September 23, 2025 • 23 mins
Ever wonder what's really happening during those crucial hours of a home inspection? In our eye-opening conversation with returning guest Corwin Jackson, we pull back the curtain on this pivotal moment in the real estate transaction that can make or break a deal.
Corwin dismantles the common misconception that home inspectors are "deal killers," explaining their true purpose is to provide an objective assessment of a property's current condition. We explore why those aging roof systems, hidden foundation issues, and outdated HVAC equipment matter so much in negotiations, and why the typical visual, non-intrusive inspection has important limitations every buyer should understand.
The game-changing takeaway from our discussion centers on pre-listing inspections. For just about $450, sellers can transform their negotiating position by identifying issues before listing their property. This strategic approach prevents the dreaded scenario where a home sits on the market for weeks, goes under contract, fails inspection, and returns to market with a damaged reputation. As Corwin puts it, "It's penny-wise and pound-foolish" to skip this crucial step.
Beyond transaction strategy, we discuss how home inspections serve as valuable educational opportunities for new homeowners. From locating water shut-off valves to understanding maintenance schedules, this knowledge transfer helps buyers properly care for what is likely their largest investment.
Whether you're buying your first home or selling your fifth, this conversation will arm you with the insights needed to approach inspections strategically. Ready to be the solution in your next real estate transaction? Listen now and discover how proper home inspections can save you thousands and prevent headaches down the road.
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Office number: 215- 607-3535
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Maria Quattrone (00:00):
This is the Be the Solution podcast, and I am
your host, maria Quatron.
I'm excited because today weget to talk to Corwin Jackson.
Corwin is a friend of mine.
I've known him gosh we kneweach other well over a decade
probably now and he is a returnguest to Be the Solution podcast
, but today we're going to talka little bit more in-depthly
(00:24):
about the actual home inspection, the process, why it's
important and what things getoverlooked during this time.
Before we do that, though, Ihave a quote specifically for
you, corwin, and the quote ofthe day is what would you
(00:45):
attempt to do if you knew youcouldn't?
Corwin Jackson (00:47):
fail.
I love that quote and it'sactually been thrown in front of
me a few times and for me itwould be.
I've always felt like if youcan get one company up and
running and running successfully, why can't you multiply that
and run separate entities or runmultiple entities at the same
time?
Guess what?
There are some people that aredoing it really well.
(01:09):
They're not only runningmultiple companies, but they're
doing that in various markets.
So I think the challenge thatentrepreneurs like you and
myself often bump into is howright and bump into is how do we
clone ourselves so that thesystems, the processes that we
(01:32):
put in place can be ranovernight, kind of on I'll call
it on auto drive, so just beingable to take on just multiple
organizations, multiplecompanies and run them all
successfully and run them allsuccessfully.
Maria Quattrone (01:42):
If you can think it, you can make it happen
.
Corwin Jackson (01:48):
There you go.
Maria Quattrone (01:49):
My motto so Be the Solution podcast.
It's all about we internallyhave the power within us to be
the solution.
Sometimes that requires us tomake hard choices, to say no,
and sometimes it requires us tosay yes, yes, yes, yes, yes and
eliminate all of the doubtthat's coming because it's made
(02:13):
up.
We made it up in our head.
Corwin Jackson (02:15):
So, yeah, All the doubts all the distractions
and just being able to stayproductive.
What is it?
The 80-20 rule, where 80, the,the, the volume we generate is
done by 20 of our activity.
But I think the challenge isjust diving into what is the 20.
What's actually creating?
Uh, those phone calls that arecoming in?
Maria Quattrone (02:37):
what is the 20?
Yeah, well, that's somethingthat we all have to figure out
for ourselves so today, todayunpacking, like you know you've
seen in past years with multipleoffer situation, people leaving
home, inspections and I'm not abig proponent of that unless
you are, you know, a seasonedbuyer and know what you're
(03:00):
looking at.
