor laundry room and a long dryer duct run, not a masonry flue at all. That makes for a different inspection, and a shorter one. Check what Roseville chimney and fireplace services covers before you assume yours matches a Midtown brick stack.
What sellers and agents say
Google has Americas Chimney Sweep at 4.95 across 62 reviews as of this writing. Michael replied to all 62 personally. To read what other buyers and sellers said before they hired him, see chimney sweep reviews in Sacramento.
Questions before you book
Who pays for the chimney inspection when selling a house?
It depends on the offer terms, not a fixed rule. Buyers usually order the general inspection and any specialty follow-up, including the chimney. Sellers sometimes book one ahead of listing to head off surprises. Either way, the $59 fee is credited into any repair that follows, so nobody pays for it twice.
What happens if the chimney inspection finds a problem during escrow?
You get a real starting price on the spot for whatever it is, not a vague description. Most findings map to one of the published prices above. From there it’s a negotiation between buyer and seller: a credit, a pre-close repair, or a price adjustment. It’s not an automatic reason to cancel the deal.
How long does a chimney inspection take during a home sale?
A Level 1 visual pass usually runs 30 to 45 minutes on a single-flue home with normal roof access. Add the camera scan for the full Level 2, and multiple flues or a steep roof, and it runs longer. You’ll get a real window when you call, not a guess.
Do I need a chimney inspection to sell my house in California?
There’s no statewide law requiring one for every sale. In practice, most lenders, title companies, and buyer’s agents ask for a written chimney finding once the general inspection flags anything near the fireplace, which makes it a near-universal step even without a mandate behind it.
Can the inspector also do the repair, or does someone else have to?
Same person, if that’s what you want. Michael runs the inspection and can quote and complete the repair himself, so there’s no second company to coordinate or wait on. Nothing about using him for the fix is required. The report stands on its own either way.
Get the number early. Every closing on a tight clock moves easier with a real figure in hand instead of a guess. Call (916) 833-2959 and ask for the $59 real estate inspection, open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., seven days a week, or book your appointment online and pick a slot before the contingency clock runs out.