If you’re looking to buy a new home, the inspection process always comes before the sale. It could be the most critical step when going through the home buying process. An inspector can help you find any issues and reopen the doors for renegotiation, or help you prevent any problems if you are looking to sell.

Typically, as a buyer, you would hire an inspector to come and take a look at the house. The home inspector will then point out any health, safety, or other significant issues they may find. A buyer’s inspection will generally occur after you’ve made your first offer on the home, and this will then allow you to renegotiate the price if any issues are found.

As a seller, a home inspection will need to be taken care of before the home is listed. A smart seller will get their home inspected during the beginning stages of selling their house so they can ensure any issues are fixed before the buyers come knocking. This will save time during the closing process.

Things home inspectors look for include:

  • Water damage
  • Any major structure issues
  • Status of the roof
  • Electrical/plumbing systems
  • Pests
  • HVAC systems

After the buyer’s inspection is complete, the seller can then have their inspection to confirm any of the issues found. If the new inspection has shown any discrepancies with the buyer’s initial investigation, the seller can then choose to walk away from the sale. Not a bad idea if there are other buyers waiting in the wings.

Once the home inspections are complete, the buyer and seller can then negotiate the updated contract. The buyer can, at this point, also choose to drop the deal. If the buyer decides to walk away, then the seller will need to put their house back up for sale. When they do this, they will have to show that the house was pending sale. This is a red flag when purchasing homes and an excellent time to ask the seller to explain why the previous deal didn’t work out.

Home inspections are meant to keep buyers and sellers safe, and it’s a necessary step before you decide to purchase any home.