But nonetheless we've seen thatNow we're going into a more
normalized, stabilizedmarketplace where property's
sitting longer and buyers have alittle bit of upper hand.
So in regards to homeinspection Corwin.
Some of the things.
How does it work for people?
(03:22):
What should they be looking outfor?
How does it work for people?
What should they be looking outfor?
How does it work with yourcompany?
Corwin Jackson (03:27):
awesome, so sure .
So with the home inspection, youknow, a lot of times what I try
to uh bring to light with theclients is, during that home
inspection process, that's themost time that you're going to
spend in the house before youtake ownership, right?
I know a lot of times, ifthey're going out to see the see
the home, it going later in theevening, it may even be dark
outside, or maybe on a Sundaywhere they've seen five
(03:48):
different homes but for somereason it stood out.
But now you're at the homeinspection, you're probably
going to spend two and a half tothree hours there, right?
So some of the things that webump into that's more
problematic or more costly isthe roofing systems that haven't
been well maintained, right?
And that's important because,or that comes up because that's
one of the scenarios where, onthe home inspection, of course,
(04:10):
the client is standing rightthere while we're testing the
heating system.
They're standing right therewhile we're looking at the
structural components, butthey're already a little nervous
about the roofing systembecause, guess what, they're not
going to get on the ladder andwalk the roof with you, right?
So just you, you're you beingable to explain everything
that's going on with the roofingsystem and that could be a
(04:31):
really expensive repair right.
Maria Quattrone (04:34):
Anytime a roofing system has to be
replaced so that brings up apoint that we just had an
inspection where, because theroof was older, the buyer
couldn't get insurance.
Corwin Jackson (04:50):
We're seeing that more and more where the
home inspection is taking placeand, of course, after the home
inspection is done, negotiationshappen again, the appraisal
comes back, the appraisal comesout to be completed.
Happen again, the appraisalcomes back, the appraisal comes
out to be completed and theappraisal will just have
appraisal will just havequestions, right?
Hey, we're seeing somediscoloration down at the
(05:13):
foundation wall.
Is it mold?
Right?
And then that scenario you knowa lot of times.
As the inspection company,we're coming back out.
One of the things that thebuyers should know is hey,
what's in the scope of theinspection versus what's an
ancillary service or outside ofthe inspection?
Mold is certainly one of thosethings where, unless they elect
(05:35):
for it, right, unless they'reasking for mold testing or mold
inspection to be completed, it'snot going to happen, right?
Same thing with termite, samething with radon, same thing
with sewer scope.
These are all ancillaryservices, all services that can
be done in addition to theinspection, but the client has
to elect for it.
(05:56):
So good point with theappraiser.
And they're calling out hey,issues because they feel like
the roofing system is older.
From my chair I'm just seeingthe appraisal, the appraisers,
coming out and just playing amore, a larger part in the
entire transaction.
Maria Quattrone (06:13):
They are playing a larger part in the
transaction.
So one of the things I think isa misconception with home
inspections is that the homeinspector is there to kill the
deal.
You've heard that, wow.
Corwin Jackson (06:24):
You've heard that.
Wow, I've heard that.
Maria Quattrone (06:28):
And you know that-.
So what is the home inspector'sjob?
And they're not buying a brandnew house, right?
They're buying a used home,basically.
Corwin Jackson (06:39):
In most cases they're buying a used home, and
that's a very important pointbecause the buyer are even more
so.
We know if the buyer has a hostof family members there, then
they're feeling a bit anxious aswell.
But there are certain scenariosLike let's talk about the
heating system, for example.
A lot of times we may have anolder heating system that's 25
(07:02):
or 30 years old that could befunctioning just fine, right,
but from the buyer's standpointthey feel like, because it's an
older system, it can be taggedas defective.
But that's not the way it goes.
So the home inspector is thereto determine what's functioning
properly versus things that mayneed to be fixed, repaired,
replaced at the time ofinspection.
