You know if you are preparing to sell your home there is a long list of things to consider and worry about. You want your house to be competitive once it hits the market. With over 900,000 homes sold in July of 2020 alone, there is plenty of competition out there.
It takes the average homebuyer between a month and a month and a half to find their perfect house. If you’re trying to sell your house, you want that choice to be yours. How can you make this happen in a hassle-free manner?
So. you have a laundry list of things to consider when preparing your home to be up for sale. One thing you might consider is having a home inspection done and prepared for potential buyers to see. While many buyers ask for a home inspection, providing one upfront tells sellers you have confidence in the home you are trying to sell.
Don’t fret that this adds to your to-do list. In fact, preparing for an inspection will also help to prepare your home to be on the market too.
Read on for the steps to follow to prepare for a home inspection and make the task as hassle-free as possible.
Start With a Good Cleaning
No matter the condition of your home, it always presents itself best when clean. Take the time to do a good deep clean in your home. Clean baseboards and those hard to reach places. Get rid of clutter that will ultimately be in the way when the inspector comes through.
The truth is that a clean home also looks like one that has been well maintained. This is important for the home inspection.
Don’t Forget Cleaning Up Outside
The home inspector (and potential buyers) are going to want to look around the outside of your home too. Take the time to do an outdoor clean up in the same way you might do an indoor cleanup.
Cut down dead branches from around your yard. Get leaves away from the foundation all around the house. Make sure the inspector can easily access the foundation around your home.
The inspector will also want to get on your roof. You might consider if your gutters need to be cleaned out so they look well maintained and present in the best possible way.
Take Care of Things That Need Maintenance
If you know there are some things that might need repairing in your home, make sure those get fixed before the home inspection. It doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to invite in a home inspector and have them point out repairs that are needed when you already know they are needed.
If you can take care of the repairs ahead of time, they will never show up in the home inspector’s report. This is especially important as you share that report with a potential buyer.
Do Your Own Inspection
Let’s face it, we get used to the quirks of our own home. We can even start to overlook them.
Act as a home inspector might and do your own detailed inspection. Walkthrough every room of your home and look at the things an inspector might look at.
Do you have a leaky faucet? How about a toilet that won’t stop running unless you jiggle it just right? Do you have a plug on the outside of your home that isn’t properly working? Maybe your furnace needs a new filter and some regular maintenance.
By doing your own home inspection, you can create your maintenance list. Then get those repairs done and they never become part of the home inspector’s report. This also makes your home more ready for potential buyers who will be doing this kind of careful looking as they consider buying your home.
Address Accessibility
The home inspector is going to want to have access to all areas of your home. Make sure you have moved things out of their way to make this easier.
Your water heater and furnace will get looked at. Make sure you don’t have things blocking access for the inspector. The inspector will need an access point to your roof as well.
A thorough inspector will also spend time in your attic and in your garage. Make sure they can easily get up into the attic. Clean up the garage so they can look around there including around the foundation of the garage.
Disclose Potential Issues
There is no reason to be dishonest. A quality home inspector will find problems if they exist. If you know there are potential issues in your home, disclose those to the home inspector upfront.
Most states have laws that require sellers to disclose problems to buyers anyway. It’s best if you let the inspector know of potential issues. They may even be able to give advice on how to address those issues prior to putting the house on the market.
Paperwork Preparedness
Another important way you can be prepared is to pull out any paperwork that your inspector might benefit from seeing. Any repair work you have had done, you can provide receipts for.
If you have appliances, furnace, water heater, or other home elements still under warranty, provide the warranty paperwork for the inspector.
If you have had a roof repair done, show the documentation to the home inspector so that it can be a part of their report.
Get Your Hassle-Free Home Inspection Done Today
The more prepared you are for your home inspection, the more hassle-free inspection day will be. Know that the home inspector will be in your home for several hours and you should be prepared to stay out of their way while they do their work. This includes keeping your pets contained too.
A home inspection report can be a valuable document for both sellers and buyers when trying to sell a home. You can get the most out of the investment of a home inspection by preparing your home to go through an inspection.
If you are preparing to sell your northeast Ohio home and want to schedule a home inspection, we can help. Contact us today to set up an appointment for your hassle-free home inspection.