Never Skip the Home Inspection! (Unless…)
When putting an offer down on a home you just cannot bear to be without, you can either add a Home Inspection condition or not. If NOT in a multiple-offer situation (which can be rare in Toronto these days), then most Realtors agree that you should ALWAYS add the condition of a home inspection. However, if you do happen to be in a multiple-offer situation, there might be situations where it’s OK to waive that condition to create a “better offer” for the sellers – but we’ll come to that later.
Multiple-offers are much less common in the suburbs like Mississauga or Richmond Hill, but they do happen more-than-frequently. But I have found that in 2015, in obviously great school districts, solo offers are the norm less than 50% of the time. So a pre-home inspection might actually be a great advantage to those in a multiple-offer situation. And unless it’s a solo offer on the ACTUAL DAY the home gets listed (where a no-condition bully offer might hold a lot of weight), home inspections are extremely important.
Why? Well, the number one reason is for your safety and protection. Do YOU know what mold looks like? Can YOU detect asbestos in the home? Heck, most of my clients have young children in tow, so after learning this, it’s such a no-brainer for most parents.
And there are still other sound reasons to get a home inspection… Forecasting future costs (like roofing), revealing antiquated electrical wiring, and shedding light on additions not built to standards. It can also be used as a negotiating tool to shed thousands of dollars off the purchase price if you are still interested in the property, and taking on the costs of repair yourself.
The home inspector’s report is also an invaluable reference guide for you to get your newly bought property eventually into tip-top shape. Among the exterior things the home inspector will look at include the foundation, grading, garage, roof, and exterior walls. In the interior, he will inspect the plumbing, electrical, heating, air conditioning, ventilation, water heater, appliances, fire safety, carbon monoxide safety, and bathrooms.
Most Realtors recommend to their clients to pony up for a home inspection, as it certainly will pay for itself several times over. And at SusiHomes, clients get one post-offer inspection FREE. Looks like we’re veering into no-brainer territory again!
Many experienced home-buyers recommend that yes, you should DEFINITELY get a home inspection, just don’t ever get the one your Realtor recommends to you. This is sage advice and entirely true… EXCEPT at SusiHomes. The home inspectors we recommend are under strict instructions to find as much fault with the homes as they possibly can, and NEVER to “soften” a report for faster sale. In fact, if they DON’T do this, we will not call them again. And in FACT, hiring an outside home inspector might be your ultimate detriment, since any shady home inspector will really only try to impress the successful Realtor with a softer report, in hopes of future business. At SusiHomes, this is NOT the way we roll! In all facets of the process, we strive for honesty, authenticity, and transparency.
So let’s broach upon the multiple-offers situation. In the suburbs, I would say it depends on the age of the house. If a home is less than 10 years old, you may consider putting an offer down without any conditions, as long as you have pre-approval on a mortgage. Sure, you may have some problems to deal with, and if you win the bidding, you can always get a home inspection after the fact to determine the exact extent of the repairs/upgrades you will have to take care of. As long as you prepare financially and mentally for this, going without a home inspection condition on homes less than 10 years old can potentially be a good strategy.
Now in a hot market, it’s a different story. You will likely need to prepare yourself to spend a good couple of thousand dollars on “PRE-inspections” on homes that you KNOW there will be multiple offers on. You can sometimes take a pre-inspection report (prepared by the seller) for face value, but in all likelihood that will, indeed, be a “softer” report. It is impossible to trust a report like this. If you are handy, however, you may be able to use the report as a guide to see for yourself how much “pain” the house comes with. And all homes come with some pain.
Every situation is different, and that’s why your Realtor is there. This is the kind of thing you need her for! But generally, never skip a home inspection. It’s just too important.