Inspect Before Listing Your Home

Q: We plan to list our home for sale this fall. Any advice on things we should be thinking about now?

A: Understand that most homes go through two inspections as part of the selling process. A general home inspection, and a WDO (Wood Destroying Organism) inspection. Both will happen prior to the close, and you will be asked to resolve issues on the two reports; or risk losing the sale.

Many assume (or hope) little or nothing will be found on the reports, but that’s not always the case. Sometimes major issues are identified. If you get your home inspected before listing it, you can proactively address issues. Then, you can list things you’ve dealt with as ‘features’ of the home. For example: a new water heater, a new roof, or new exterior doors (due to rotten wood) become assets you can list to help you sell.