Effective October 15, 2025,
The State of Massachusetts will require that a Residential Home Inspection cannot be used as a condition of an offer to purchase. The law will ensure that every buyer has the right to conduct a home inspection if they want to. Sellers can no longer accept or condition an offer based on a buyer's willingness to waive that right.
Per the State of Massachusetts' Bulletin on the new regulation, here are some key points:
- Prohibited Conduct by Sellers and Agents
Sellers and their agents may not condition the acceptance of an offer or sale agreement on the buyer's agreement to waive or limit a home inspection, unless exempted.
Sellers may not accept offers indicating that a buyer intends to waive a home inspection.
- Applicability & Requirements
The regulation applies to the sale of residential buildings of 1–4 units, including single family homes, condominium units within buildings of any size, and residential co-op sales.
Home inspections must be completed by a licensed home inspector.
The home inspection must conform to state standards of practice for home inspections and include a written evaluation.
- Required Disclosure
Before or at the signing of the first purchase contract (either the offer to purchase or the purchase and sale agreement), the seller or agent must provide a separate written disclosure affirming the buyer’s right to a home inspection.
Both buyer and seller must sign the form, which guarantees the buyer a reasonable opportunity to obtain and review a home inspection and withdraw from the sale based on its results.
- Ban on Undermining Inspections
Any contract provision that effectively renders a home inspection meaningless — such as unreasonably restricting scheduling or denying buyers the option to back out based on inspection results—violates the regulation.
However, parties may mutually agree to set reasonable monetary thresholds for repair costs or limits on deposit refunds in the event of termination of a sale based on the results of a home inspection.
- Buyer Discretion
Nothing in the regulation requires a buyer to have the home inspected. A buyer may forego a home inspection after receiving proper disclosures and without any coercion or inducement from the seller or their agent.
The new disclosure is a required document that all parties need to sign.
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