Any downside to having realtor assess property for future sale?

[AroundTheBlock]

Anonymous wrote:

AroundTheBlock wrote:Another option is to do a home inspection yourself. You can hire a home inspector at anytime and they can tell you what buyers are looking for when reviewing a home.

My company always hires a home inspector prior to listing our properties for sale. As for knowing what the going rate is for your property, that information can be found online fairly easy.

But does it mean that the homeowner is obligated to disclose everything the inspector finds when he is ready to sell?

No. If you own the property you can hire a home inspector anytime. This could be just to see the condition of your house and what needs to be maintained. The information provided by the home inspector you hired is your information. What most sellers do is hire an inspector to see what needs to be repaired before putting their house on the market. Your inspection has nothing to do with the sale of the house.

[Anonymous]

I would never hire an inspector first! Then you are on notice of any problems and obligated to disclose them.

[Anonymous]

11:07 and 11:09 can't both be right.

[AroundTheBlock]

Anonymous wrote:I would never hire an inspector first! Then you are on notice of any problems and obligated to disclose them.

What you fail to understand is the downside affects of this. From a novice perspective this may seem like a logical move, but in the end it makes selling your house more difficult. Let me explain.

When a buyer is interested in a house they will hire their own home inspector. That inspector will find all the issues (if any) and report it. These issues come into play during the price negotiation. If you need a new (repairs to) roof, repairs to the HVAC system, etc...those are all items that add up to the buyer having reason to lower their buying price. Now, if a homeowner does the inspection first and repairs the items prior to selling it always cost less and leads to less hassle. Also, if the buyer gets a reports of certain issues they are not comfortable with they may back out of the deal completely. If a buyer sees mold and freaks out they may back out, without even realizing that treating mold costs only a few thousand.

Therefore, as a property owner it is best practice to repair the needed items before placing it on the market so the buyer has more peace of mind. Also, the property owner is not "obligated" to transfer any information about the house regarding repairs. This is why buyers hire a home inspector.

Anonymous wrote:11:07 and 11:09 can't both be right.

Well, 11:07 is me and I'm registered on the site Got tired of always being Anon.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We did this with a realtor in our old neighborhood. About 6mos before we ended up listing he came in and talked to us. We liked his advice and demeanor and followed up with us periodically and guess what? We interviewed him and another agent and picked him. He also got his 6% vs the other agent that was willing to go to 5%.

Our realtor also paid for a professional stager and mouse on house. The stager did not provide any items, if they did that would have been an extra cost to us.

[Anonymous]

It is invaluable to have a pro look at your home and give it a fresh look over Some things that you haven't noticed might stand out to a realtor. Like old carpet an overgrown tree etc. Chaning some of those things makes your home more sale able Gl

[Anonymous]

The thing OP is that whatever the realtor tells you today has no bearing on what your home is worth in a few years. Another idea on the home inspection/improvement front is to review your old home inspection report (from when you bought) to see if there is anything you haven't addressed as well as make a list of things that you would like to change or fix. Then have a reputable contractor or three come over and give you an estimate and make some recommendations.

[Anonymous]

What you fail to understand is the downside affects of this. From a novice perspective this may seem like a logical move, but in the end it makes selling your house more difficult. Let me explain.

When a buyer is interested in a house they will hire their own home inspector. That inspector will find all the issues (if any) and report it. These issues come into play during the price negotiation. If you need a new (repairs to) roof, repairs to the HVAC system, etc...those are all items that add up to the buyer having reason to lower their buying price. Now, if a homeowner does the inspection first and repairs the items prior to selling it always cost less and leads to less hassle. Also, if the buyer gets a reports of certain issues they are not comfortable with they may back out of the deal completely. If a buyer sees mold and freaks out they may back out, without even realizing that treating mold costs only a few thousand.

Therefore, as a property owner it is best practice to repair the needed items before placing it on the market so the buyer has more peace of mind. Also, the property owner is not "obligated" to transfer any information about the house regarding repairs. This is why buyers hire a home inspector.

Disagree. It depends very much on the market. It is a seller's market right now. Things are going fast, at full price, with multiple offers, and inventory is limited. When we sold our pre-war home in the District several years ago in the same kind of market (an old home and there definitely were repairs needed), we would not allow an inspection before offers, much less pay for our own inspection. We put it on the market on Friday. Someone requested in inspection before writing an offer; we said no way. Open house was Sunday, we had eleven offers that we went through on Monday night and chose the highest one, significantly over our listing price. If they had raised a stink about the HVAC being ready to die or something, we would have maybe negotiated a few hundred dollars on the price and then let them back out while we moved on to the next offer. Why would I want to pay for an inspection myself and then take on the hassle and cost of repairs in an environment where people are fighting to get their offers accepted, using escalation clauses, and willing to accept flaws and repair costs because they really want the house?

[AroundTheBlock]

Anonymous wrote:

What you fail to understand is the downside affects of this. From a novice perspective this may seem like a logical move, but in the end it makes selling your house more difficult. Let me explain.

When a buyer is interested in a house they will hire their own home inspector. That inspector will find all the issues (if any) and report it. These issues come into play during the price negotiation. If you need a new (repairs to) roof, repairs to the HVAC system, etc...those are all items that add up to the buyer having reason to lower their buying price. Now, if a homeowner does the inspection first and repairs the items prior to selling it always cost less and leads to less hassle. Also, if the buyer gets a reports of certain issues they are not comfortable with they may back out of the deal completely. If a buyer sees mold and freaks out they may back out, without even realizing that treating mold costs only a few thousand.

Therefore, as a property owner it is best practice to repair the needed items before placing it on the market so the buyer has more peace of mind. Also, the property owner is not "obligated" to transfer any information about the house regarding repairs. This is why buyers hire a home inspector.

Disagree. It depends very much on the market. It is a seller's market right now. Things are going fast, at full price, with multiple offers, and inventory is limited. When we sold our pre-war home in the District several years ago in the same kind of market (an old home and there definitely were repairs needed), we would not allow an inspection before offers, much less pay for our own inspection. We put it on the market on Friday. Someone requested in inspection before writing an offer; we said no way. Open house was Sunday, we had eleven offers that we went through on Monday night and chose the highest one, significantly over our listing price. If they had raised a stink about the HVAC being ready to die or something, we would have maybe negotiated a few hundred dollars on the price and then let them back out while we moved on to the next offer. Why would I want to pay for an inspection myself and then take on the hassle and cost of repairs in an environment where people are fighting to get their offers accepted, using escalation clauses, and willing to accept flaws and repair costs because they really want the house?

I respect your disagreement. But, in the Washington DC area there are different markets in a variety of areas. Fairfax, Arlington and Alexandria are very different from Fort Washington, PG County, Charles County, etc. My opinion is based on the overall real estate market in DC. I work in the industry daily and all over the DC area including Metro DC and as far down as Charles County. You are correct some properties don't need repairs. But, again that all depends on where the property is. Fort Washington is not North Arlington and North Arlington is not NW DC.

Also, you are a homeowner selling your home to move. My company sells homes and properties for profit. We look at real estate a bit differently. Your previous house was in a highly sought after market. But, there is more to the DC metro real estate market than your area.