| So, you're selling your home, and you think everything is just ducky, because the buyer has to pay for the home inspection. Our not limited experience suggests that you have a high probability of a very rude awakening. At first blush, the buyer paying for the home inspection looks great, to you. And it would be the rare transaction, indeed, where the buyer actually buying would not have a contingency on the outcome of the home inspection. If you think you're going to come out of this clean as a whistle, the statistics are not in your favor. This is because the home inspector is putting his/her rear end on the line. Simply put, if there is something to find, they are going to find it in the home inspection. In addition, a good plan is to check for first on your own with an open eye on safety or malady and remember what was called a temporary fix of an issue, arising perhaps on a weekend, which has not been repaired since professionally. Tcat saw that very recently, with one of his family members selling their house. The home inspector found a small issue with the air-conditioning system. The only thing that kept the issue from forcing a price renegotiation was the fact that they had purchased an extended warranty on the system. So of course, while you do not have to do anything about defects, small or large discovered during the home inspection, remember… the buyer has then every legal right in the majority of situations to refuse to purchase the house you want to sell. The best rule of thumb is to be as honest as possible about the condition of the house. Some states have very stringent laws regarding concealing “an issue” with the house. It has happened that events previously unknown can show up during the home inspection. Here is an example: A South Seattle had a whole development built on a former landfill site. The eventual decomposition of the landfill created everything from foundation issues to a pungent aroma that could level Tacoma (WA), dozens of miles south. It even became a stanza in a Frank Zappa song. <Lyrics: Jewish Princess - With a garlic aroma that could level Tacoma” 1979>. It is such an issue, there is an entire web site called constructiondefects com! Gudrun general thoughts are once a defect is discovered be prepared to renegotiate in good faith. Come on! It's dark, stuffy and hot inside this little box of electronics. Not only that, we cannot hear you when you talk to us. Send us an e-mail to tell us what topics you would like to hear about. Feedback@ButterflyLister.com |
