Unsatisfactory Home Inspection

TRUE Home offer/inspection story:

Our buyer is making an offer on a property where there are multiple offers. In order to make our deal more appealing, we submitted the offer on a Florida “As-Is” contract.

That means that the buyer will take the property “as it is” IF the inspections are satisfactory. That does not mean you cannot have a property inspection and it does not mean that you cannot re-negotiate the contract after inspections. You absolutely CAN do both.

Regular contract or “As-Is” contract?

Most of the sellers agents will request an “as is” contract as it is easier on them and for the seller. On an “as is” seller is not agreeing to do repairs, (but they might) while the regular contract allows for the seller to agree to do repairs up to a certain amount. Based on the home inspection.

REMEMBER: everything can be negotiable, when you have the right buyers agent protecting your interest.

Since the buyer wants the house, we made it easier for seller by putting the offer on an “as is” contract. In this case the listing agent did not want an inspection contingency on the “as is” contract. She mistakenly believes that the regular contract does not give the buyers an “inspection out”. She is wrong, as on both contracts the buyer can walk if the inspections are not satisfactory.

When making an offer, don’t rock the boat

The question is…do we educate this agent now or just put the deal together and let her be surprised by what the contract really says. I vote for not stirring the pot and not pointing out how wrong she is. In my book, there is no excuse for not understanding what the contract says…or worse, not bothering to read it, but now is not the time.

No home inspection is perfect

Lets face it, there are always hidden issues found with a home inspection. No home is ever flawless, even a new construction home. A good inspector will always find some maintenance issues. But what to do if the home inspection has BIG problems?

Buyers option to cancel after inspections

Regardless of what contract is used, the buyer has an option to get “out” of the contract if inspections are not satisfactory. On the “as is” the buyer has a time frame to do inspections or accept the property “as is”. On a regular contract there is a repair clause and if the inspections exceed the repair limit, the buyer can also walk from the deal.

The bottom line is this:

Unless there is an addendum stating otherwise, regardless of the contract used, the buyer always has the right to have the property inspected and the deficiencies either accepted or renegotiated or they may cancel the contract.

BEST ADVICE:

NEVER agree to a contract that does not allow for a home inspection or a cancellation of contract if inspections are not satisfactory to the buyer.

To make sure that your contract/offer/home inspection does not throw you under the bus, use an Exclusive Buyers Broker that knows how to protect your best interest. Call us 407-539-1053.