If you’ve ever bought or sold a home before, you are probably familiar with the standard practice of a home inspection contingency when making an offer. The home inspection provides a closer look at the home from the roof to the foundation, including mechanicals, listing items that need attention. The buyers have three options once they have reviewed the report; 1) accept and move forward 2) request the seller correct the issues or ask for a price adjustment, OR 3) cancel the offer with a refund of the earnest money.

 When preparing to list your home, and addressing the “laundry list” of items such as clearing, cleaning, and trying to decide which projects to tackle, why not seriously consider a Pre-Sale Home Inspection before listing?  A Pre-Sale Home Inspection will help identify items and help focus time and resources. The big benefit is getting a home inspection in advance might be able to cut down on these types of negotiations, as well as help you close the deal at or above listing price. Buyers are impressed by a property that is well maintained.

A PRE-SALE HOME INSPECTION GIVES YOU THE OPPORTUNITY TO:  

Address repairs in advance.   Gives the seller options to research options, select the professionals to do the repairs, and obtain bids to control costs without paying a rush fee to make closing date.

You might be able to close faster. By getting a jump start on repairs you will have more time to complete the repairs by closing, With an Inspection Contingency an extra 7-10 days is needed for the inspection time.

Obtain a better price for your home. Homes that are well maintained typically sell for more than a home that is not maintained, as buyers tend to discount the price by far more than the actual cost of the repair.  Addressing issues can make your home a lot more attractive to buyers, and possibly result in a multiple offer situation.

Provide a copy of the Home Inspection Report for buyer’s review.  The home inspection is your private report, IF you elect to share it with buyers you will want to make notes in the report of items addressed and include copies of the repair statement from professionals if there were any.   

KEEP IN MIND:

All Sellers are required by law to disclose material facts that impact the buyers use and enjoyment of the property.  IF an defect is discovered during an inspection you will have the opportunity to consult with professionals and determine what that best way to address the issue.

The buyer may still opt for doing their own home inspection.  Buyers may want to do have the experience of going through the property with the same inspector you had or hiring their own.  

When homes are well maintained and pre-inspected, there is less negotiating, and it opens the opportunity for offers at or above list price when multiple buyers are interested.   The home inspection report provides a peace of mind to the buyer to make an offer.

Roxanne Johnson, Broker, ABR, CRS, GRI