Home inspections aren’t just for buyers, sellers can benefit greatly from them as well. Having a professional home inspection done before listing allows seller to correct major problems in advance, or at least obtain realistic estimates of the repair cost. On the flip side, if a home is found to be in great condition, it can impact the list price or even be used in negotiations.
When you’ve lived in a home for a long time it’s easy to become “blind” to maintenance problems a buyer would notice immediately. Worse, when a number of these are spotted, buyers begin to question the condition of the entire home. This is devastating to the perceived value of the home.
Make a great first impression instead. A pre-listing inspection gives you the opportunity to make repairs, big and small, that will have buyers saying, “the home is so well maintained!” This, paired with basic staging, helps you get top dollar.
Another concern is that issues found during pre-sale inspections could delay or derail the sale. Better to know what problems are lurking in advance so that you can have them repaired, or negotiate them in advance.
Pre-Listing Home Inspection Advantages
- Reduce stress. Sellers can address repairs without the pressure of a pending sale on the line.
- Eliminate 11th hour re-negotiations. This is a bigger deal than you might think, especially with FHA loans that require certain repairs to close the loan. This means the work must be completed, not just credited to the buyer to fix afterward. Better to avoid the problem in the first place.
- Be aware of existing issues, giving you the chance to address them with competitive pricing or make the repairs yourself.
- Protect yourself from over-inflated buyer procured estimates. I’ve seen it happen more times than I care to admit. A buyers sees a cracked tile in the shower and estimates the cost as a full tear-out. Yet, if that tile had been professionally replaced by the seller, it would be a non-issue. This is just one example.
- Reduce your liability with full disclosure.
I believe in pre-listing home inspections so much I include them in every listing, along with a pre-listing appraisal, roof inspection, and HVAC inspection – at my expense. Why? Because I list homes to sell them, not fill my books with inventory, and I know this is the best way to accomplish that goal.
If you are planning to sell your home, by owner, with another agent, or with me, I encourage you to have inspections done before placing a sign in the yard. It’s one of the primary strategies I developed after more than 23 years of selling real estate.
If you would like more tips on selling your home, subscribe to my blog, or better yet, call me now. I’m happy to share my experience with you!
