You’ve decided to sell your Atlanta home. The kids have grown, you’re ready to downsize, or maybe a job opportunity means a move is on your horizon. Whatever the reason, you want to get the most money possible on this major investment you’ve poured your savings into over the years.
But as any experienced home seller knows, defects or problems uncovered by a buyer’s home inspector after going under contract can lead to painful renegotiations, repairs you end up having to make before closing, or worst case a depleted nest egg should the buyer walk away entirely from the deal.
Don’t lose tens of thousands of dollars at closing, or risk seeing your home sit stagnantly on the market due to easily corrected issues. By having a pre-listing home inspection, you can understand your home’s current condition, make repairs upfront on your terms, and have full disclosure about any existing problems before listing your home.
Knowledge is power when it comes to saving money, time, and frustration. Read on to understand exactly why a pre-listing home inspection Atlanta helps you sell your home faster and for the maximum value.
What is Covered in a Pre-Listing Home Inspection?
Inspection focus areas during a full pre-listing evaluation include examining:
- Foundation & Structure
- Electrical Systems
- Plumbing Systems
- Attic & Insulation
- Walls & Ceilings
- HVAC Systems
- Roof Condition
- Appliances
- Windows & Doors
- Venting/Exhaust
- Fire Safety
- Pest Infestation
- Drainage Systems
Essentially everything impacting the comfort, condition, and safety of the home is meticulously examined, including operating all systems and fixtures to check functionality. Advanced diagnostics like infrared imaging to spot moisture behind walls, outlet connectivity testing, gas leak detection, radon screening, and more help identify issues not visible to the naked eye.
At the end, you receive a detailed inspection report listing any minor repairs or major defects along with inspector recommendations for corrections. Know upfront before listing exactly what needs addressing.
Top Benefits of Pre-Listing Home Inspections
Having issues identified early allows time for any needed repairs completed on your schedule versus rushing at the last minute once buyers are already under contract. This prevents derailing or losing the sale down the line.
A pre-listing inspection empowers you to:
- Spot & fix minor issues – cracked outlet covers, dripping faucets, pest removal, debris clearing. Simple low-cost repairs make a home shine and show better.
- Identify major issues early –
- Detect foundation cracks, faulty wiring, roof leaks, and drainage problems. Critical to fix these before listing.
- Budget for repairs ahead of time by understanding the true scope and costs involved with inspector estimates.
- Price home accordingly factoring in condition – Price higher for great shape. The price is lower if repairs are still needed.
- Disclose inspection reports upfront to agents and buyers. Transparency establishes trust. There are no surprises later potentially jeopardizing or losing the sale.
- Head-off inspection issues raised by the buyer’s inspector after going under contract. Renegotiating from a weaker stance can quickly erode profits.
- Speed up closing by having repairs made ahead of time on your schedule before buyers even view the property.
- Receive higher offers since buyers know the condition upfront. Inspection issues popping up late when under contract makes buyers nervous about backing out if they overpaid.
The Cost of Procrastinating Pre-Listing Inspections
Saving money on a pre-listing inspection might feel smart initially. But forgoing this modest upfront investment often ends up extracting a painful price on the backend:
- Losing serious money once under contract should previously unknown major issues uncovered cause buyers to walk.
- Being forced into making significant repairs last minute on buyer’s terms versus your own should problems arise only after listing. Rushed jobs are more disruptive and often costlier.
- Struggling to explain to buyers not provided full disclosure of why defects were omitted. This ruins the trust needed to negotiate repairs and keep the deal from falling through.
- Missing out on best offers since the home lacked a clean inspection report upfront indicating great condition. Less informed buyers bid lower to account for uncertainty around potential issues.
Consider a pre-listing inspection of your insurance policy to help safeguard the sizable investment your home represents. Spend pennies upfront to avoid losing thousands, hundreds of thousands, or occasionally even millions down the line should catastrophe strike once buyers are already invested under contract.
Choose the Right Inspector
All home inspectors are not created equal when identifying sometimes hard-to-spot issues specific to Atlanta homes. Between high humidity accelerating wood rot and mold, termites and dense tree canopies wrecking roofs, and red clay soil shrinking and swelling foundations – it takes an inspector intimately familiar with regional defects to catch problems a generalist might overlook.
As Atlanta’s most experienced home inspection company, possessing over 20 years of metro area structural and inspection expertise, Atlanta Property Inspections offers sellers unparalleled defect detection. Our founder, a third-generation Atlanta builder whose family constructed many local neighborhoods, ensures our inspectors receive ongoing training on remediating issues unique to Atlanta homes.
Utilize a specialist with an extra sharp eye for uncovering the defects that matter most locally on the homes you’re aiming to sell. Don’t let small problems cost you big on your home’s final sale price!
The Bottom Line
Selling a property without knowing its full condition upfront is an unnecessary risk when a nominal investment in a pre-listing home inspection provides total transparency and insight into what needs addressing. much more manageable. Don’t jeopardize your home’s sale price and ability to close smoothly by neglecting this simple but essential step!
Contact Noble Property Inspection to schedule your pre-listing inspection today! Our expertise stands ready to provide the insights you need to sell your Atlanta home swiftly and for top dollar.