Don't Skip a Home Inspection, Try This Instead
When you're trying to buy a home in a competitive market, it's tempting take to bold actions. Offering more than the asking price is one strategy, but there's another more extreme action that you may end up regretting: waiving the home inspection.
Find out the pitfalls to skipping the home inspection when buying a home and what you can do instead.
As always, if you have any questions about purchasing a home or applying for a home loan, we are available to assist you.
The Risks of Skipping a Home Inspection
Skipping the home inspection is a risky move. While the home may appear in good shape on the surface, there could be critical and expensive issues that lurk underneath the fresh paint and skillful staging. In fact, the seller may not be aware of the problems either! Hiring a professional home inspector brings all the hidden issues to light for both the seller and the buyer.
One difficult foe to spot is asbestos, a naturally occurring material that was a standard building material for homes built between the 1950s to 1990s. While it is an excellent home insulator and still in limited use today, the EPA states exposure to asbestos poses a health risk. As such, older homes may not comply with current asbestos guidelines.
When you get a professional home inspection, they'll be able to inform you if there are pressing asbestos concerns that need correction.
A professional home inspector can also identify termite or other pest infestation that may be unnoticeable to the untrained eye. The fear of losing your dream home can trigger hasty actions.
However, passing up on a home inspection could turn your dream into a nightmare --a nightmare that months down the road could end up costing you thousands of dollars and countless nights of lost sleep.
Try This Instead of Waiving the Home Inspection
Pre-sale inspection
Get an inspection of the home before you make an offer or sign a contract. It'll be an out of pocket expense, but the few hundred dollars you invest now could save you thousands (or more!) later.
Another plus: If the home passes this initial inspection, then you can waive your inspection contingency with the seller.
The Seller’s Pre-Market Inspection
Seller's will often have an inspection done before listing the home on the market. Doing the inspection beforehand helps the seller to avoid problems later. It also provides negotiation protection for the sellers as the property would be priced correctly from the start.
However, note that the home inspector is liable only to the person who ordered and paid for the inspection. In the unlikely event that the inspector missed something, you would have no recourse.
Pre-Qualify and Schedule an Inspector
There's a golden window of when offers are due, and a deal starts to move forward. Don’t to lose momentum! Have your pre-qualification letter in hand as well as an inspector ready to get to work. That way, when you find your dream home, you'll be able to make an attractive offer on your dream home with confidence.
