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 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 like roofing, HVAC, or structural. 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.

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 your title is free and clear of encumbrances (e.g., mortgages, leases, or restrictions, liens) by the date of closing and that all new encumbrances are duly included in the title.

Loan Approval and Appraisal

I encourage you to 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.