Real Estate Watch: Pre-inspection is best investment

Your thinking or getting ready to consider selling your home.  
There is a multitude of items to put on your checklist; but where do you start?  Clutter would be a great place to start.  
From the perspective of a purchaser, what will they focus on to try to lower your price?  
One very crucial and important suggestion would be to have an inspection done before even the first buyer comes to look at your home; especially if your place is older than 30 years and hasn’t had too many upgrades or improvements.  Even an older home that is kept in meticulous condition might be hiding some treacherous issues.  
You will need to know what is potentially wrong with your place and fix it, before you have an agreed and accepted and then you find out what is wrong after the buyer does his or her inspection.  
Then, the negotiations might start all over again, due to finding defects in the property.  
Why would you want to wait until that moment, with a qualified and ready to go  buyer, to have issues sabotage your deal, just because you didn’t call in a certified home inspector or engineer.  
Also, by having this report, you will know everything about your home and your buyer will know in advance that you have done this, so there should be no surprises, when they order their own certified inspection.  
Consider that the inspection should cost from $350 and higher, depending on the size of your home including your garage.  
The inspection will consist of checking all your mechanicals, heating and hot water, electricals, plumbing, gas, C.A.C., roof, windows, water leaks in the attic and basement, decks, garage and any additions or alterations that might not be legal with a C.O.; termites and those items that would cause an issue with the bank.  
Lastly, damaged sidewalks or entrance walks or any issues or things that might be cause for a liability to life and limb    
As the owner, you will have the opportunity to go over the analysis with your inspector and get his opinion as to what really needs to be addressed and fixed, (he or she is not supposed to give you prices on those repairs or offer you their services to do so) as well as any C.O. (Certificate of Occupancy) issues to make sure all your additions and enhancements are legal.  
Especially bathrooms in the basement, which are normally not allowed without a C.O., unless there is just a toilet and sink and no shower.  
Having a finished basement, now requires egress out of the basement, with either an oversized pop-out window or a regular or Bilco door within the basement to enable one to get out of the lower level in safety.  
Unfinished basements do not have this requirement.  
You might need to hire an expediter, to file paperwork in the local village or county, to legalize anything that might need paperwork e.g. open permits, no permits or C.O.’s.   
Your pre-inspection can and will save you thousands of dollars and minimize your stress and potential loss of a solid buyer.  
By repairing or replacing those absolutely necessary items that are listed on the inspection sheet; will eliminate red flags that will surely pop up on the purchasers inspection, and could cost you a lost sale.  
You can also just sell in “as is condition” but, I can assure you, that the financial cost might potentially be much, much greater if you do not order a pre-inspection.  
Do the right thing and spend the small amount of money required to be safe and know what is right and wrong with your home.  
Hiring a licensed and certified home or engineer inspection will be some of the best insurance that you could ever have,  to make certain that your home is more saleable and not have to worry about surprises that just might come about.  Don’t be a Monday morning quarterback.
I always say my 6 P’s, “Proper Planning, Prevents, Piss, Poor Bonus Information for our Readers:   If you would like to receive a digital copy of “Unlocking the Secrets of Real Estate’s New Market Reality,  or “Our Seller’s Guide for “Things to Consider When Selling Your Home” just email me with your name, email and cell #
Phil is the owner of Turn Key Real Estate @ 7 Bond St in Great Neck.    He can be reached by email: Phil@TurnkeyRealEstate.Com or by cell (516) 647-4289 to answer any of your questions.  To search for any type of properties  or to see what your home is worth or homes that have sold in your area, go to WWW.Li-RealEstate.Com  or if you desire a Free, No Strings Attached customized Comparative Market Analysis to see today’s market value, just call me for an appointment.