Pre-Offer Inspector vs Contractor (or Both) for REO

[Keith Reisinger-Kindle]

Thank you all in advance for the time to help me out with a question.

I have found a foreclosure (REO) property that I am interested in placing an offer on. It needs some obvious work, but given that it is my first property and I have no construction/contracting experience, I was thinking it might be a good idea to walk through the property with someone before even making an offer. Would the best person be an inspector or a contractor, or should I bring both? My understanding is that the inspector has a better idea of what is wrong and what needs to be fixed and the contractor is more of the guy to fix it and would know how much it would cost to do so?

I know there is at least a small mold problem, would it be of benefit to bring a mold remediator in as well to give me an idea? 

Or, am I over-complicating this, and I should just make an offer contingent on an inspection/contractor and mold assessment (would also need a Title V inspection as the bank is refusing to do one)? My issue with that is that I do not know if the price being suggested is even remotely appropriate (let alone how much to make for an offer), without advice from these folks. 

Yes, this is a fairly basic question, but I think it is complicated by the fact that it is an REO and I've heard that banks typically have no patience for a lot of contingencies associated with their offers. Any thoughts are greatly appreciated.

[Christopher Phillips]

@Keith Reisinger-Kindle

You wouldn't use an inspector for a walk through pre-offer. With REOs, the power and water usually aren't turned on until after your offer is accepted, so the inspector can't really tell you much.

Generally, you would get a contractor to do a walk through so you can give a proper offer. Usually shouldn't cost you anything.