1. Why Your Buyer Needs a Home
Inspection

2. In the current real estate market it is important
that your buyer knows exactly what he or she is
buying. To help this process, your buyer needs a
home inspection. Here we discuss the home
inspection process and why it is important to
you that your buyer gets one. Home
inspections, as opposed to appraisals, are
almost never required by lenders.

3. The appraisal provides the
underwriter with sufficient
information on the property to be
able to make an informed decision.
This information focuses on the
overall condition of the property, but will also note
obvious problems such as mold, missing paint and
missing stair rails. To really get into the nuts and
bolts of the property, a home inspection is needed.
Inspections cover all major systems of the
home, including plumbing, electrical, heating and
air conditioning. A good one will take several hours
to complete.

4. Many buyers may hesitate to invest
in a home inspection because of
the price, but at the same time, a
home inspection is there to protect
the interests of your buyer. A home
inspection might cost $300 or
more, depending on the size of the
property, but this is insignificant compared to the price of
major unplanned repairs that arise long after closing and
that your buyer hadn’t anticipated. Most standard real
estate contracts allow a certain number of days typically
five to complete a home inspection and raise items that
need to be addressed.

5. Part of the job of the real estate
attorney and, of course, your buyer
has one is to help the buyer raise
with the seller any problems
discovered in a home inspection. A
seller has the right to refuse to fix anything, but at
the same time your buyer has the right to walk
away from the property if no agreement is reached
with regard to these problems. If the contract has
no provisions for a home inspection, and they are
unwilling to put one in, the seller may be hiding
something. Encourage your buyer to walk, or rather
run, from the transaction, no matter how appealing
the property appears to be.

6. As a real estate professional, you likely have a
relationship with a good home inspector; if
not, there are several excellent sources for
locating one. There are organizations such as the
American Society of Home Inspectors with lists
of members in good standing, and your
mortgage professionals
may also be able to provide
you with references for
inspectors that they have
used successfully in the past.

7. Depending on what part of the country you are
in, the property may require a specialized home
inspector. There are different levels of certifications
that an inspector may have, and specialties include
mold, radon, termites, etc. If you are a listing
agent, you and the seller may want to get a home
inspection before the property goes on the market.
This identifies problems before they come up in a
future inspection. The bottom line is that every
buyer should have a home inspection, and every
real estate agent should recommend it.

8. Randy Bett
www.BetterGroupRealEstate.ca