Seller inspections (sometimes referred to as pre-listing inspections) are becoming more popular because they virtually eliminate all the pitfalls and hassles associated with waiting to do the inspections until a buyer is found. 
The Seller then can disclose areas of concern to the inspector to be verified, and areas not known to the seller can be pointed out. Upon completion the seller then has a report that shows the current homes condition. If repairs or maintenance items are in need, the seller can then do these, increasing the overall total value of the home, This pre-listing inspection can then be added to the disclosure and will make buyer less apprehensive as an inspection has been done.
Buyers should conduct their own inspection to verify findings and that where noted repairs have been completed by the seller. This in turn removes the 11th hour surprise negotiation or possible suicide from the home. In keeping things up front the real estate can then make a proper market evaluation if sellers do not wish to make noted repairs, they can then be properly advised and the home will reflect this in it price.
This keeps sellers from getting mad at Real estate agents for home reductions while on the market. Buyers can then make informed decision as to whether they want to take on potential noted problem and the price has been marked down already to reflect the quoted cost of repairs, thus removing their 11th hour negotiation ability.
Advantages to the seller:
- The seller can choose a certified inspector rather than be at the mercy of the buyer's choice of inspector.
- The seller can schedule the inspections at the seller's convenience.
- It might alert the seller of any items of immediate personal concern, such as mold, radon gas (if testing requested) or deficiency.
- The seller can assist the inspector during the inspection, something normally not done during a buyer's inspection.
- The seller can have the inspector correct any misstatements in the inspection report before it is generated.
- The report can help the seller realistically price the home if problems exist.
- The report can help the seller substantiate a higher asking price if problems don't exist or have been corrected.
- A seller inspection reveals problems ahead of time which:
- might make the home show better.
- gives the seller time to make repairs and shop for competitive contractors.
- permits the seller to attach repair estimates or paid invoices to the inspection report.
- removes over-inflated buyer procured estimates from the negotiation table.
- The report might alert the seller to any immediate safety issues found, before agents and visitors tour the home.
- The report provides a third-party, unbiased opinion to offer to potential buyers.
- A seller inspection permits a clean home inspection report to be used as a marketing tool.
- A seller inspection is the ultimate gesture in forthrightness on the part of the seller.
- The report might relieve a prospective buyer's unfounded suspicions, before they walk away.
- A seller inspection lightens negotiations and 11th-hour renegotiations.
- The report might encourage the buyer to waive the inspection contingency.
- The deal is less likely to fall apart the way they often do when a buyer's inspection unexpectedly reveals a problem, last minute.
- The report provides full-disclosure protection from future legal claims
Advantages to the real estate agent:
- Agents can recommend certified inspectors as opposed to being at the mercy of buyer's choices in inspectors.
- Sellers can schedule the inspections at seller's convenience with little effort on the part of agents.
- Sellers can assist inspectors during the inspections, something normally not done during buyer's inspections.
- Sellers can have inspectors correct any misstatements in the reports before they are generated.
- Reports help sellers see their homes through the eyes of a critical, third-party, thus making sellers more realistic about asking price.
- Agents are alerted to any immediate safety issues found, before other agents and potential buyers tour the home.
- Repairs made ahead of time might make homes show better.
- The reports provide third-party, unbiased opinions to offer to potential buyers.
- Clean reports can be used as marketing tools to help sell the homes.
- Reports might relieve prospective buyer's unfounded suspicions, before they walk away.
- Seller inspections eliminate buyer's remorse that sometimes occurs just after an inspection.
- Seller inspections reduce the need for negotiations and 11th-hour renegotiations.
- Seller inspections relieve the agent of having to hurriedly procure repair estimates or schedule repairs.
- The reports might encourage buyers to waive their inspection contingencies.
- Deals are less likely to fall apart the way they often do when buyer's inspections unexpectedly reveal problems, last minute.
- Reports provide full-disclosure protection from future legal claims.
Advantages to the home buyer:
- The inspection is done already.
- The inspection is paid for by the seller.
- The report provides a more accurate, third-party view of the condition of the home prior to making an offer.
- A seller inspection eliminates surprise defects.
- Problems are corrected or at least acknowledged prior to making an offer on the home.
- A seller inspection reduces the need for negotiations and 11th-hour renegotiations.
- The report might assist in acquiring financing.
- A seller inspection allows the buyer to sweeten the offer without increasing the offering price by waiving inspections.
- If Buyer wants a second opinion he can have his own inspection done at his expense for peace of mind.
Advantages to the home inspector:
- Seller inspections allow the inspector to catch inspection jobs upstream, ahead of real estate transactions and the competition.
- Seller inspections are easier to schedule and are not under the time constraints of sales agreement's inspection contingencies.
- Working for sellers is typically less stressful than working for buyers about to make the purchase of their lifetimes.
- Sellers can alert the inspector to problems that should be included in the report, answer questions about their homes, and provide seller's disclosure statements.
- Repairs of problems found during seller inspections often necessitate the need for re-inspections by the inspector.
- Seller inspections put a sample copy of the inspector's product, the report, in the hands of many potential buyers who will need a local inspector soon.
- Seller inspections put a sample copy of the inspector's product, the report, in the hands of many local buyer's agents that tour the home.
- The inspector is credited, in part, with the smoothness of the real estate transaction by buyer, seller and agents on both sides.
- The liability of the inspector is reduced by putting more time between the date of the inspection and the move-in date of the buyers.
- The liability of the inspector is reduced because the inspector's clients are not buying the properties inspected, but rather moving out of them.
- The buyer might insist on hiring the seller's inspector to produce a fresh report since the seller's inspector is already familiar with the home.
- Seller inspections provide inspectors opportunities to showoff their services to listing agents.
- Seller inspections provide examples to the listing agent of each home, which might encourage those agents to have other listings pre-inspected by the inspector.
- Most sellers are local buyers and so many sellers hire the inspector again to inspect the homes they are moving to.
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