Q: What’s the best time to buy a house and get a home inspection?
I’ve been in the construction industry since 1979 and inspecting residential homes for over 25 years. As can be imagined, I’ve seen the real estate market go up and down time and time again. The last two years have been a roller-coaster ride for many buyers and brokers who’ve told me they’ve offered upward of $50,000 over asking price on some properties and been outbid. These offers usually happened during the buying market high season of March through June.
To avoid this happening to you, the best time to buy a house and get a home inspection is during the offseason – that is, from July to February. Buying a home offseason can give you more time to research and look at properties without feeling rushed. And it can be less stressful because the market is slower and most sellers are more willing to work with you because they don’t have as many offers on the table. Plus, it’s nice to not feel like you’re trying to win a race!
Because the last two years have been such a seller’s market, I’ve spoken to many buyers and their representatives who’ve said they had to get creative in order to secure a property. For example, aside from offering way over the asking price, which is commonplace in a lot of Massachusetts cities and towns these days, some will forgo the home inspection as a contingency so they can get the offer accepted. On the flip side, there are also sellers who will demand no home inspection prior to a sale – and it still draws buyers in! It’s hard to believe this but it’s true! If this trend continues, I feel that many of these buyers who purchase a property with blinders on will spend a lot of additional money on unforeseen issues down the road. These are issues that absolutely could’ve been identified during a home inspection prior to purchase.