(07:24):
Right, that's the criticalpiece at the time of the
inspection.
So a lot of times we'll get thequestion well, how long is this
heating system going to last?
Or, okay, the roofing system is12 years old.
How long is the roofing systemgoing to last?
We can give them themanufacturer's timeline right,
meaning that typically a boilersystem is going to last 30 to 35
(07:49):
years.
But we have no magic globe tosay, hey, this thing is going to
stop working in the winter of2028.
We don't know.
We're there to determine isthat system functioning properly
at the time of the inspection,right?
And then the other piece thatwe get into as a home inspector.
As the home inspectors, we'recompleting a visual,
(08:11):
non-intrusive inspection.
So a lot of times you knowwe'll watch these shows where
you'll have a home inspector andhe's tearing off the wall board
or he's pulling back the doormolding.
Well, guess what?
That's absolutely 100% notgoing to happen during an
inspection.
Because guess what If the ownercomes home and they see that
(08:33):
the door has been dismantled orthe carpet has been pulled up to
see what type of shape thesubfloor is in?
Someone's got to write a checkfor that right.
So there are limitations withina home inspection.
Where that the buyer needs toappreciate.
The home inspection companythat you work with should be
(08:54):
sending out hey, this is ourschool of work, these are the
things that we're going to beevaluating and inspecting and
here's how we're going to goabout doing it.
That way you kind of keepeverybody on the same page and
you really level setexpectations with the home
inspection.
Maria Quattrone (09:10):
That's extremely important and we talk
about that with the buyers priorto even buying a house, and
then the home inspector there tolet you know everything that is
going on with the house today,and the home inspection
generally shouldn't be killingdeals.
In fact, I talk with all mysellers about doing a
(09:31):
pre-inspection so that they cangive it to the buyer prior to
them making an offer.
Corwin Jackson (09:39):
I love love, love that idea of a pre-listing
inspection.
And here's why I really thinkthe home inspection happens at
the wrong part of the realestate transaction.
Traditionally right.
What happens is the buyer goesout, they're going to find a
home that they like, they'regoing to agree at some point to
the price, right After they gothrough negotiations, and what
happens next?
Then the home inspector comesalong, right After they go
(10:02):
through negotiations.
And what happens next?
Then the home inspector comesalong.
Right, traditionally that's howit goes.
The home inspector comes alongand he's going to go into that
area of the attic that theseller has not been in in five
years.
He's going to go into that areain the basement where people
only go once a year to removeitems for the holidays.
Thanksgiving is coming up,christmas is coming up, they're
now bringing up some of thoseornaments and he's going to find
(10:25):
he or she is going to findstuff that needs to be corrected
, those things that they find ata minimum.
Typically they're going to forcethe buyer and seller to go
through a level of renegotiating.
Well, what if the homeinspection was done before the
property was listed?
Right, that way, if there areany concerns, any damaged joists
(10:49):
, potential mold on a subfloor,a heating system that's not
working properly.
That doesn't mean that theseller needs to fix those items,
they just need to disclose them.
Even better if they disclosethem and they associate a cost
to it.
That way, if a buyer stillbrings along their own home
inspector, then guess what?
(11:09):
These things are alreadydisclosed.
They don't have to enteranother level of renegotiating
right those things the buyer isalready aware of.
Renegotiating right, thosethings the buyer is already
aware of.
So I'm a big fan of pre-listinginspections.
We do have a ton of brokerages,teams, agents that we work with
(11:29):
through that, and again theirreasoning with that is whatever
price they now set on that home,the buyer comes in.
They already know thechallenges.
Hey, there's an older waterheater, there's a few windows
that don't function properly.
They don't have to go over aheavy renegotiation or aha
moment.
Here's what's going on with theproperty.
Maria Quattrone (11:51):
I think that's critical.
Nobody wants to put the houseon the market and then it come
off during inspection and thenput it back up and it comes off
during inspection.
