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Home Inspections

Section 3 - Chapter 13

Home Inspections As A Negotiating Tool

Want to save thousands on that home? Every flaw you can find is a negotiating point. You don't have to learn building codes, and you probably should use a professional inspector in any case. Doing your own inspection first, though, means you'll know what to ask the professional inspector. It can also save you thousands of dollars.

A good home inspection checklist, keeps you from forgetting things. I have more than a hundred items on my own list. Think you could keep all these items in mind as you walk through a property? For that matter, did you remember to look for water stains on the basement walls the last time you looked at a house? Bring a list! (There is one later in the book.)

Good lists are organized by area of the house, usually starting outside. Walk around and then through the home, checking each item on the list. Take notes. If a gutter is coming loose on the side of the house, write it down, along with notes about rotting wood or anything else you notice.

It doesn't matter if you don't know the difference between 12-gauge and 14-gauge wiring. You don't have to become an expert on all the building trades, as useful as this would be. You just have to use what you do know. Make a note if something looks "odd" or "smells funny." Afterwards, you can have a professional inspector take a closer look.

Many buyers make an offer on a home with an inspection contingency clause. If an inspector finds problems, the buyer can re-negotiate the price based on his findings. This isn't a bad way to go, but lowering your offer too much can often offend a seller, and blow the deal. How would you feel if somebody dropped their offer by $10,000 after they already put it in writing?

A better way is to find as many problems with the property as you can, BEFORE making the offer. A list of these problems presented with an offer is a good impersonal (therefore non-offensive) way to present a low first offer. It's a good idea to keep the inspection contingency in the offer, but you probably won't have to lower your offer this way.

There is no need to be a carpenter to note that a railing is loose. Most of us can see if a home needs new paint. Home inspections can start with simple things like these, and end with a better price for you.

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