Homes Never "Fail the Inspection" - Humans Do!

I have talked with buyers who had previously worked with another real estate or no agent and  had tried to buy a home but the "house failed inspection."  On the surface "the house failed" seems like a reasonable explanation for a transaction not closing.  But, if you step back and take a look at the situation it was not a "house" failure.

The Reality: The home inspection did not fail but rather the failure lies with a human being.

So where is the human failure?   The potential issue lies with any one or more of the following "humans."

• Let us start with the seller, after all, it is their house to sell.   In most cases sellers have either failed to prepare the house for sale or failed to understand the home's real condition (and problems) will make the process more difficult.  
• The seller hired a real estate agent o guide them through the process.  The inspection failure could be the seller's real estate agent did not make the seller understand the need to prepare the house for sale.   Or it simply could have been a case where the seller's agent failed to explain adequately about the Three Ps of Selling or even recommend a pre-listing inspection.  In some circumstances where a house is being sold a"as is" with problems the listing agent could have failed to fully identify the circumstance in their marketing materials.
• The buyer's agent may have failed to understand the circumstances of the sale or actual condition of the property.  This is less likely as most buyer agents understand the type of financing being used and the general standards relating to condition.
• Finally it could be the buyers at fault.  Sometimes buyers will fall in love with a property.   Knowing love is blind can cause buyers to overlook potential issues or hope that things will work out.  It could be the low price makes the house so much more desirable.  But one of the "laws of real estate" is a house is priced low or lower than the competition for a reason.

Sellers read this cheat sheet for home sellers.  

Buyers read this cheat sheet for home buyers.

Without pointing fingers know this... a house is inanimate and has no ability to think, fix and make decision on anything during the selling process.  It does not fail...it sits.  

Here is some simple advice for buyers and sellers.

• Sellers do not like surprises - like having a buyer walk as the result of a "bad" inspection.  There will be things that show up on inspections that are minor or mostly informational.  There may be things that show up that are major problems. 
• Buyers do not like surprises.  As a seller, have an inspection done prior to your listing.  If there are issues, fix them or address them in your seller's disclosure.  An attitude of openness will make buyer prospects feel better about your property.

If you are looking to buy or sell a home in Melbourne, Florida, I want to help you.  I have been working with buyers and sellers for fifteen years.  Please give me a call (or text) at 321-693-3850 or send me an email.