Corwin Jackson (12:01):
That's just a big waste of time.
Maria Quattrone (12:03):
It's a big waste of time.
The seller's time, the listingbroker's time and the three
buyers agent who bought, buyerswho still didn't buy the house.
Corwin Jackson (12:12):
Who still didn't buy the house.
There you go.
So, yeah, you will hear thatout there about the deal killer.
But typically what we'relearning is it's never what's
said, how it's explained, right?
So a really good home inspectoris not only going to go over
hey, here is a leak at theroofing system, but also guess
what?
(12:32):
The leak is typically caused bya flashing issue, right?
It doesn't necessarily meanthat the roof needs to be
replaced, but the flashing needsto be corrected, or the
low-lying area needs to becorrected or the roof needs to
be sealed.
The challenge with that isthat's not what the buyer wants
to hear.
In most cases, if the buyerunderstands that there's a leak
(12:55):
in a roof, what are they askingfor, maria?
They want the roof replaced.
They want the roof torn off andreplaced, right?
That's why the listinginspections become so important,
because if it was a pre-listinginspection, right, that seller
would be in a driver's seat tocorrect that before the buyer
was even made aware, right?
(13:15):
So now that seller is in adriver's seat, they can get the
flashing corrected, they canhave the roofing system resealed
and now they have a roofingcertification, sometimes a
company with a warranty thatthey can turn over to the buyer
before they even have thatinspection completed on the
(13:35):
buyer's side.
Maria Quattrone (13:37):
So a big, big fan of pre-lifts.
It's like when you're buying acar, the car gets treated in at
the dealership.
The dealership that's thelisting broker gets the property
ready for sale and one of thethings they do is pre-certified
(13:57):
car.
Nobody wants to buy lemon.
And it's not buyer beware inthe state of Pennsylvania on
residential real estate.
It is in commercial real estatebut not in residential.
Corwin Jackson (14:14):
Yeah, and speaking with some of the
listing agents, I think some ofthe challenge that I hear from
them is hey, we're working sohard to get the listing, the
last thing we want to put infront of them is there are the
costs.
Hey, when we list this house,you're going to have to pay for
an inspector to come out.
I think a lot of times you knowthat becomes a tough
conversation with them.
Maria Quattrone (14:35):
I know because we have on average what is say a
three-bedroom, two-bed town rowhome.
Generally costs for aninspection or a pre-inspection.
Corwin Jackson (14:48):
If we're below 2,000 square feet, you're going
to be right around $450 withmost home inspection companies.
Maria Quattrone (14:55):
So I look at it like this that's their fee,
they have to pay for it and theyhave to negotiate.
They have to contract, excuseme, you for inspection directly.
However, that $450, what couldtheir mortgage be't?
(15:19):
A pre-inspection or worse thanthat it goes under contract.
It's on the market for twoweeks, goes under contract,
inspection happens another twoweeks, it gets canceled.
It's a month now and now over.
I'm going to start all overagain.
Corwin Jackson (15:37):
There you go.
Maria Quattrone (15:39):
So penny wise pound four.
Because I always go see, thesellers aren't required to do
anything.
They can simply present thefacts as facts and the buyer can
decide to move forward up frontor not and waive the inspection
because they have an inspectionwhich gives the buyers a little
(16:01):
bit more room for negotiationbut keeps the seller deal intact
.
The seller then at leastthere's an opportunity to
negotiate because there's anoffer in hand.
Corwin Jackson (16:15):
Yeah.
Maria Quattrone (16:16):
And the value is there is such a thing as
market value and then perceivedmarket value.
Perceived market value.
So I could say that your houseCorwin is worth $625,000.
But the perceived market valuecould be $580,000.
Corwin Jackson (16:35):
It's what that buyer is going to come along and
is willing to pay for it.
I've had to learn that onemyself the hard way I think like
most sellers do at some point.
