Who ought to do the home inspection? I worry as the seller this makes me liable.

Question of the Week:

Who ought to do the home inspection? I worry - as the seller, this makes me liable.

This week's featured answer:

A home inspection is usually requested in an offer to purchase a property. You as a seller have the right to refuse to accept offers conditional upon a home inspection but me as an agent working for a buyer would tell my buyer we need to find a new house - this guy must be hiding something if he refuses a home inspection.

As for you being liable for a home inspection, usually on the offer it specifies that the cost of the inspection is that of the buyer. Make sure you read the offer to make sure they didn't change it to the expense of the seller, but most agents wouldn't try to put that in an offer. As for liable for anything on the home inspection, the worst that can happen from a home inspection is that the buyer may refuse to buy your house unless you fix something; you have to decide if you want to fix it, or find another buyer.

A home inspection actually takes the liability off of you to some extent. Remember, the home inspector is a professional offering a service who provides prospective home buyers with a written report. This means that if a buyer moves in and finds a problem that was not noted on the report they are far more likely to pursue action against the home inspector rather then, you, the seller.

If you are concerned about what a home inspector may find in your home I recommend to my sellers that they pay for a home inspection prior to listing their home so that they can see what a home inspector will find.

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