As the seller, you’ll get the highest price in the shortest time, if your home is in tip-top condition. Almost all sales contracts include the condition that the contract is contingent upon completion of a satisfactory inspection. This is known as the inspection contingency.

A buyer will insist on selecting and hiring their own professional home inspector.  If the buyer’s inspector finds a problem, it can cause the buyer to get cold feet and many times the deal will fall through. At best, surprise problems uncovered by the buyer’s inspector will cause delays in closing, and usually you will have to pay for repairs at the last minute, or take a lower price on your home.  At worst, the buyer will retract their purchase offer. 

A pre-listing inspection conducted by your home inspector will make the whole sale process easier. Questionable items discovered during the pre-listing inspection can be listed in the sale ‘as is’ and reflected in the purchase price. Otherwise, you can be sure that the buyer’s inspector will find them and the last minute discovery will most certainly cause delays, and cost you time and money.

One distinct advantage of a prelisting inspection is that you will then have the option of arranging the repairs on your terms and your schedule. When problems aren’t found until the buyer has an inspection performed, the deal you’ve worked so hard to negotiate may fall apart unless you act quickly to handle the repairs. In some cases you may have to accept a lower price, in order to keep the deal moving. Either way, it will almost certainly create stress and cost you money.  Much more so than if you’d known about the problem and had it repaired before negotiations began. You could save thousands by simply being able to shop around and get competitive bids from contractors, rather than being forced into paying for a rush job at the last minute. Another area where you can save money is in having flexibility to choose the materials used in repairs. Sales contracts usually specify repairs must be made using materials of comparable quality. By identifying needed repairs during a pre-listing inspection, you will have more options and save money.

Offering certain disclosed items in ‘as in’ condition can also be a great benefit to the seller.  Often, you can negotiate with a buyer to accept items in the current condition by stipulating that they are reflected in the purchase price. But that same buyer may walk away from the deal if the conditions come as a surprise, after an offer has already been made.   Without surprises the deal is far less likely to fall apart.

A pre-listing inspection will allow you to identify problems early saving you time and money – and most importantly expediting the sale of your house.