Maria Quattrone (16:45):
Well, everybody wants more than the house
really is worth and I always sayto the sellers you are the
highest bidder.
There's no bidders coming along.
There's no shelling, so there'sno bidders.
And I can't negotiate when Idon't even have a shelling.
There's no shelling, so there'sno bidders, and I can't
negotiate when I don't even havea shelling.
Systems and processes are whatmakes listings sell.
(17:07):
If you, as a buyer, are lookingat a home that's a
pre-inspected home, you have amuch better chance of knowing
every single thing that's goingon with that, because most
inspectors are going to do that,are that are reputable, are
going to do or find the similarthings.
Corwin Jackson (17:28):
I would say nine and a half out of ten times and
most scenarios, because they'rethe same scope, right, they're
going by the same scope.
It may be a different uhprocess, but as far as the scope
of work of what they're whatthey're evaluating is going to
be in alignment, right.
So I know the worst casescenario was to go under
contract and then somethinghappens with that the buyer side
(17:48):
of the inspection, because whenthe new buyers come along and
now they catch wind that hey,this thing came apart because of
the home inspection, they'realready coming into it a little
bit nervous, right, of course.
So that's just one morescenario where that pre-listing
inspection is going to get infront of it right To remove any
(18:08):
of those issues.
Maria Quattrone (18:09):
So buyers should get an inspection.
If there's not a pre-listinginspection, sellers, if you want
the deal to stay intact, shouldget a pre-listing inspection
because it actually gives themmore power.
And the $450, and we're talkingabout hundreds of thousands of
(18:30):
dollars, if not more is nothing.
Corwin Jackson (18:33):
Absolutely.
And he's on a dollar, so andhe's on a dollar.
Maria Quattrone (18:36):
Yeah, it takes a little bit of time to have it
happen, but I think knowledge ispower and what you do with that
I'm giving the knowledge toinformation.
That here you should do it.
Now you have the power becausethe ball's in your court.
Corwin Jackson (18:57):
Absolutely.
I think we want people toappreciate about the home
inspection right Is that itgives the buyers the opportunity
to learn everything about thehome.
It's so many times I have tosay that there may be some an
inaccuracy in the seller'sdisclosure because sometimes the
seller just don't know right.
(19:17):
I can remember being on a homeinspection a few weeks back
where the heating system waslisted as gas.
It was actually an oil operator, heating system, right.
And the seller who was it was ascenario she had been in the
home forever but the husband wastaking care of everything,
right.
So she's kind of filling outthe seller's disclosure the best
(19:38):
way she knows how.
So you'll be surprised oractually you wouldn't be, maria,
been in the business so long.
But I guess most consumerswould be surprised how many
things they learn about thehouse just by attending you know
that inspection.
What type of water heater doyou have, how it's operated, the
, the, the electric panel?
Sometimes you have what'scalled a service disconnect.
(20:00):
We see that more and more atthe exterior right.
But just those things oflearning how to function a home,
how to function, how to operateeverything in the house, right.
If there's an emergency goingon at the home.
Where do you turn the watermain off at right?
All those types of things thatthat's typically learned at the,
typically learned during a homeinspection.
Maria Quattrone (20:22):
I mean, and think about it, I bought this
house on May 4, 2011.
So, whenever, how many yearsago that was 14?
I can't believe it.
Corwin Jackson (20:32):
Wow, life happens fast.
Maria Quattrone (20:34):
I couldn't tell you how to turn off the water
main.
I have no idea.
I probably have no idea abouthalf the things going on.
I also have a husband and I'mnot the person right.
Corwin Jackson (20:45):
There you go.
Somebody at the house needs toknow.
Maria Quattrone (20:50):
Somebody needs to know, but say he's not here.
It's good to know these thingsright, so you need a refresher,
is my point.
You don't remember what youlearned 14 years ago.
Corwin Jackson (21:01):
Because who's going to remember?
