Community Chat

[Elom]

My house went through the inspection yesterday. When he was finished they sat,buyers and their realtor,  at my kitchen table and went over it while I sat outside. It was a little chilly here and I thought to myself is there something wrong with this picture! LOL

i have yet to hear any results from my realtor and I suppose my priorities are not theirs. This is the worst selling I have experienced so unprofessional. My mind keeps thinking...this is going south. 

[terriebear]

@Elom

Although the buyer and the seller do not usually go over the inspection at your house as soon as the inspection is over, they may have just saved you time.  The buyer usually comes over again with "the list" with the agent and goes over things.  This is very standard.  Most things on the inspection will need to be fixed if they fall into certain categories by you, the seller, i.e., any termite damage, faulty piping, leaks. mold, loose tile, etc.  

[Snowpuppy]

Trust. Your. Gut.

I was the buyer and was sold a super expensive home inspection. I trusted my buyer's agent. I shouldn't have as I found out he got a piece of the price for a "good" inspection.

Everything went from bad to worse from day 1. I pulled my offer, lost my earnest money but got my inspection fee refunded. 

[jannabelle1]

I consider that very unprofessional. After all, it is still your home! I had something similar with a home I sold, where the realtor (not mine) sat down in my living room with a couple that was looking at my home. I was waiting in my car (after having driven around for 30 minutes), and after waiting another 30 minutes I decided to just go inside my own home. They were all just sitting around chatting, but when they saw me the realtor apologized and they left. Yes, your home is on the market to be sold, but I think buyers and their realtors need to show a bit of decorum and respect for the homeowner until the closing takes place. Their discussion at in your kitchen should have taken place at the realtor's office or somewhere else.

[itsmagic]

I remember selling our last house and the house inspection was the most stressful part. Of course the inspector found a couple things we had to get fixed. I was worried the buyer would back out!

[Annabellethecat66]

My late husband and I used to buy and sell houses.  Every one is different (depending on the realtor).

If I were you, I'd have gone upstairs or into another room rather than outside if you were chilly.

I remember one house (that we actually lived in) I was there when a family came by to see it with the realtor.

I had a very young baby and she didn't call ahead but I said, "OK, come on in".

I am a talker and love people (gee, do ya' think...ha).  I ended up pretty much selling the house because I walked around with the buyers and answered all of their questions (we built the house so, like this house, I knew it inside and out).

It was fun and the realtor was laid back.  We ended up getting several contracts on the house but I picked the one I'd met.  

When I sell this house I'm going to do like I did with our first house if we get more than one contract.  Since I own the house I can sell it for whatever I want.  The money is important but my husband died here and we raised our 3 girls so this house (which we built) is extra special.

I plan to have the people who want to buy the house write a letter and tell me WHY they want the house and what they liked about it.

Our first house we sold we did that and it was fun reading the letters.  I think selling a house is a very personal thing and I won't sell it to just anyone.

[sissel]

I brought & sold houses mostly we were moving into another state. Yes the buyer& realtor have a right to be in the house whilel inspector is doing his/her job but they do not bother inspector until the end. Inspector will give them some things he found (they always find something) but in a few days the inspector will send a written report. After inspection the buyer & realtor should have went to their office or coffee shop to discuss the findings. They can't really do anything until the written inspection report they will call your realtor & then you discuss it too. It's more nerve wracking for the seller but hope all of you work it all out and sell your house. If I was getting a good profit (just me) I don't care sitting outside in the cold but it should have been handled better. Maybe if you knew the time of inspection you could went to McD's or somewhere.

[granddi]

We looked for 2 years in a hot market. The realtor would give us names of inspectors. They would give us fancy reports but very little of the report would be negatives about the home. If there was something such as "settling" it would footnote the remark by saying "buyer should get another opinion" or it would have disclaimers such as "i am not a plumber" or "I am not a termite inspector" They would give no opinion about foundations.

We would have 10 days to inspect. Depending on weekends, we would have about 7 business days to decided on a major purchase with a lot of uncrertanties in the report.

I started researching inspectors on my own. Some had web sites that said things like "We work well with Realtors" or "Realtors-we won't crash your sale" 

The house we bought was inspected by a structural engineer and a general inspector. Also an HVAC/plumber company and termite  inspector. The expense was well worth it. 

[Drythe]

When I’ve sold a home, only twice, I selected and paid for my own inspection prior to listing the houses.

That way I was ahead of the game if anything was wrong.  The 1st time a corner of the screen covering an attic vent was loose and I repaired it myself.  2nd time a faucet in garage sink was dripping, plumber replaced in @ 10 min.

I put a copy of the inspection with photos of repairs before and after & receipt from plumber in a notebook which I left on a counter with a label and a note encouraging potential buyers, all of whom were pre- qualified, to review.

I just didn’t want any surprises, or anyone blowing anything out of proportion.

[KathyPet]

I have had bad experiences with two Home Inspectors when selling homes.  In both cases they wrote up,issues that they felt needed repairs.  In both cases they were wrong about there being anything wrong (a plumbing issue and a hot water issue).  In both cases I as the seller had to,spend money out of pocket to bring professionals in to prove their reports wrong.   Home Inspectors are not licensed and trained plumbers, electricians, structural engineers or heating and air conditioning technicians.  What they say is their opinion and may or may not be correct.