The Importance of Home Inspections

It’s easy for home buyers to get swept up in the home buying excitement. They forget to make the important decision to get a home inspection soon after they are under contract. As a real estate professional, you know a home inspection will definitely give the buyer peace of mind and put the buyer’s mind at ease that their “Dream Home” is in good shape.

A good home inspection will assist your buyer in understanding exactly what they are about to acquire. Having a certified home inspector conduct a thorough inspection of the prospective property could be compared to taking out an insurance policy against all potential operating costs. Home inspections often reveal problems with a home that could be used as a great tool in purchasing negotiations with the seller.

Once the inspector and your client have completed the inspection walk through its up to you to assist them should there be questions. If all the issues are small, they may opt to move forward with the closing as is, however, if there are big problems with electrical, structural or any number of things, your client may wish to negotiate a new price or walk away from the sale completely. If there are large repairs, it would be prudent to have those repairs checked by the inspector and signed off on once they have been properly remedied.

Additional Inspections that should be considered are termite/wood destroying organism inspection and a radon inspection. While not required for most home loans, both of which can cause serious damage and can largely affect the value of the home. Home inspections are an instrumental part of the home buying process that can save your client a lot of time and money in the long run. Even if your client thinks they have found their “Dream Home” it is sensible to let them know the importance of inspections and that just because they can’t see what could be lurking, waiting to cause problems and cost more than they bargained for in their “dream home”, doesn’t mean it’s not there.