Many sellers dread the home inspection. Things are moving along great; the contract is accepted, the buyer’s loan is preapproved and qualified, the appraisal is ordered, and then the title and home inspection are scheduled. This is where many sales thrive or die. What happens if the buyer has a laundry list of issues they want to be resolved after the inspection? The power lies on both sides of the coin and unbelievably, you have some control.
First, a home inspector should be unbiased when investigating construction, materials, and stability of a home. They should report accurately on anything questionable. After the inspection, the buyer needs to decide whether they should proceed or walk away.
Inspections are helpful for buyers by helping them to understand what they are getting into when they purchase a home since this is one of the largest investments made and is important to understand all the details of the property itself. Even with earnest money deposited to the Title Company, escrow or broker, this money can be returned if the buyer rejects the home inspection and terminates the transaction. The seller can also kill the deal.
Read more: 5 Things to Check Before Buying a House
The seller’s responsibility to the inspection report comes in three options: accept the report, agreeing to complete any repairs or by addressing any concerns; negotiate for any repairs; or reject the inspection altogether, thus terminating the transaction. It is important for sellers to remember that this is a real estate decision, not an emotional one. It may not be easy to curb a seller’s reaction when it could mean the completion or death of the transaction. If the home inspector finds very few problems, sellers are more likely to correct them for the benefit of the sale. If there are many small issues, the seller may feel the buyer is nitpicking and get frustrated with the inspection report. The buyer’s agent should inform the buyer that if they ask every little thing be fixed, it might only frustrate the seller. It is important to negotiate and consider the larger issues that may be hazardous or of serious concern as sellers are more likely to fix these issues.
Related: 10 Pre-inspection Checks for all Homeowners
All buyers, sellers and their agents need to discuss and negotiate the issues raised in the inspection report and what could make or break a deal. Both parties should consider if a deal should die over something as simple as patching a hole in a window screen. The biggest tip in the home buying process is to keep emotions out of the negotiation process. Getting emotionally involved, frustrated or even insulted, has been the demise of many real estate transactions.
To avoid losing out on a great deal, contact our office today. We can help you negotiate and close on the right house for you.
My spouse and I are trying to buy a new home soon so that we can be closer to family. I really like your idea to find a professional to do a home inspection before buying the home. It’s great that you touched on not letting your emotions get in the way of negotiations as well because that won’t help.