“A Pre-Sale Inspection prior to listing my house for sale?”…..ABSOLUTELY!
A Home Inspection can be an afterthought when sellers are considering listing their home for sale. “Isn’t that the responsibility of the buyer?” some will say. Granted, the “To-Do List” can seem overwhelming when preparations to bring the home to market begin. There are those few nagging items around the house you know need to get fixed. Sprucing up the yard to really make the curb appeal pop. Making a few improvements to the interior of the home to hopefully increase the pool of buyers and create demand. A good listing agent will be able to handle and coordinate most of the prep items while you prepare for the move. One item that should grab your attention though…A Pre-Sale Inspection of the home. Sometimes what is not easily seen can become a big problem down the road for the prospective buyer.
The package of inspections (Home, Roof and Termite) will usually not cost more than several hundred dollars and will give you a “bird’s eye view” of what the buyer will discover during their inspection period. This, in turn, could give you an advantage during the initial stages of pricing and negotiation. In most cases the items that are discovered, whether they be dry rot, loose plumbing fixtures, appliances not working properly or some roof imperfections, will not cost more than a few thousand dollars to fix depending on the severity of the findings. In some instances more severe problems may be detected which will require a more specialized inspection (foundation, drainage) and will lead to the conversation of whether to repair now or price the house accordingly from the get go to attract the right buyer willing to take on the challenge. Knowledge is power when it comes to selling at the best price in the least amount of time.
Let’s face facts. We live in a litigious society and selling a home can unfortunately be an area of increased risk. In addition to all of the Disclosure Forms you are responsible for having a good knowledge of any defects, whether they be major or minor, could help to protect your interests.
As a final note…should a buyer rely on your Pre-Sale Inspections and Reports to fulfill their responsibility of inspecting the property to their satisfaction? As a Listing Broker I would not recommend that to a seller. I would advise that the buyer should still get any and all inspections from their side of the transaction. The real estate market is heated right now and some buyers may be enticed to skip some steps that they should never skip just to get into a deal. I overheard a conversation while I was out to dinner the other night where a gentlemen was telling someone that a friend just got an offer exceeding the list price, with no appraisal requirement and waiving their inspections. In my opinion that could be a recipe for disaster for a seller….
BTW…these are only my opinions as a Licensed Real Estate Broker and should not be considered legal advice…
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