Sorry Buyer, The Attic Is Not Part Of Our Home Tour

I enjoyed your post.  Attic inspection should be left to an excellent home inspector.

Doug, I love your style... Nice post. I agree with you. I have buyers who I work with right now and they always want to climp up to see the attic.... Like they know what they should look for. Even funnier, they asked me: "Is the attic finished?" I didn't even know how to answer, I think my look gave it away...

Most of my clients don't care. Lots of hidden treasure(s) can/will be found up there. I prefer to stay out. It's safer in the long run.

HA HA, love the Cowboys comment!  While there may be parts of the country where it makes sense to see an attic, the majority, it doesn't.  Especially here in Phoenix for the same reasons you mention.  Liability is a big thing.

Doug: Here in the Hamptons, we have these huge antique houses that always have the most interesting attics so it ends up to be the place where the buyer just has to go! I do not mind because in this case, there is always a proper stairway--narrow and small steps but there is a stairway! Now, if the attic is in a ranch or something--it is never an item to look at--and almost every buyer I have ever worked with will not even pull the stairs down much less go up there! I love your sense of humor about it though! :)

My rules for buyers:

You can look at outside. You can look at the interior living space. You can look at the interior of the garage. You can open the hatch for the crawl space below the house and/or the attic crawl space if it is convenient to do so. Once opened, you may stick your head into the space and gaze around. You may not enter either space. The seller has not invited you into those spaces. My broker would faint if she knew that I allowed you to tour those spaces where you may encounter dangerous wiring, step or fall through ceilings, kick ducting loose, cover yourself with mud or have other regrettable misadventures.

I found this post very amusing. I can tell you it does get hot in those attics. Many of the time they are full of insulation that can make people itchy. Most of the time with the trusses there isn't available room for storage plus the ceiling structure isn't designed for it. So I don't know why anyone would want to go up there if they didn't;t have to.

Hi Doug,

You did the right thing. You've got quiet an interesting buyer. Hope everything works out and you find him a home soon.

Doug - I can't imagine taking attic tours of every home.  Much better to let the inspector do it once in contract.

Those sound like some pretty good reasons why buyers should not take the risk.

Sure!  And while you're up there, give the roof a once over too.  When you're finished with that crawl under the house, give it a once over, then snake out the sewer main.

Sure, lets write an offer and I'll go ahead and bring the home inspector over. . . unless. . you are a professional attic inspector of course. .

Yep! I totally agree, leave it to the professional to do the attic, lots of risk involved.

Since the Cowboys were relevant, huh? I see how it is. And you're right! I ain't touring attic's. You go right ahead yourself, buddy!

I agree that the attic is not a good place to send the buyer.  Too much chance of damaging something or getting hurt.

I have to be very careful when I go there, and I do it all the time.  I do joke that most people have to pay to go to a sauna while I get paid to do it.

Doug:  I very much agree with Judith in comment #7 about buyers being able to go up into the attic and look around.  As was said by other commentors above, for many of them, not looking in the attic would be similar to not looking in the garage.  Also, I think the importance of looking at an attic can vary greatly depending on the part of the country the home is located in.  In some areas, without basements, attics can be very important to a buyer.

And... I am guessing you were thinking that remark about "farting at his wedding" was cute.  It wasn't.