If you’re buying or insuring a home in Broward or Miami-Dade that was built before the mid-1990s, there’s a good chance your insurer will ask for a 4-point inspection before they’ll write or renew a policy. A huge share of South Florida’s housing stock falls into that age range, so this is one of the most common snags buyers run into between contract and closing — and one of the easiest to get ahead of if you know it’s coming.
What a 4-Point Inspection Actually Covers
A 4-point inspection is a narrower, cheaper cousin of a full home inspection. It looks at exactly four systems: roof, electrical, plumbing, and HVAC. Rather than cataloging every cosmetic issue in the house, it’s really answering one question for the insurance company: are these core systems in safe, working condition, or do they represent a risk the carrier isn’t willing to take on?
When Insurers Require One
There’s no single statewide rule, but most Florida carriers start asking for a 4-point once a home is somewhere in the 20-to-30-year range, with 25 years being a commonly used line in the sand — and some insurers will ask for one even sooner depending on how they underwrite. It typically comes up when you’re binding a new policy, which in a purchase means it often needs to happen well before closing, not after.
How It’s Different From a Wind Mitigation Inspection
These two get confused constantly. A wind mitigation inspection is a seven-question form that can earn you insurance discounts based on wind-resistant features like roof shape, roof-to-wall connections, and shutters — it’s about savings, not eligibility. A 4-point inspection is about whether the carrier will insure the home at all. Many South Florida inspectors handle both in the same visit, which saves a trip, but they’re answering two different questions for two different parts of your policy.
What Can Cause an Inspection to Flag Problems
On the electrical side, Federal Pacific Electric panels with Stab-Lok breakers and Zinsco panels are the most common reason carriers decline coverage outright, since both have a documented history of breakers failing to trip during an overload. Knob-and-tube wiring in pre-1950s homes and single-strand aluminum branch wiring from the 1960s and ’70s can also trigger a decline or repair condition. On the plumbing side, polybutylene supply lines — common in homes built from the late 1970s through the mid-1990s — are a near-automatic red flag for most carriers because of their failure history. A roof with less than three to five years of useful life left is another frequent sticking point. Most of these are fixable: a panel swap, repiping, or a roof replacement is usually enough to unlock coverage.
Tips for Buyers and Sellers
If you’re buying an older home, ask your insurance agent about 4-point requirements as soon as you’re under contract, not during your financing contingency deadline. If you’re selling an older home, a pre-listing 4-point inspection can surface issues early so they don’t blow up a buyer’s financing at the last minute. The inspection itself is inexpensive, typically in the $75 to $200 range, but the repairs it can uncover are not always small, so building in time to address them matters more than the cost of the report.
This article is for general information only and isn’t insurance or legal advice. Insurance requirements and underwriting standards vary by carrier and by property — talk with a licensed insurance agent and a qualified inspector about your specific home before making decisions based on this information.