Key takeaways
- Waiving a home inspection can make an offer more competitive — but it shifts all the risk to the buyer. Sellers may favor inspection-free deals for speed and certainty, even over higher prices.
- Home inspections protect buyers financially and strategically. An inspection reveals hidden issues, informs buyers about a home’s systems and creates leverage to negotiate repairs, credits or a lower price — or to walk away.
- Skipping an inspection can lead to costly surprises after closing. Real-world experience shows that overlooked problems can quickly add up, costing far more than an inspection and eliminating the buyer’s ability to negotiate upfront.
Buyers in tight housing markets sometimes sweeten offers by skipping home inspections, removing an obstacle to closing. The strategy carries risks, though, as illustrated in a recent Ask Homes.com question.
Q. We just lost our second home to a no-inspection buyer, even though we were the top bidder by $6,000. Your thoughts on waiving home inspections?
The question was edited for length and clarity.
A. Why would a seller turn down thousands of dollars to go with a buyer who waived an inspection? Perhaps they simply want a clean deal that avoids any surprises. But it is also possible they know there's something wrong with the property that will cause a prospective buyer to withdraw an offer or haggle over price or repairs.
A home inspection provides a professional, detailed evaluation of a property’s physical condition, individual systems and components before closing. It gives buyers a “heads-up” on repairs or issues that may be lurking in a property.
Once an offer is accepted, buyers typically have seven to 10 days to request a home inspection. A buyer or agent will schedule it. An inspection typically takes two to three hours. Electrical, mechanical, expensive maintenance, structural condition and water issues are the main concerns of home inspectors.
Negotiating a price cut
The inspector provides a written report upon completion, which is reviewed by the buyer and agent. If there are any issues, the buyer and agent will decide what they want to ask for in repairs or monetary compensation from the seller.
An inspection gives buyers negotiating power to seek repairs or cash to compensate. A good home inspector will educate the buyer about the home and its systems.
As a recent homebuyer, I can’t recommend skipping a home inspection.
I purchased in a tight market two years ago and followed my agent’s advice to make my bid stand out by waiving the inspection. Big mistake! After buying, I discovered a number of repairs that were required just to make the home livable:
- The furnace needed an overhaul because it hadn’t been serviced in years, costing several thousand dollars.
- The hot water system needed rewiring.
- The washing machine died a few weeks after we moved in.
- The dryer vent needed to be rerouted.
- A gap in the siding gave carpenter bees a perfect vantage to bombard anyone going through the front door.
I spent $10,000 on repairs that an inspector would have caught, forcing me to cancel home improvement projects such as installing a hot tub. I might still have bought the home if I had known about these issues. But I could have negotiated seller concessions to pay for some or all of the work. And if they said no, I would've had the option to walk away from the deal.
Do you have a real estate question you'd like us to answer? Write us at AskNews@Homes.com.