Sellers' Tips: The Home Inspector's Coming
By Marcie Geffner
Your home
is in escrow, and the buyer has scheduled a home inspection.
Should you be worried about what the inspector might find?
The answer depends, of course, on the condition of your home
and how well you've maintained its major components over the
years.
Regardless of what the inspector may uncover, however, you shouldn't
be overly concerned about the actual home
inspection. Keeping in mind that disclosure laws and
customary real estate
practices vary from place to place, here are six suggestions as
to how you might help the home inspection process go smoothly:
1. Leave the premises.
It's perfectly reasonable to absent yourself from your home during
the home inspector's visit and turn over the duties to your real
estate agent. Your agent should be familiar with the
home inspection process and able to act as your representative.
In fact, many listing agents prefer that the seller not be at home
during the buyer's home inspection.
2. Be courteous.
Some sellers mistakenly assume the home inspector is an adversary.
Experienced professional home inspectors aren't on a mission
to find fault with every tiny aspect of your home. The home
inspector's role is to offer the buyer a fair assessment of
the property. Tips: Don't keep the inspector waiting on your
doorstep and allow at least two hours for the inspection.
3. Don't attempt to refute negative comments about
your home during the inspection.
Inspectors don't appreciate being followed around by argumentative
or defensive home sellers (or sellers' real estate agents).
The time to explain and negotiate will come after you receive
and review your copy of the inspector's report.
4. Don't make statements about your home that are
beyond your personal knowledge.
For instance, if the inspector asks you how old the roof is
or when certain appliances were installed, check your records
before you answer. If you have documentation, provide a copy
of it. If repairs or modifications were made prior to your
purchasing the home, don't guess when that work was performed.
The same caution about misrepresentations applies to questions
about whether permits were obtained for remodeling, the exact
square footage of your home, the name of the architect who
designed it and so on.
5. Don't block access to normal living areas of your
home.
If the home inspector can't enter a room or complete some
other aspect of the inspection, that will be noted in his
or her report and the buyer may question it.
6. Make agreed-upon repairs promptly.
The buyer may ask the inspector to okay any repairs you agree
to make as a result of the inspection. The sooner you make
the repairs, the sooner the contingency can be met. Delaying
the repairs until the last minute won't stop the buyer from
having those items reinspected, but it could delay the closing
of escrow.
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