Disclosures From the Seller

Although you have toured the property, looked at the walls and ceiling, turned on the faucets and played with the light switches, you have not lived in it. The seller has years of knowledge about his or her home and there may be some things you want to find out about as quickly as possible. For this reason, you will require certain disclosures as part of your offer.

Basically, you want the seller to disclose any adverse conditions that may have a substantial impact on your decision to purchase the home. This would include any problems with the house, whether the property is in a flood zone, a noise zone, or any other kind of hazardous area.

If you have an agent representing you, this is almost automatic, but many states do not require individuals selling their own home to provide you with this information. Often they do not require banks selling foreclosed property to provide these disclosures, either. Obtaining these types of disclosures should always be a part of your offer, and time is of the essence.

Property Condition upon Transfer

The last thing you want when you take possession of your new home is to find it in total disarray. Therefore, you should always be certain to make it clear in your offer that certain standards are required and must be met prior to you taking possession of the property - or you will find that you may be unable to do or say anything about it afterwards. Make your conditions known first!

Some requirements you may want to include in your offer are -

All of the appliances must work
The roof should not leak anywhere.
Any broken or cracked windows must be repaired
Plumbing does not leak and is in good working order
Any additional debris or garbage must be cleared away
Be certain to also specify which fixtures stay like Ceiling fans, Chandeliers, Draperies, etc..

Inspections You Should Require

Even after having an appraisal and the standard walk through inspection, you should require that a professional go through the home and seek out any other potential problems. Of course, you will have inspected the home yourself, but you are not used to looking for certain things or characteristics of a potential problem that a professional may find.

The seller will want this inspection performed quickly, so that you can approve the results of the inspection and move forward with the purchase of the home. Once you receive the inspection, you will want to allow yourself sufficient time to review and approve the report. If you do not approve the report, you may negotiate with the sellers on which repairs should be performed and who should pay for those repairs. Otherwise, you can cancel the purchase without penalty - provided you have included reasonable time allotments for the repairs to be performed satisfactorily in your offer.

Final Walk Through Inspections

Before your closing, it is recommended that you revisit the property to ensure it is in the condition you have required in your offer (all appliances are still intact and in good working order, etc..), and to inspect that any required repairs have been performed per any previous agreement (if applicable) this is referred to as a "Final Walk-Through" Inspection. You should do this no sooner than 1-3 days before you intend to close on the property. Be sure that this right to do a final inspection is included in your offer to purchase the home to protect yourself and your interest in the subject property.