Buying a Home? Should You Have It Inspected?

A professional inspection should be made a contigency of the offer to purchase a home. Although waiving the inspection may help you prevail in a multiple offer situation, it is rarely a good idea and could be detrimental to your real estate experience.

It is natural for sellers to favor offers that do not contain an inspection contingency—it is the same as selling their home "as is". Regardless of the home’s condition, the buyer cannot count on the seller making any repairs that aren’t otherwise provided for in the purchase contract.

Buyers who wave the inspection have no protection from costly potential defects in a house, e.g. a leaky roof, faulty electrical wiring, malfunctioning major appliances, a defective heating or cooling system and several other problems that can result in thousands of dollars of unexpected repair costs. Wouldn't you rather make an informed decision to buy, based on the home's true condition and the potential for added repair costs above and beyond the purchase price? A professional home inspection will give you the information you need to make that decision.

If you're thinking of buying a home in the near future, remember that waiving the inspection contingency is rarely worth the risk.