Condition and Appearance

Condition and Appearance

We have covered two steps you can take to get an external view of the market, your competition. One was to tour existing homes currently on the market and the other was to tour new homes in your market that are in the same price range as yours. So now, let's take an internal view of your home.

Try to excel in areas where you have the most control and don't worry about areas where you have no control. Where do you have the most control in the value of your home? The answer is in condition and appearance.

Condition - In my years of experience in real estate, the number 1 reason that home sales fall through, other than financing is due to inspections.

Once you receive a contract from a buyer that is signed and accepted by all parties, one of the first steps a home buyer takes to insure he has made a sound investment is to order an inspection. This is where a licensed professional inspector performs an inspection on your home. His mission is to evaluate the physical condition: structure, construction, and mechanical systems; identify items that need to be repaired or replaced; and estimate the remaining useful life of the major systems, equipment, structure, and finishes.

Many sellers make the mistake of thinking there is nothing wrong with their home, especially if they bought it new and it still has a builder warranty. Research has found that 45% of defects found were often present when the home was purchased new - many times due to annexation or upgrades in law to a higher building code after the home was purchased. Whether or not you are willing to pay for any repair issues sited as "aged" or "in need of repair" in an inspection, it may be too late to save the buyer and no one likes these kind of surprises!

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Therefore, I highly recommend that you hire your own inspector to site any repair issues. It costs a little more but can save you so much more in time, aggravation and maybe even a lost sale. If any repair issues or recommendations are found by an inspector, you have more time to address the issues and to repair them at a far lower cost. Oftentimes, you or a handyman can repair any issues at a far lower cost. A repair sited by the buyer's inspection requires a professional licensed to perform that type of work. It comes at a higher cost.

This decision is entirely up to you, but as your Realtor®, I feel it is my fiduciary duty to give you advice that can save you time, money and frustration.

Please feel free to contact me at anytime, any hour.... 281-948-7042.

© 2009 Brian Worrell Team, Realtors in League City, TX - 281-948-7042. All Rights Reserved.