In a fast-paced real estate market like Oakland and the East Bay, you’ll find that many sellers provide a full home inspection report up front, along with seller disclosures about the home.
This can be a huge help as you’re considering whether to pursue a certain home and put in an offer. However, can you truly trust the seller’s home inspector? How do you know whether home inspectors are being thorough? And should you hire your own home inspector to get a second opinion?
In this article, we’ll walk through a home inspection checklist, the home inspection process, how to navigate seller-provide inspection reports, and more – so you can navigate the purchase of your new home with confidence and ease.
What Is A Home Inspection?
Let start with the basics – what is a home inspection, what does it cover, and what does a home inspector do?
A home inspection is a visual examination of the structure and systems of the home, completed by experienced and impartial third-party professional home inspectors. (Note that the pest inspection is separate from the home inspection.)
The home inspector evaluates and reports on the condition of everything in and on the property. Their home inspection checklist will include things like…
- Structure
- Exterior elements, including siding, shingles, etc.
- Roof
- Foundation
- Drainage and waste systems
- Plumbing
- Electricity system, including whether outlets and light switches are working properly
- HVAC system
- Water heater
- Fireplace (if applicable)
- Appliances
- Visible insulation
- Walls
- Windows
- Doors
- Flooring / carpeting
- Potential hazards, like asbestos or lead paint
Upon completion of the home inspection, the home inspector produces a report, which includes photos and written descriptions of their findings, observations, and recommendations.
What this does for you is saves you the time and hassle of trying to get into the crawl space, testing all the appliances, or climbing up on the roof yourself to examine the condition of various parts of the home.
The inspection findings will help you identify the most urgent repairs needed for the home and give you an accurate look at the age and condition of various components of the home and safety of the structures so you can decide whether the home is in acceptable condition for your needs, plan ahead for needed repairs, pass on the property altogether, or try to negotiate with the seller.
What To Consider When It Comes To Seller-Provided Home Inspection Reports
As mentioned above, here in Oakland and the East Bay, it’s quite common for a seller to have already ordered a home inspection by the time the property hits the market, and the report is often made available to prospective buyers before the deadline for offers.
If you’re considering buying a home where the seller is providing a home inspection report, you might be questioning what this means for you, as well as what it means for the transaction.
Why Sellers Provide A Home Inspection Report
The first thing to know is that, when a seller hires a home inspector and provides a report in advance of reviewing offers, it often means that they are trying to be as open and forthcoming as possible in providing all the information they possibly can on the property in order to attract the right buyers and the cleanest offers (i.e., offers without a home inspection contingency).
By letting you know up front that the roof will need to be replaced in 2 years, for example, the seller knows that any offers that come in will already have taken that impending repair into place, meaning that there will likely not be further negotiations regarding the seller needing to replace the roof or crediting the buyer for the repair.
Because the information is already out there for potential buyers, the repair cost should be taken into account when buyers make the offer, which minimizes the chances of the buyer being surprised by this repair and the risk of the property falling out of contract.
Whether To Trust The Seller-Provided Report
The other thing you should consider is whether the seller-provided inspection is trustworthy and comprehensive, given that it’s coming from the seller, who is motivated to make the property look as good as possible.
Keep in mind that the home inspection will have been done by impartial third-party professional home inspectors. However, the quality of the inspection, the experience of the home inspectors, and the reputation of the inspection company can vary drastically.
As such, work with your real estate agent to evaluate the viability and reputability of the report, determine whether you need to hire your own home inspectors, and how to plan and communicate that with the seller during the offer phase while ensuring that your offer remains competitive.
What To Look For In A Home Inspection Report
When reading through the inspection report, you’ll want to keep in mind your home buying goals and strategy, your own home inspection checklist, and your threshold for additional repairs and upgrades on your new home.
There are no blanket red flags or deal-breakers that apply to everyone in every situation. Rather, you should evaluate the inspection findings based on your own personal home buying lens and determine how each new fact you discover about the home impacts your interest in purchasing the home, as well as your overall offer.
For example, if you’ve found your dream home in your ideal neighborhood but discover that it has older windows and an HVAC system that will need to be replaced soon, you might choose to…
- Offer a lower price so that you reserve funds to make the needed repairs
- Swallow the cost of the repairs or decide to live with the older systems for as long as possible so that you can still make a high offer that will be as competitive as possible
As you can see, nothing in the home inspection findings is a hard “no” for everyone. Rather, each piece of information provides an additional insight you should take into account when working with your agent to craft your offer.
Should You Order Your Own Home Inspection?
Even if the seller provides a thorough home inspection from a reputable source, it is our advice to always order your own home and pest inspection whenever possible.
In addition, we recommend that you be present when the home inspector is present, so that you get more direct insight into the home inspector’s observations and findings, and so that you get a chance to ask questions beyond what you might find in a written report.
However, keep in mind that – given the competitive and fast-paced Oakland and East Bay real estate market – getting your own inspection may not always be feasible. When a seller receives multiple offers for their property, and some of those prospective buyers will NOT be performing further inspections, the offers that WILL be doing further inspections tend to become far less competitive.
This is why it’s important to work closely with your real estate agent to assess the situation, determine your goals and needs, and work together to craft as competitive an offer as possible so as to maximize your chances of getting the home under contract.
Home Inspections Versus Home Appraisals
One other question we get quite often is whether you need both a home inspection AND a home appraisal, and what the difference is between the two.
While a home inspection dives deep into the condition of various components of the home, the home appraisal is generally done for the purpose of evaluating the overall value of the home so that your lender can rest assured that the loan they are providing you matches the actual value of the property.
While a home appraiser might look at some of the same things as home inspectors (including the condition of the roof, whether the home has bricks or siding, the condition of the foundation, and more), their goal is not to provide you a list of needed repairs. Rather, they’re looking at everything with an eye toward the overall property value.
Thus, if you’re getting a loan on the property, you will need both a home inspection and a home appraisal.
Are You Looking To Buy A Home In Oakland Or The East Bay?
All in all, as you can tell, there’s tremendous value in getting a home inspection and hiring good home inspectors, and the information in the home inspection report can help you make an informed decision as to the purchase of a potential home.
However, it can be scary to think about offering on a million-dollar home without a home inspection contingency in place. That’s where we come in.
If you’re looking to buy or sell a home here in Oakland, Berkeley, or the East Bay, you’re going to want the right agent and the right home inspector on your team to help you through your home inspection checklist and navigate the ins and outs of this competitive market.
If you’re interested in potentially working with us on the purchase or sale of your home, start by reaching out to our team today for a free no-strings-attached consultation. You can also reach out directly via phone or text at (510) 995-0035.
We look forward to hearing more about you and your situation and seeing if we’re the right fit to help you reach your real estate goals.
