What to Expect at Inspection

Throughout my real estate career, I’ve been through hundreds of personal home inspections, and they never get any easier.

Is your house pristine? I bet the inspector disagrees.

Is it a new build? I bet there’s an issue with the building code of your new house.

Without fail, time after time, homes are subject to inspections as a part of the selling process, and many times, this is the part where things start to fall apart.

Home inspections should be approached as the real estate tool that they are… a negotiation and price reduction tool. Because let’s face it, the job of a home inspector is to find flaws and safety issues that plague so many residential real estate properties, so that they can be addressed at the time of sale, so the integrity of the property remains intact for years to come.

Homes that are poorly maintained, rarely sold, or used as income-producing properties have a greater ability to deteriorate over time if proper maintenance procedures aren’t taken into account and issues aren’t addressed.

While home inspections are a part of the contracting process, they are also a broader part of the overall transaction.  They help to flush out any ill-gotten real estate deals by interjecting an inspection clause to allow the buyer a definite amount of time (typically between 5-10 days) to get whichever agreed-upon inspections completed. Once it’s worked into the agreed-upon purchase contract and both parties agree to the inspections, the buyer seeks to secure a reputable home inspector to go through the home and point out, notate, recommend rectifications, and write up a report concerning the status of the property.

At which point, the buyer discusses with their agent on the merits of the report, proceeding with the transaction, asking for repairs, or the aforementioned price reduction. It seems all safety issues are ‘remedied’ if the price of the home is lowered to the buyer’s expectation of the value of the repairs. The buyer can then, over time, make or outsource repairs while enjoying the upfront value of the lowered price.

The seller at this point has to decide which hill to die on: do they continue with the process since they’re now approximately 10-14 days into a likely 30-day closing, or bite the bullet and provide repairs, a reduction, or a little of both.  It’s at this point that having competent agents can make or break the transaction completely. 

Non-seasoned sellers need to be approached with dignity since the property they’re selling is likely a personal residence, whereas buyers also need to be appreciated for their willingness to work through the concerns brought out during the inspection process. The right agent works for both sides to see the transaction through and get both sides to the closing table with minimal aggravation so that all parties can move forward.

As a seller, knowing what the inspection process entails and how to avoid the pitfalls that come with it is just one of the ways to get in front of the deal. If you’re motivated to sell, this should be one of your primary concerns with listing your property.

Call Elevate to Close if you want to talk through the ins and outs of what selling looks like in today’s market.

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