Home seller question: If I have my home pre-inspected before selling, can we keep a buyer from inspecting? Do I have to disclose my inspection to buyers?

by Brian Huie on 2/20/2024

ANSWER: You should not prevent a buyer from inspecting your home. You must disclose AND provide any whole house inspections you or your agent have conducted to a buyer.

Home inspections are an excellent tool for both buyers and sellers, but must be used strategically. If you have ever had your Washington home inspected during your ownership, you must disclose it in the state-required Seller Disclosure Form where it asks about home inspections. You must also explain why (i.e. for the sale of the home) and attach the home inspection to the disclosure as it’s not publicly recorded. If your agent had the home inspected you for the sale, you still must answer yes as your agent is a representative of you, and everything they know, you also know; Anything you or your agent knows, you must disclose to the buyer. This seller disclosure form doesn’t have to be given out to every prospective buyer but must be given to the buyer of the home.

For liability reasons, a seller should not restrict a home buyer from inspecting the home. A home seller may select an offer in which the buyer is willing to waive the home inspection contingency on their own free will. The seller should not coerce anyone to waive such contingency and again must have been offered by the buyer.

Refer to an experienced real estate agent and develop a strategy with them for the preparation and marketing of your home. After a physical walkthrough of your home and learning of your goals, I would determine the best option for you and your unique situation. I may recommend a full/partial inspection, a casual walk-and-talk with an inspector, or a combination of these tactics - All of which BH Group provides to all of our sellers. For more information about home inspections, click here.