David Swartz, a Phoenix home inspector from Advantage Inspection Service, tells John Cunningham the 3 key points to selecting a quality home inspector.

These are trying times for real estate sales professionals.  Among other challenges, often the home inspection results are the most difficult to negotiate.  How can we cross the hurdle and benefit everyone in the transaction?  It begins with the seller.

Realistically, home inspection results represent the second largest obstacle to a successful close.  The first obstacle is price (and the appraiser’s concurrence with the price).  Within ten days the second obstacle, inspection results, rear their ugly head.  With some acquired skill, the home inspection can be your best ally in the quest to have a meeting of the minds between buyer & seller.

We know that buyers want to buy and sellers want to sell.  A seller “in contract” to sell a home must be ready to negotiate findings from the home inspection report.  A properly prepared seller will know that their home is not perfect and problem areas are sure to be discovered during an inspection.  Steps the seller should take:

1. Prepare mentally for the shock of hearing that your pride and joy has a few defects.
2. If present during the inspection, avoid interacting with the inspector unless asked and don’t take negative findings personally.
3. Don’t react or take action until you review the inspection report and review the requests of the buyer.  Often the buyer is reasonable and early overreactions create difficulties.
4. Set a budget for how much you are willing to give to close the deal.  Having an interested buyer is a precious thing; don’t allow emotions to interfere with logic at this stage.  Causing a buyer to walk in a down real estate market market is nonsensical.
5. Counter with a reasonable offer.  As a seller, if you are countering on the results from a home inspection report, be reasonable and provide a thoughtful letter detailing the reason your counter-offer is logical.  Help the buyer relate to your position and see that you are doing your best to meet their requests.

“CAUSING A BUYER TO WALK IN A DOWN REAL ESTATE MARKET IS NONSENSICAL.”

The bottom line is that parties to a real estate transaction are under stress and need help to find middle ground.  That’s why good Realtors make the “Big Bucks”, they earn it!

These are trying times for real estate sales professionals.  Among other challenges, often the home inspection results are the most difficult to negotiate.  How can we cross the hurdle and benefit everyone in the transaction?  It begins with the seller.

Many homes today are offered for sale “as is.”  It could be a foreclosed property, a short sale, part of an estate, or a house where the owner can’t afford or is unwilling to make repairs.

If such a property interests you, the first step is to work with a knowledgeable and experienced Realtor.  You will need to have your agent present an offer that is subject to a reasonable inspection period (also called a due diligence period) which will enable you to insure that the home has no hidden defects that would effect your desire to purchase the property.

Once under agreement, your agent should recommend a minimum of three trusted and experienced professional home inspectors and allow you to contact them, discuss the scope of theirs services and fees so that you can choose wisely for the inspector you feel most comfortable with.  An inspection is always important but with an “as is” contract it can be even more so. You need to know if the place just needs carpet and paint or if mechanical systems like heating or plumbing need to be replaced. The condition of the roof, especially here in Florida, is also a critical factor.

It is always suggested that, if at all possible, you are present when the home inspection is made so you can talk with the inspector and understand any issues that become apparent. Make sure the utilities are on for the inspection.

If the inspection reveals some critical defects in major areas of the home that were not disclosed and/or were unknown to the seller (or bank), don’t automatically back out of your purchase contract.  The defect is now known by the selling party and is on record.  If it is important enough to the safety or salability of the home, it will need to be addressed.  Typically you can ask for the defect to be repaired or have your Realtor negotiate a credit off the purchase price.  For smaller or less critical issues, it will be your decision to continue or to cancel the purchase.

Gabe Sanders and Susan Maxwell are leading Realtors successfully serving the public for residential real estate on Florida’s Treasure Coast.

During the month of January, 2009, 36.8% of all closed residential home sales in the Greater Phoenix Area were lender-owned properties.

We all know that bank-owned and foreclosure property sales are clipping along at a furious pace right now. Many consumers are caught up in the perception that they will undoubtedly save mountains of money if they buy a distressed property. Experienced brokers and agents know that this is not always the case. Repair costs can grow rapidly and turn a “great deal” into a time-consuming frustration. Estimating repair needs and costs is crucial.

Your first step is a professional home inspection for several reasons. It is likely that the homeowner did not properly maintain the property as finances became strained. In some cases, an angered homeowner may cause both obvious and hidden damage to the property. It is not uncommon to see missing/damaged fixtures, appliances and components at a foreclosure property.

Start estimating. You can take the simple or detailed approach with estimating repair costs. A great first step is to go to www.fixfliprent.com/repairs where they have a free easy-to-use repair cost estimator. If you want a finely tuned estimate you can look at the Craftsman Book series of software. Trial versions can be found at www.craftsman-book.com/downloads which gives you the ability to estimate construction costs like a pro.

One final note. It is often a challenge to get the utilities turned on before the inspection. Persistence is needed in dealing with the various parties as you arrange for the inspection. Don’t give up and by all means have the home inspected. Who knows how many thousands of dollars it could take to repair an undiscovered defect.