SELLERS ROADMAP LINKS
- Decide To Sell
- Select an Agent and Price
- Prepare to Sell
- Accepting an Offer
- Escrow, Inspections, and Apprisals
Escrow, Inspection, and Appraisal
INSPECTIONS AND APPRAISALS
Most buyers
will have the property inspected by a licensed property inspector
within the time frame that was agreed upon in the effective contract
to purchase. Some buyers will have several different inspectors
inspect the property, if they wish to obtain professional opinions
from inspectors who specialize in a specific area (eg. roof, HVAC,
structure). If the agreement is conditional upon financing, then the
property will be appraised by a licensed appraiser to determine the
value for the lending institution via third party. This is done so
that the lending institution can confirm their investment in your
property is accurate. A buyer of a commercial property may also have
a complete environmental audit performed and/or soil test, if
required by the lending institution.
THE CLOSING
AGENT.
Either a title company or an attorney will be
selected as the closing agent, whose job is to examine and insure
clear title to real estate. After researching the complete recorded
history of your property, they will certify that 1) your title is
free and clear of encumbrances (eg. mortgages, leases, or
restrictions, liens) by the date of closing; and 2) all new
encumbrances are duly included in the title.
CONTINGENCIES.
A contingency is a condition that
must be met before a contract becomes legally binding. For instance,
a buyer will usually include a contingency stating that their
contract is binding only when there is a satisfactory home
inspection report from a qualified inspector.
Before
completing his or her purchase of your property, the buyer goes over
every aspect of the property, as provided for by purchase agreements
and any applicable addendums. These include:
Obtaining
financing and insurance;
Reviewing all pertinent documents, such
as preliminary title reports and disclosure documents; and
Inspecting the property. The buyer has the right to determine the
condition of your property by subjecting it to a wide range of
inspections, such as roof, termite/pest, chimney/fireplace, property
boundary survey, well, septic, pool/spa, arborist, mold, lead based
paint, HVAC, etc.
Depending on the outcome of these inspections,
one of two things may happen:
1. Either each milestone is
successfully closed and the contingencies will be removed, bringing
you one step closer to the closing; or
2. The buyer, after
reviewing the property and the papers, requests a renegotiation of
the terms of contract (usually the price).
How do you respond
objectively and fairly to the buyer when a renegotiation is
demanded, while acting in your best interests? This is when a
professional listing agent can make a real difference in the outcome
of the transaction. Having dealt with various property sales in the
past, we guarantee our expertise and total commitment to every
customer, no matter what their situation is.
LOAN
APPROVAL AND APPRAISAL.
We suggest that you accept
buyers who have a lender’s pre-approval, approval letter, or written
loan commitment, which is a better guarantee of loan approval than a
pre-qualification or no documentation from a lending institute.
Expect an appraiser from the lender’s company to review your
property and verify that the sales price is appropriate.