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I wouldn't go out and have a pre-inspection done without thinking about it. Depending on your specific house and what is customary in your local market, it may end up creating unnecessary problems and expenses. You are probably required to disclose any problems with your house of which you are aware, but there is probably not any requirement that you actively seek out what those problems are. It's a state-specific question, so consult your local experts.
There is a trade-off that will have to be made between learning of all the problems with your house in order to fix them before a buyer complains about them versus learning more than you want to know. Depending on how familiar you are with your home, how new it is, what condition it's in, how much effort you are willing to go to in order to fix problems, what is typical in your local market, and how strong your local market is, it may end up being better for you to just let buyers identify the problems they want you to fix.
In other words, unless most other homes in your market have pre-inspection reports or there is some reason that buyers may think your home is in worse shape than it actually is in, there is no down side to not pre-inspecting. You could always just wait until a buyer gets their own inspection report, see what they complain about, and then decide at that point whether or not to correct those problems. If you pre-inspect, you may end up fixing things that your ultimate buyer may not even have complained about, which would be a waste of your money.
Just as an example, if your pre-inspection report said it's time to replace the roof, are your going to replace it? If not, then your inspection report (and your disclosure) may turn off potential buyers before they even get interested in your house. Or they may offer a lower price and justify it with the needed roof replacement, even though you may have already discounted the listing price to take the roof into account. Then when they do their own inspection, they may nickle and dime you with other smaller repairs and try to get you to lower the price even more. If, on the other hand, you do replace the roof, you may have just spent a lot of money even though the buyer's inspector may have told the buyer that your previous roof had several years of wear left.
Conversely, if you don't pre-inspect, you may not be aware that your roof needs to be replaced, so you don't disclose that fact and buyers are not scared away from even making an offer. When the buyer gets their own inspection, they see that the roof needs to be replaced and that there are several other "nickle and dime" repairs that need to be made. At that point, the buyer may already be emotionally vested in the home, so even if you refuse to lower the price or pay for a new roof, the buyer may proceed with the purchase anyway because they have already committed in their mind to buying your house. Also, the buyer may decide not to nickle and dime you with the other smaller repairs if you will agree to replace the roof, so you've come out ahead.
I would consult with local agents before pre-inspecting. Perhaps use that question as part of your interview process, both in order to get broader input and to help you select an agent who can give you thoughtful answers on that and other issues. Good luck.
As an agent, I disagree with Austin-Willy the commercial real estate attorney. (Big surprise!)
I recommend to my sellers that they get a pre-inspection. Why? Because if the buyer has a good inspector (and most do - it's not safe to count on the buyer's inspector not finding a problem as major as a roof replacement), the buyer's inspector is going to find the problems (especially if it's a roof problem). At that point, the seller is emotionally invested in having a contract, and they have to make a decision VERY quickly about how to handle it, which includes getting someone out to give estimates on the various problems that turn up. They will frequently be shocked to learn of problems that they couldn't have known of any other way.
If a pre-inspection is done, they can decide what is going to be fixed, what is not going to be fixed, get their estimates in relative leisure, and use the inspection as a selling point, not something they are bludgeoned with during the option period. They can use that information when deciding what price to list the home at. It's all about being prepared, and I believe in prepared sellers, not sellers who are hoping that things won't be discovered, because they almost inevitably will.
As an agent, I disagree with Austin-Willy the commercial real estate attorney. (Big surprise!)
I recommend to my sellers that they get a pre-inspection. Why? Because if the buyer has a good inspector (and most do - it's not safe to count on the buyer's inspector not finding a problem as major as a roof replacement), the buyer's inspector is going to find the problems (especially if it's a roof problem). At that point, the seller is emotionally invested in having a contract, and they have to make a decision VERY quickly about how to handle it, which includes getting someone out to give estimates on the various problems that turn up. They will frequently be shocked to learn of problems that they couldn't have known of any other way.
If a pre-inspection is done, they can decide what is going to be fixed, what is not going to be fixed, get their estimates in relative leisure, and use the inspection as a selling point, not something they are bludgeoned with during the option period. They can use that information when deciding what price to list the home at. It's all about being prepared, and I believe in prepared sellers, not sellers who are hoping that things won't be discovered, because they almost inevitably will.
