Hire local Home inspection company and they will inspect the house and make a report. Not many will tell you what needs to be fixed, but they will make recommendations which items need to be inspected by licensed contractors and if they find serious structural issues, they will make recommendations to bring a licensed engineer to evaluate the issue.

Most home inspectors only give the home a fast once-over to identify obvious problems, and recommend where you should call for more skilled help. For example, the inspection results for my 1940 boiler said it worked (heat came on when you set the thermostat), and due to its age it should be serviced and inspected by a qualified HVAC company. I could have figured that out myself.

The inspector will give you some ideas about where to be concerned, but you will have to call the appropriate contractor to get a more completed evaluation and estimate. Even then, its hard to get a good estimate without opening up things and digging quite a bit deeper.

If you are willing to learn how to fix basic electrical and plumbing problems, and how to make sheetrock and trim repairs, it will save you a lot of money when you buy a fixer-upper. For example, adding an additional ceiling light box in a room might cost you $50-75 for wire, electrical parts and tools, but if you call an electrician it will probably be a $200-250 job (or more). That kind if price difference really adds up if you have a lot of little repairs/upgrades to make. A fixer-upper can be a real money pit if you have to pay someone else for all the work.

Bruce

A home inspector will not perform invasive work, or work that could potentially damage the home. Or take undue personal risk in their assessment.

Do you already own the home?

If so, do you have a mortgage on it?

It may be that you could talk with your bankers and see if they can give you the name of an inspector that is qualified to look for plumbing and wiring and heat/air problems as well as structural problems (the problems you'll most likely need to address first) as well as an estimate on the value of the home and an estimate on what the bank is willing to lend toward a loan to repair/remodel the home.

IMPORTANT: Make sure your inspector knows what you need from him and be sure he's qualified to make that level of inspection.

If you have a few specific changes in mind, you might get some (hopefully free) estimates from local tradesmen (electricians, plumbers, Heat/air installers) so that you can begin to get a feel for the cost of the project as you envision it.

IF the home is either known to be not structurally sound and/or if there have been serious problems with the roof, perhaps suggesting water damage, rot and/or mold, you may be better served rethinking either purchasing or remodeling an older home.

One drawback in remodeling an existing home is you need to keep the weight bearing walls intact. Another is that when you remodel in stages, you that often don't know what you're going to find behind the walls or underneath the flooring until you start removing drywall and carpet or other flooring.

A couple living not that far away from my home built a new home behind their old farmhouse and then tore down the old farmhouse, recycling and repurposing the lumber and anything else worth reusing. Doing that cost them less than the total of the estimates they were getting to repair and remodel the older home.

Also, having lived in a home while it was being reroofed and remodeled ... not fun anytime, especially in colder weather.

I’ve just been involved with a community service project where 40K wholesale worth of work went into a 50K home. It’s still a 50K home. And should have been a teardown and new build, but wasn’t for sentimental and grant reasons.

All new wiring. Mostly all new plumbing, starting with replacing the main drain to the street. All new roof. A bunch of carpentry repairing water damage. And the worlds cheapest kitchen renovation. No foundation issues, thankfully, or they would have put 50K in a 50K home, which was their max cap. The non discounted rate would have been at least 30-60% more. The GC donated his time. I donated my time. Several trades donated time or products. And it was still 40K out of pocket.

Be very careful that the house is worth the investment of “a lot of work”. It may not be. This one honestly wasn’t. But the way the bureaucratic papers were shuffled, at least the child that will inherit this will not need to deal with issues for a good long time.

mine was described as a move in ready LOLLOLLOLLOLLOL. not really. Start with bathroom and kitchen

We actually have no idea. This is a job for you to do. Get a good designer with access to a good contractor and start working on wht you want. My bet is the wiring andthe plumbing will need some upgrading. Cosmetics are another thing altogether. I always like to get the bones in shape before starting on the pretty stuff. A good home inspection is still only what can be seen without ripping out walls or floors so I would not waste my time if you have already bought the house you are into it up to your ears. Good luck. If you have a budget be prepared to probably double it and then there will not be so many oh ohs

I wouldn't call your bank for an inspector. They have no idea, in general, who is a good inspector and who is not. All their foreclosures are sold AS IS and do not have inspections. In addition to that, there is liability associated with any referral the bank gives you so they would probably tell you to google it or something similar.

Check with Realtors in your area. Also check with friends and family to see who they used so you can either contact them or stay away from that inspector if they were not competent. Contact inspectors and chat with them about their scope of work and their reporting process. I have a couple of inspectors that are extremely knowledgeable (GC's ) and detailed oriented with very specific reports. Having said that, they do no invasive inspections as mentioned above. They don't look inside walls. But the reports are comprehensive. Attend the inspection so you get additional insight into your home's current condition.

You sound like you know some things that need to be fixed. Start with anything that makes the house unsafe, ie structural, roof, electrical, mechanical (HVAC/plumbing), foundation. If all those are sound then you can work on finishes that don't appeal to you (paint, flooring, lighting, hardware, etc.). Only you can prioritize those projects. Do what is most important to you or your family.