As the buyer in a real estate transaction, there are certain rules that help protect you. You have the right to inspect the property and to include a contingency clause in case the property doesn’t pass inspection.
With more competition for real estate in recent years, buyers have started making major concessions. A common one is to waive the inspection requirement when making a cash purchase. It can be very attractive to a seller for a buyer to commit to a transaction even if there are defects with the property.
What do you risk when you forgo an inspection?
The biggest concern with declining the help of a professional inspector is that you could fail to notice significant defects with the property. You may pay more than the property is worth. Getting a fair price on a home is important, as you will be paying that property off for the next few decades.
When you overpay for the initial purchase price of the property, you may have less money available to make repairs for defects that you later discovered. Latent or hard-to-detect issues with the property, like foundation issues, could cost thousands of dollars to address, sometimes even more than that.
Windows with bad seals, roofs that have leaked and caused mold growth and dangerous wiring are all examples of expensive-to-repair property issues that an inspector would find. Buyers who do waive the inspection on a property may want to keep extra funds in reserve just in case they need to make major repairs.
Learning about the risks and benefits of different home buying strategies can help those looking to buy residential real estate.