Use the Home Inspection To Your Advantage

While many real estate professionals have experienced a slowing in business, there is one group that has seen an upturn .... the home inspector. While we had the torrid pace of home sales during the 2000 - 2005 real estate boom, the home inspector was relatively left out in the cold. If you presented a contract with a home inspection in many markets, the seller would chuckle as he or she dropped your contract in the trash. Even buyers' agents would urged their clients not to attach home inspections to their contracts. Most of a home inspectors business was based on "information-only" purposes inspections.

Fast forward a couple of years and now the home inspector is back. The new market has made the home inspection customary and they are becoming an excellent negotiating tool for buyers. Nowadays, buyers are using the home inspection to gain leverage. It is used to either reduce the seller's price after the contract is ratified or to get more seller concessions. For about $400 - $500, you can save up to an additional few thousand dollars. Sellers are more likely to give cash concessions as oppose to fixing the problem themselves, because they usually are just ready to get out of the home. In addition, most sellers are more likely to negotiate once a contract is ratified and they have already spent a week or two committing to your offer.

As a buyer take a thorough look at the home inspector that you will use. Don't always just rely on the inspector recommended to you by your realtor. Get other references and referrals. An inspector that is a member of the National Association of Home Inspectors (www.nahi.org) or the American Society of Home Inspectors (www.ashi.org) is always a good option. Try to nail down an inspector before you have a contract accepted, it will make the process a little less hectic. Also, it is a good idea to attend the inspection to make sure of the work and learn a thing or two about your potential new home.