PRE-LISTING INSPECTION

Pre-Listing Inspection Northern Virginia

If you are selling your home and want to make sure the sales process will go smoothly and quickly, it would be wise to consider a Pre-Listing home inspection. Just as a buyer needs to do their due diligence, a seller needs to do theirs. Imagine you are selling your home and after several day or weeks of negotiating, an agreement between the seller and the buyer is finally reached! Everyone is excited, the buyer found their home and the seller will be able to move on. However, the next step for the buyer is usually getting a home inspection and this is when the deal can sour.

The best way to increase a seller’s chance of closing the transaction is to have a Pre-Listing inspection done before it goes on the market. Here a few reasons why:

• Knowledge is power and surprise is never a good thing. Many sellers may not be aware of deficiencies in their home. It is natural to overlook things. For example, when was the last time you were on the roof, looked in the chimney, crawled around in the attic, crawl space, or the basement foundation? Do you know how old your water heater and HVAC are? What about the plumbing or electrical systems. This is exactly why you should have a Pre-Listing Inspection. So you can understand the physical condition of your home.
• Having a Pre-Listing doesn’t mean the seller has to repair every item in the inspection report, but they do need to disclose everything. There might be items that are major vs. minor that the seller and their real estate agent will need to take into consideration when pricing the home as they can affect what a buyer is willing to pay. Homes with older roofs, HVAC systems and water heaters on top of other repairs can be seen as “a money pit” in the eyes of a buyer.
• Disclosure is not an unpleasant surprise. Many sellers fear that by having an inspection, they will then have to disclose everything to a buyer which may cause them to pay less for the house. The buyer is going to find out anyway, however, it will be after they have agreed on a price that they might not want to pay after the outcome of their own inspection.
• You’ll have a smoother transaction and a faster closing. All parties want a sale and purchase process that is free of hitches and can close within a reasonable time frame. A PreListing inspection eliminates the risk of the unknown and the seller and buyer will enter a negotiation feeling confident and empowered.