20 Benefits of Getting a Pre-Listing Home Inspection

You may be familiar with a buyer’s home inspection as a box that must be checked in order to sell your house. However, a pre-listing home inspection is now a tool that numerous sellers use to preemptively identify issues that a buyer may find. This prevents a potential deal from falling through. Here are 20 reasons to invest in a pre-listing home inspection:

1. It provides time for the seller to make repairs before listing their home. Enough said! If you know about the issues ahead of time, you have time to fix them.
2. It saves the seller money long-term. When you know which problems to fix in advance, you can address them without having to also renegotiate an offer.
3. It helps establish trust between the home buyer and seller. A pre-listing home inspection puts your cards on the table. It shows the home buyer that you’re not hiding anything, which establishes trust.
4. It enables real estate agents to market the home more effectively. Your real estate agent is responsible for handling pricing and negotiations for your home. The pre-listing inspection helps to make all of this information more accurate, which makes your real estate agent’s job easier.
5. It protects sellers from losing time and money throughout the process. When the process is drawn out from the results of a buyer’s home inspection, you can lose both time and money in the process.
6. It smoothes out negotiations between the buyer and seller. When everyone understands the issues that exist in the home, you can properly address them without tension.
7. It helps buyers understand the condition of the home. Knowledge is power, and the pre-listing inspection provides lots of information about the home they’re about to purchase.
8. It can put the home in higher demand. Which house would you choose? One with issues you don’t know about or the house that has fixed all of their problems. Not a hard choice!
9. It allows home buyers to compare results between homes. Having information about the home inspection can enable home buyers to craft a more informed decision. 
10. It gives sellers a competitive edge. Home inspections are a bonus for buyers because it gives them more information. When other sellers don’t have it, it makes you competitive in the process.
11. It reduces stress when selling your home. During the time of sale, you may worry that issues will come up that you’re unaware of. The pre-listing home inspection can take care of all of these problems, so you’re worry-free.
12. It helps you properly price your home. This is one of the most essential parts of the process and having your home priced correctly based on its condition will attract the right buyers.
13. It improves buyer confidence. When buyers already know that you’ve addressed the existing issues in your home, they’ll be able to make an offer with confidence.
14. It helps you avoid the need for renegotiation. If your buyer’s home inspection reveals any major issues, your initial offer could quickly dissolve into negotiations. Avoid this entirely by getting a pre-listing home inspection.
15. It can ease the process with lenders. If lenders know that the home has already been inspected, it can give them increased confidence in the loan.
16. It highlights your home’s assets. If your home is in good condition, your inspection may showcase any upgrades you’ve made while living there (such as plumbing or HVAC systems).
17.  It’s a goodwill gesture. Not every buyer has to perform this type of inspection, and it demonstrates you’re willing to go above and beyond.
18.  It can make the process go faster. While you still have to go through a buyer’s home inspection, if you’ve fixed what the inspection would address, then you’ll pass with flying colors.
19.  It benefits home insurance companies when homeowners understand their homes. A pre-listing home inspection can prompt owners to take care of issues that would otherwise cause problems.
20. It helps reduce the risk of home ownership. This is a step in the right direction in the conversation surrounding consumer debt!

Me and my team at LAB Home Inspections hope you really enjoyed this article!

If you have specific questions about your home, or would like to schedule a home inspection, please contact Darren directly:

Darren Dawson, Certified Master Inspector (CMI)®

Myrtle Beach, SC

(352) 665- 9900