Home Buyer vs. Home Seller: Why a inspection can help and what it means for you.
Home Buyers: Home Inspection Information
Purchasing a house is a large financial endeavor and an investment in your family’s future. A house is more than a place to live or a means of shelter. For most individuals, it is the cornerstone of their life. It’s where the family gathers to celebrate, where the children play and grow and where you feel safe and secure. The house is the place where memories are made.
One of the many steps in this major real estate purchase is to have a home inspection on your future home. “Home owners cannot afford surprises. Everything may look fine on the surface, but there may be trouble lurking,” says Don Crawford, Past President of the National Association of Home Inspectors, Inc. (NAHI). “A qualified home inspector will have the experience and training to provide information that will assist the buyer in making an informed decision. Problems that the seller or the Realtor® may not be aware of become the financial responsibility of the buyer – if they are not corrected prior to the final sale of the house.”
Currently most states require to be licensed or regulate home inspectors. In other states anyone can hang up their shingle and call themselves a home inspector – with no qualifications, training or experience in the field.
Home Sellers: Home Inspection Information
Very few homebuyers today would dream of signing the loan papers and closing on a new house without first having it inspected for any hidden problems. Smart home sellers can take advantage of this by having a professional licensed inspector thoroughly examine their house — before putting it up for sale.
A professional pre-listing home inspection will disclose any major defects in the home’s physical structure (such as the roof, basement, foundation, walls, and ceilings) or in its electrical, plumbing, heating or cooling systems. Should any serious problems be reported, sellers may then elect to have them repaired, replaced, or disclosed before marketing them to prospective buyers. The resulting physical and/or aesthetic improvementsoften greatly increase the home’s sales appeal.
Another option, if the pre-listing inspection turns up major problems, is for the seller to adjust the asking price to reflect the problems. Very often, people who have lived quite comfortably for many years in their home grow accustomed to conditions which may prove unacceptable to a potential buyer. An objective third party opinion helps to put a home’s true condition into a more realistic light.
In addition, the inspector’s written report can be a persuasive sales tool, providing sellers with unbiased documentation of all their home’s good features. Buyers may feel more confident in making an offer when they can know right away the present condition of the house, inside and out.
Source: NAHI National Association of Home Inspectors
