Pre-Listing Inspection: Scope, Costs, Timing Factors

In part one of this two-part blog series, we went over some basics on the pre-listing home inspection. Also known as a seller’s inspection, this inspection type is one that helps the prospective seller of a home understand its issues and areas where they may need to make some fixes or do some work before a sale is completed.

At Aerolite Consulting, we’re happy to offer a wide range of home inspection services, including those ordered by sellers in advance of listing their home on the market. Here are a few further details on the pre-listing inspection and how you should prepare for it.

Scope of a Pre-Listing Home Inspection

Generally speaking, a seller’s home inspection will cover all the same areas as the more common buyer-ordered inspection. Since sellers are ultimately responsible for any issues the inspection might discover, it’s important that they be aware of any major problems in advance.

Also, home inspections ordered by sellers are usually performed much earlier than those ordered by buyers; the earliest a buyer-ordered inspection can be scheduled is around 30 days before closing, but seller inspections can be ordered at pretty much anytime before the seller chooses to list the home.

Cost of a Seller’s Inspection

If you’re a seller, it’s important to note that it’s your responsibility to cover the costs of this inspection — unlike a buyer’s inspection, which they pay for. However, due to the issues these inspections help identify before any prospective buyer sees them, seller’s inspections are usually quite worthwhile for the seller in question.

Costs for basic home inspections range from $250 – $350 depending on the size of your home. If you have multiple stories, or an unusually large square footage, or older systems that we would need to take extra care in evaluating, this could increase the cost of our inspection.

Legal Disclosures

Depending on the state you live in, you may be required by law to disclose all issues that are discovered in your home by an inspector during a pre-listing inspection. If this applies to you, you should consult with your agent on what type of language needs to be used in your listing — they’ll know better than you do.

Watch Out for Time Constraints!

When ordering the inspection, keep in mind that while a buyer home inspection has quite a bit of time before it must be performed, a seller’s inspection may need to be done right away — even while you’re still living in the home.

The sooner we get started, the better. The earlier this inspection is done, the more time you have to remedy any issues we find before posting the home on the market.

For more on seller’s home inspections, or to learn about any of our home inspection or environmental contaminant testing services, speak to the staff at Aerolite Consulting today.