What First-Time Buyers Should Know About Home Inspections

A home inspection can be a terrifying process to newbie buyers: What if the house you adore has major problems hiding beneath that shiny new coat of paint? If you lie awake haunted by visions of mold or “foundation issues,” it’s time to take a deep breath. Here’s everything you need to know about home inspections, and how (as scary as they might seem) they exist to protect you from a very bad deal.

Here are some insights into how to make the most of this all-important step. OK, exhale.

Hire a top-notch home inspector

While it may be tempting to hire any run-of-the-mill home inspector to get the job done—particularly if the price is right—the inspection is no time to cut corners. After all, buying a home is an enormous investment.

Attend the home inspection

Even though you will receive a written report after the home inspection, you should attend the inspection while it’s being done. It provides a valuable opportunity to learn all about the inner workings of your would-be new home.

So, don’t be afraid to ask questions. Really stick your nose into the home inspection. You and your inspector will be looking at all sorts of things you might have skipped during your showings, like the attic and crawl space, and under the sinks. Don’t be scared to delve into the details. Even the best home will receive a laundry list of to-do’s and potential problems, and fixing them will be much easier with a hands-on understanding of the issues involved. Consider it free (and invaluable) fix-it advice.

Don’t panic (until it’s time to panic)

The vast majority of issues raised during a home inspection are repairable—after all you’re buying a “used home.” Just like a used car or an old computer or second-hand clothing, there are bound to be problems. Some of them may be small and easily fixed, like leaky pipes and rattling doorknobs. But if an inspector discovers a major problem—with, say, the foundation or water intrusion—even that may not be a deal killer. In fact, it could be a bargaining chip you can discuss with the sellers before closing the deal.

Work with your real estate agent to determine the best approach. If your offer was contingent on a successful inspection (and most are), you have a good basis to request that the current owners make repairs before closing. You’ll want to get this in writing, along with provisions if the sellers fail to fix the problems.

But there’s no obligation for sellers to address the inspector’s discoveries. If they aren’t willing to shoulder the burden, you need to assess whether the cost of a new roof—or mold abatement, or fixing the foundation, or whatever the problem is—is worth the reward. With no solution beyond paying $30,000 from your own pocket, you might need to move on to a more habitable home. “People get very invested in the home they want to buy, and it all becomes a very overwhelmingly emotional experience, listen to the advice of the inspector, take a look at the financial ramifications, and make a clear-headed decision.

Hopefully, all will go well and your home inspector will say it’s fine to move in. At that point, most homeowners move on to an even more intimidating step: negotiating closing costs.

Source : Realtor.com

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When can a seller back out of a home sale? That’s a question I found myself asking after my own much-anticipated real estate purchase fell through when the seller got cold feet.

Luckily, this scenario is fairly rare: Most home sellers are highly motivated to move the transaction along. Still, if they do change their mind, it can leave buyers baffled and wondering: Can a seller back out of a contract? And what are the consequences?

After all, when buyers back out of a real estate purchase, they can pay dearly for their change of heart. If they renege due to a reason not outlined in their contingencies, they will likely lose their earnest money deposit, which can be a significant chunk of change totaling 1% to 2% of the purchase price of the home.

While sellers don’t offer up any kind of earnest money and thus appear to have less on the line, backing out of a home sale at the last minute can carry ramifications for them, too. Here’s when sellers can—and can’t—back out of a home sale, and how buyers can handle a seller who bails.

Backing out of selling a house: Why would a seller not sell?

Sellers may want to back out of a home sale for all kinds of reasons. The main one? They just can’t find a new home that seems as perfect as the one they’re in now.

“Predominantly, the issue arises when the sale is contingent upon the seller finding a suitable alternate property either to upsize or downsize,” says Michael Kelczewski, a Realtor® with Brandywine Fine Properties at Sotheby’s International Realty in Wilmington, DE.

A home seller who turns a 180 could also be treading murky ethical waters, backing out of an accepted offer because a better one came along. Still, just because home sellers want to back out of a deal doesn’t mean they can unless they do so carefully. So when are they free and clear?

Can you back out of selling your house? The 5 times when a seller can back out of a home sale

When can a seller back out of a home sale? The answer may vary. Sellers can back out of a home sale without ramifications in the following instances:

• The contract hasn’t been signed. Before a contract is officially signed, a seller can kibosh a deal at anytime (that’s what happened to me).
• The contract is in the five-day attorney review period. Most home sales involve the use of a standard real estate contract, which provides a five-day attorney review provision. During this time, the seller’s attorney or the buyer’s attorney can cancel the contract for any reason. This allows either party to back out without consequence. Although the seller can legally back out during an attorney review period, it’s not very common.
• The seller planted an escape hatch in the contract. Sellers can place addendums within the contract that say they can back out without penalty—like a contingency that they have to find a new place where they want to live first.
• The buyer doesn’t adhere to the contract terms. One common buyer issue is the buyer failing to secure a mortgage in a certain time frame. If sellers don’t want to wait around for the buyers to find financing elsewhere, they can move on.
• The buyer requests repairs the seller is unwilling to do. When home buyers get a home inspection, they’ll often request that sellers make repairs based on that report, or issue a “repair credit” to cover those costs. The thing is, sellers can always refuse—a move that could “constructively cancel” the real estate contract. In essence, the seller forces the buyer’s hand, since constructive cancellation requires the buyer to either back off on the requests or back out of the deal, says Brian J. Thompson, a CPA and attorney in Chicago.

When a home seller can’t back out of a sale

But aside from the above reasons, once a real estate transaction has a fully executed purchase agreement that’s past the five-day mark, it’s not that easy for a seller to flake out. Are there serious consequences if a seller reneges on a deal right before closing? “Most definitely,” says Denise Supplee, operations director of SparkRental.

That’s because in the laws governing real estate transactions, there’s something called a “specific performance” provision. This entitles buyers to force the seller to honor their obligations under the contract. It entails taking the seller to court and forcing the completion of the sale.

The problem with this route is it takes time and money for a buyer to enforce, and most home buyers don’t want to wait a few years to get into a new home while their cash deposit sits in escrow. Most buyers would probably let it go, says Gary Lucido, president of Chicago’s Lucid Realty.

Yet that doesn’t mean a buyer has to just let a flip-flopping seller walk away scot-free. Instead, a jilted buyer can sue for damages from the seller for breach of contract. The lawsuit can include recouping monies the buyer spent on temporary housing (especially if the buyer sold an old home to buy the new home) and costs for storing furniture. Monetary damages could also include legal costs as well as inspection, survey, and HOA application fees.