A Minneapolis homeowner who owned an older home decided to place his home on the market. He decided to have a presale inspection and requested a written report because of a recommendation from his Realtor. One of the significant issues outlined in the report was the fact that there was some sloping of the floors and some of the door frames were out of plumb. This is a sign of settlement which was common for that area.
The seller recalled that when he bought the home he had an engineer inspect the home and the seller (then buyer) was present at the inspection which is always recommended. Because of the age of the home, the engineer, observing the sloping floors and out of plumb door frames, was not alarmed and concluded that the settling which caused the defects occurred many years ago and concluded that it was not an ongoing problem. The buyer (now seller) went ahead with the transaction.
Now, as the seller was preparing to sell the home his agent suggested that it would be a good idea to have the report from the engineer available to potential buyers to help alleviate concerns about the defects. After searching for the report the seller recalled that he did not pay extra for a written report because he was at the inspection and everything was fine.
This is less common in Minnesota but unfortunately it does occasionally occur especially when specialty inspections are performed like engineering evaluations. The cost of these inspections can be extensive and buyers are tempted to save money by not getting a written report.
If the buyer wants to negotiate concessions from the seller due to defects the written report will be absolutely necessary as proof of the defects.
Certainly saving the money for a written report is tempting and although it is not common now, in an active market it occasionally made sense to have the property pre-inspected so the offer would not have an inspection contingency. It might make sense to temporarily forego the written report pending an accepted offer. If their offer is accepted then the written report can be requested.
As illustrated in the previous case a written report documents the condition of the home when the now seller bought the home which could be 5, 10 or more years prior. To buyers the important issue is whether the condition is recent or is an older condition that has not continued to progress.
In this case the pre list inspection report recommended that the seller get an additional inspection by an engineer to evaluate the foundation. Because the seller did not have a prior written report he hired an engineer again to inspect the foundation.
Sellers are wise to order the recommended inspections most importantly those that buyers will be particularly interested in. This provides the seller with support for his position if the buyers make an unreasonable request for compensation for defects.
In closing, Sometimes it makes sense to forego written reports however if you plan on providing inspection information to a buyer, hearsay from you will not cut it. A written report, in the buyer’s eyes, takes the seller bias out of the equation. The report is from the inspector, not from the seller.
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