Top 10 Things to Do to Prepare for a Pre-listing Home Inspection
Calvin Bailey
A Closer Look Home Inspections
https://www.inspectorpages.com/cbailey1
Email: https://www.inspectorpages.com/cbailey1cbailey1@on.nachi.org
Taking a bit of time to prepare for that all important pre-listing home inspection will go a long way in ensuring that you receive the best possible price or market value for your home. It can only work to your benefit to know upfront any possible repairs, deficiencies or safety issues so that you can correct them before your prospective buyer(s) view your home.
However, eventually your buyers are going to have an inspection done as well. You may as well know what they are going to find by getting there first. Having an inspection performed ahead of time helps in many other ways as well:
- It allows you to see your home through the eyes of a critical third-party.
- It helps you to price your home realistically.
- It permits you to make repairs ahead of time so that ...
- Defects won't become negotiating stumbling blocks later.
- You have the time to get reasonably priced contractors or make the repairs yourself, if qualified.
- You will get the best possible price for your home
- It may relieve prospect's concerns and suspicions.
- It may reduce your liability by adding professional supporting documentation to your disclosure statement.
- It may alert you to immediate safety issues before agents and visitors tour your home.
- You can provide copies of the inspection report along with receipts for any repairs to any potential buyers.
Now that we have seen some of the all important reasons for getting a pre-listing inspection, lets look at how to prepare for the inspection.
1) Have a clean home
This sounds so simple yet home owners often overlook this point. Home inspectors are people first and inspectors second. They tend to carry preconceived ideas of how well a home has been maintained by how clean your home and property look. A clean house says a lot about whether the home is well maintained.
2) Be prepared and ready
Most inspectors are quite prompt. If the inspector makes an appointment with you for 9:00 a.m., have the house ready for inspection at that time. It's also common for inspectors to start on the exterior of the home, so leave the shades down or drapes drawn until you are dressed. More than one unprepared seller with nothing on but a smile has been "surprised" by a stranger stomping around in the back yard.
3) Are the utilities connected?
In all likelihood you will still be residing in your home so this will not be an issue, but if the house is vacant then you'll want to be mindful of this point since the home inspector will want to test some of the appliances such as the stove, the furnace, air conditioning etc. It's is also impossible to check receptacles for grounding and reverse polarity if the power is turned off. Not being able to test some of these items may result in a rescheduled appointment and it could delay the closing of your transaction.
4) Provide access to furnace, water heater, garage, attic etc...
The inspector will need access to areas such as your electrical panel, furnace, water heater, garage, attic, basement walls etc. Due to liability issues, most home inspectors will not move any boxes or furniture, so you will want to remove anything that is within three to four feet of such items so that the inspector can do a thorough and complete inspection.
5) Clear away bush from exterior inspection points
Nobody expects you to shovel a tunnel around your home if snow drifts are blocking the foundation but, in the winter, try to provide a path around the house. In the spring, cut down or trim back trim tree branches and clear brush from the foundation. Providing easy access to these exterior areas will allow the inspector to get a good unobstructed look at the lot grading and house foundation
6) Keep the light burning
Again, due to liability issues, most home inspectors will not light the pilot lights on your furnace, water heater etc. If your pilot lights are not lit, then fully inspecting these important items will be almost impossible and the buyer could delay closing until those inspections are completed.
7) Have your pets in another room or caged.
We all love pets, but there can be nothing more distracting than a cat or dog getting under the feet of the inspector while they are trying to do their inspection. Keeping your pets back while the inspection is going on will go a long way in ensuring the inspection is completed in a timely fashion
8) Provide repair documents
You will want to provide the home inspector with any invoices or documentation regarding any remodelling projects that you have done and for new items such as a roof or furnace. If you've upgraded the electrical from ungrounded to grounded, installed a new dishwasher or repaired a leaky faucet, find the paperwork. It will give any potential buyer peace of mind to know those items were repaired/replaced and inspected.
9) Prepare to be home for three hours minimum
You will want to make sure that you have at least three hours set aside so you can be present for the inspection. Not only will you be present to answer and questions the home inspector might have, but it will also be a great time to ask the inspector questions you might have - it will be a great learning opportunity. Being present for the inspection will also enable you to confidently highlight your home's special traits and qualities to the prospective buyer(s).
10) Is that double/double or just one cream and sugar? :)
For more excellent pointers on preparing your home for sale,
download the free ebook "Sell Your Home For More" http://www.nachi.org/sellyourhome.htm
Enjoy! :)
Calvin Bailey - owner of A Closer Look Home Inspections - lives in Oshawa, Ontario Canada with his wife and five children.
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