There is a lot to consider when going through the home buying process. The process can be intimidating for anyone, and that is especially true if you are getting ready to make your first purchase. With so much money on the line, it is easy to get overwhelmed at one point or another. However, if you are going to cross the finish line successfully – that is, with the keys to a great home in your hand – you need to keep a cool head and take it step by step.
In this post, we are going to talk about the benefits of getting a home inspection before you complete your purchase. This is an important topic because some buyers – especially first-time buyers – consider skipping this step to streamline the process. Often times, this would be a mistake. Sure, you could save a little bit of time and money if you skip the inspection, but those savings will not be worth it in the long run. Working with an experienced home inspector is a wise decision, as it will allow you to eventually buy a home you love with total confidence.
Know What You Are Getting
The main reason that you will want to go through with a home inspection is so you can know exactly what you are getting into when you buy a house. No home is perfect, so something is likely to come up during any inspection process. The key is to pay attention to the details. Are these small points that can be easily rectified, or are these major issues that will impact the long-term health and stability of the structure? Once you have a completed home inspection in hand, you can read it carefully and decide if you are still interested in pursuing the property.
Adjusting Your Offer
Once you have settled on a home that you would like to purchase, the next step is usually to make an offer. There will be a listing price attached to the home, of course, but that doesn’t mean you need to offer that exact number. Typically, you will work together with your agent to come up with a competitive offer, based on things like other sales in the area, the perceived competition for the home, and more. It’s always a tricky process to come up with the right offer, as you don’t want to go too high or too low. Offering too low may mean the home goes to another buyer, while coming in too high will cost you more money. The value of an experienced real estate agent really comes into play here.
If your offer is contingent on a home inspection, which it should be, you will have the opportunity to bring in an inspector after the offer has been accepted. When the inspection is complete, you can go over the report with your agent to discuss potential changes to your offer. If the inspection went well and there were no major issues to deal with, you may decide to just leave your offer as-is. Or, if there are some problems that need to be addressed, you can decide how you would like to move forward.
In most cases, you will pick between one of two options. First, you may decide to ask the seller to make the necessary improvements to the property before closing the sale. In this case, your offer won’t necessarily change, as you will simply request that the seller pays for the work that needs to be done. On the other hand, you could tell the seller that they don’t need to worry about the work, but you are going to lower your offer by an appropriate amount instead. Then, after you take ownership of the home, you can have the work completed. Both of these approaches can work, so you’ll need to pick the right one based on the details of your situation.
Don’t Be Distracted
When you first walk through a home that is for sale on the Edmonton real estate market, you might be impressed with its appearance. Everything has been cared for nicely, the surfaces are clean and tidy, and the landscaping around the home is kept up as well. All in all, the home looks to be in great shape. Unfortunately, this first impression does not necessarily reflect the actual condition of the home.
Many homebuyers have made the mistake of thinking that a home which looks great to the naked eye doesn’t need to be inspected. Nothing could be further from the truth. It is possible that issues are developing behind the scenes, without the homeowners knowing about any problems. Or, it is possible that the homeowners do know about some issues, and they are hoping to sell the home to someone who won’t bother with an inspection. Either way, you don’t want to find yourself in a position where you buy a home based on its appearance only to discover later that the structure has serious problems which will be expensive to correct.
The Other Side of the Coin
So far, we have been talking about home inspections from the perspective of a buyer. But what if you are the seller? Does it make sense to pay for an inspection of your own home before you sell it? Believe it or not, this might be a good idea, depending on your circumstances.
The main benefit here is avoiding those adjustments to an offer that we discussed earlier. If you have already had an inspection performed, and you have taken care of the issues that come up, it is likely that a buyer’s inspection will come up clean. That means you won’t have to accept any reductions to the offers you receive, and you may wind up making more money in the end.
When a home is going to change hands, an inspection should not be seen as an optional part of the process. There are huge benefits attached to having an inspection performed, and the cost of bringing in a professional to do the job are relatively low. With so much money at stake for both parties, opting for an inspection is an easy choice.
Looking for more advice on buying an Edmonton home and where to find a great home inspector? The TruHome Real Estate team can assist you with this and more! Let’s chat.
