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I’m considering bidding on a house that might have significant structural issues. The circumstances of the sale won’t allow for a structural engineer contingency. But before I can figure out whether and what to bid, I need to get some sense of the potential renovation costs. I’m hesitant to pay $1500 (or whatever it costs) for a structural engineering report since there’s no guarantee that my bid will even be accepted. So my question is: do some engineers do perhaps less detailed and less expensive pre-purchase inspections or would a contractor be able to make a pretty accurate assessment of what is going to need to be done. Thanks so much for any advice!