Well, our first home now belongs to someone else (a VERY lovely family). As you guessed, it went really quickly (9 days to be exact)!
But before we sold it, we staged it to sell and we went through a home inspection. If you haven’t checked all the posts on how we staged our home, make sure you do.
Today I’d love to talk about a subject that is not that popular in the world of Home Stagers: Inspection!
From having helped hundreds of owners sell their home, I will tell you that it takes a village to sell a house! Yes, home staging is important, but you also need a good realtor on your team, with knowledge of your area and the market as well. At the end of the day, your home will have an offer, but the question is, will the inspection reveal anything that can scare away potential buyers?
Unfortunately, I have seen one of my client’s offer be retracted after a bad inspection. This is why it became common practice for me to strongly suggest that my clients have a pre-sale inspection before we even start staging.
If your home is currently on the market and you haven’t done a pre-sale inspection, there are still many ways to get ready in order to avoid any surprises!
- CLEAN THE HOUSE
This sounds so simple, yet home owners often overlook this tactic. Home inspectors are people first and inspectors second. As people, they carry preconceived ideas about how well a home has been maintained. Clean homes say you care about and take care of the house. It’s a good idea to make a good impression.
2. BE ON TIME BECAUSE THE INSPECTOR WILL BE
Sometimes home inspectors are early. If an inspector makes an appointment with you for 9:00 a.m., have the house ready for inspection at 8:30. It’s also common for inspectors to start on the exterior of the home, so leave the shades down or drapes drawn until you are dressed. More than one unprepared seller has been “surprised” by a stranger stomping around in the back yard!
3. LEAVE THE UTILITIES CONNECTED
The home inspector will need to turn on the stove, run the dishwasher, test the furnace and air conditioning, so leave the utilities on, especially if the house is vacant. It’s impossible to check receptacles for grounding and reverse polarity if the power is turned off. Without utilities, the inspector will have to reschedule, which could delay the closing of your transaction and the removal of the buyer’s home inspection contingency.
4. PROVIDE WORKSPACE AROUND FURNACE AND WATER HEATERS
Remove boxes, bookcases, furniture and anything else blocking access to your furnace, air conditioner and water heater. The inspector will need three to four feet of working space to inspect these items. They often will not move anything themselves, but if they don’t have access, an inspector might suggest a specialist to the buyer, and you might need more inspections.
5. PROVIDE ACCESS TO THE ATTIC & GARAGE (IF YOU HAVE THEM)
The inspector will need to get into your basement and/or attic as well, so keep a path cleared. Check for water in the basement. Move boxes away from the walls. Vacuum spider webs. Look in the attic for possible rodent droppings. Secure valuables, if any.
6. LEAVE KEYS FOR OUTBUILDINGS AND ELECTRICAL BOXES
Leave the remote controls for your garage door opener, or a key if the garage is unattached to the house. Unlock the covers for your sprinkler system and electrical box. Leave a key for exterior building access.
7. PROVIDE REPAIR DOCUMENTS
Make available to the home inspector all invoices and documents regarding remodelling projects or new items, such as a roof or furnace. If you’ve installed a new dishwasher or repaired a leaky faucet, find the paperwork. It will give the buyer peace of mind to know those items were reinspected.
8. PREPARE TO BE AWAY FOR 3 HOURS MINIMUM!
Often the buyer will accompany the home inspector, and buyers feel uncomfortable asking questions if the owner is present. Try to schedule a time for the inspection when you can be out of the house, and take the children with you. Crate your pets if you cannot remove them from the premises.
Here’s a handy checklist of items to check, ideally before you get an offer, so you can attend to little defects. Typically once you get an offer, you have about 10 days before the inspection, so it’s not much time.
Another tip is to do a walk-through with a trusted general contractor. This is the option we chose. Since I am blessed to work with contractors all year round, I had knowledgeable people I could count on. During his hour-long visit, my contractor pointed out a few things that we had never noticed, liked a window that wasn’t closing properly, and even a pipe that was beginning to show wear and tear.
Obviously we passed out inspection with flying colours, and that is always my prayer for every single client I collaborate with!