That's certainly a valid viewpoint, even if I disagree with it. But ultimtely, whether it's a selling point is a matter of local customs. If it's not typical to get a pre-inspection in that locale, it may not be much of a selling point. And if I know one thing about TexasHorseLady, it's that she wholeheartedly believes that every market is different, and so what may be the custom in one market may have no bearing on what is appropriate in another market.
But in my opinion the bottom line is that you don't lose anything by waiting (unless most other sellers have a pre-inspection report), but you do stand to lose money and potential buyers (unless you are committed to fixing everything that shows up on the report) by doing a pre-inspection.
Actually, it's not "custom" in my market, but I'm seeing more homes that are marketed with a pre-inspection. Those are the ones that stand out and get attention first, for that reason. That's an edge I'd prefer my sellers to have.
I'm basing this on working with both buyers and sellers, and as a buyer's agent seeing what gets their attention and what makes them feel more comfortable in making an offer on a house.
I am also looking at a company pushed and backed relocation. We are looking at ways to help the house move faster. We have recently remodeled and installed tile floors in all common areas and baths, new carpet in bedrooms, all fresh paint, remodeled baths, great landscaping, waterfront property, etc. We priced $10k below homes not on the water in an effort to price aggresively enough to move the property. All the neighbors are upset we priced so low, but we bought (built actually) low and since the company is paying marketing fees and closing, we can price low to sell.
The problem we have is confidence in our realtor. But that is another post. I hope all the comments about patience will prove correct.
Prelisting home inspections protect sellers. All homes have issues and it makes no sense to pretend that they don't. Many homeowners have taken on "temporary" repairs on their homes with the intention of fixing something and then forgotten about what they did. Finding these little gems protects the sellers from themselves. Sometimes you just gotta see what people do to their own homes to appreciate the need for this.
Preslisting home inspections reduce stress. Selling a home is insanely stressful and why put yourself in the position to be surprised. Preparation reduces stress. Get the most nit picky inspector you can find for a prelisting home inspection. This way you can get quotes for repairs from multiple parties which means you have time to find a good contractor at a reasonable price. Under the stress and timeframes of a real estate transaction, sellers tend to go with who can get it done the fastest. This may cost a seller money due to lack of time.
Prelisting home inspections protect agents. The fact is that I am out there making representations about the property. I just feel that I can be more accurate when I have a prelist HI done. If I know from the prelist that the roof needs to be replaced and the seller can't afford to do it, I'll advertise it as cash or rehab loans only. If the house doesn't qualify for financing why waste the time of everyone when a prelist can take care of that issue right off the bat.
My personal opinion is that people sue each other when they feel deceived. If a prelist HI is done and the buyer does their own HI and they say pretty much the same thing, that really helps to protect sellers from future lawsuits. Get informed and get the information out there. Transparency is a good thing.
That is one of the nice things about our home sale under the relocation company. All inspections are required before listing the home, and are paid for under the relocation. In our homes case, the only thing that any of the inspectors could find (Termite, Radon, HI) was that our picket fence had a post that was "too close to the house" at 1 inch away from the vinyl. There was no wood on wood contact. Our house already has a termite bond and 2/10 warranty. The termite inspector said they could correct the picket fence post for a cost of course....... The relocation company said she was surprised, most inspectors find more and if that was all they found, they were grasping.
Prelisting home inspections protect sellers. All homes have issues and it makes no sense to pretend that they don't. ...
Get informed and get the information out there. Transparency is a good thing.
I don't agree with the comments that imply that a seller is being unethical when they don't get a pre-listing inspection done. There is no legal, moral or ethical obligation to do it. You are required to disclose what you know about, but you aren't required to investigate and discover issues that you don't know about. So all of this about pretending and transparency is off-the-mark unless you are just making the point that the seller should disclose what they already know about.
The issue really boils down to whether you are going to spend money up front in the hope that it prevents you from having to spend more money later. And there is no way to accurately predict whether it will save every seller money to do it up front. So naturally it should be a home-by-home decision. How old is the house? How long have you lived there? Are you the type to do your own repair projects? Are you the type that fixes every issue that comes to your attention? Do you still have your inspection report from when you bought the house?
I won't argue with the agents who say that a pre-listing inspection makes their job easier, but that is not the most important consideration, otherwise agents would recommend a total remodel for all homes. The real question is whether it is better for the seller, and there simply is no one-size-fits-all answer.
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same boat here
