This is the fourth post in a blog series on getting a home inspection before selling your property in Northern Virginia. So far, we’ve covered Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. In this article, we’ll finish discussing why homebuyers sometimes use a home inspection as a way to renegotiate the sales price.
Ordering a Home Inspection Before Selling
Many of today’s homebuyers are especially savvy when it comes to understanding the leverage they have in a real estate contract after a home inspection. In Virginia, the buyer has the opportunity to cancel the contract after a home inspection, regardless of how few items or how many items come up in the inspection report.
If a contract falls through after failed home inspection negotiations, the buyer moves on to the next home they’re interested in, but the seller is forced to deal with the fallout. When the home goes back on the market, other potential buyers are often nervous about bidding on a property that had a contract fall apart after a home inspection. Even though there might not have been any significant issues with the property, other buyers tend to be concerned about the overall condition of the property.
Some savvy buyers know that sellers will not want a contract to fall apart after a home inspection, and they purposely use this as a way to get more concessions from the seller. They might give the seller a great sales price and then try to gouge them after the home inspection, so this is another reason why it can be good to get a home inspection before selling your property.
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