You know how often you changethe filter, where the filter
needs to be changed, at thesmoke detectors.
How often are they tested?
So what we're seeing, maria, ismore and more people are more
home inspection companies alsodeveloping maintenance programs,
maintenance programs, right, orhandyman programs, because,
let's face it, some people, theymay understand how to do those
(21:24):
things, but life is so busy,right, life is so busy, it's
easy to miss that thing on acalendar where the smoke
detectors need to be changed or,like I said, filters and things
like that.
So what we're seeing is morehome inspection companies come
out with different maintenanceprograms, handyman programs,
things of that sort, just tomake sure that the house is.
(21:45):
If that house is well kept, asyou know, then they're going to
get their asking price when theyturn around a list to sell the
house five to seven years fromnow.
Right, If it's not well kept,then guess what?
They're going to have otherissues.
Maria Quattrone (21:58):
That's true, they're going to have other
issues.
It's not well kept, then guesswhat?
They're going to have otherissues.
That's true, they're going tohave other issues.
Corwin Jackson (22:06):
So it's important that people know, when
you do buy a home, that youhave to maintain it.
Maria Quattrone (22:08):
When you do sell a home, you have to
disclose it right.
Corwin Jackson (22:11):
And if you don't ?
Maria Quattrone (22:12):
know, pre-home inspection is almost a guarantee
that the house will get sold atsome point.
And the more I say, the moreinformation you provide, the
more everybody is better suitedto move things through the
process.
Corwin Jackson (22:32):
We want to avoid those surprises, right, we want
to avoid that skeleton in thecloset.
You know, when home inspectionis done from the buyer's side,
every home has it right.
Every home has something thatyou guys have to turn and
renegotiate for.
The pre-listing inspection isgoing to help get the seller
past that hurdle to a largeextent.
(22:54):
The issues that do come upguess what?
They can stay in the driver'sseat.
Absolutely, we probably couldhave did this whole session of
pre-listing inspections.
Maria Quattrone (23:02):
I think it's a great session and, corwin, you
are an expert in what you do andI'm blessed and thankful for
you today and thank you forbeing the solution.
Corwin Jackson (23:17):
Hey, I appreciate you for taking the
time to have me, maria.
I know there's no shortage ofreal estate professionals as
often calling you, knocking youon the door, just looking for
time to connect.
So I appreciate you keeping mein mind, my pleasure.
This is the Be the Solution podcast, and I am
your host, maria Quatron.
I'm excited because today weget to talk to Corwin Jackson.
Corwin is a friend of mine.
I've known him gosh we kneweach other well over a decade
probably now and he is a returnguest to Be the Solution podcast
, but today we're going to talka little bit more in-depthly
(00:24):
about the actual home inspection, the process, why it's
important and what things getoverlooked during this time.
Before we do that, though, Ihave a quote specifically for
you, corwin, and the quote ofthe day is what would you
(00:45):
attempt to do if you knew youcouldn't?
Corwin Jackson (00:47):
fail.
I love that quote and it'sactually been thrown in front of
me a few times and for me itwould be.
I've always felt like if youcan get one company up and
running and running successfully, why can't you multiply that
and run separate entities or runmultiple entities at the same
time?
Guess what?
There are some people that aredoing it really well.
(01:09):
They're not only runningmultiple companies, but they're
doing that in various markets.
So I think the challenge thatentrepreneurs like you and
myself often bump into is howright and bump into is how do we
clone ourselves so that thesystems, the processes that we
(01:32):
put in place can be ranovernight, kind of on I'll call
it on auto drive, so just beingable to take on just multiple
organizations, multiplecompanies and run them all
successfully and run them allsuccessfully.
Maria Quattrone (01:42):
If you can think it, you can make it happen
.
Corwin Jackson (01:48):
There you go.
Maria Quattrone (01:49):
My motto so Be the Solution podcast.
It's all about we internallyhave the power within us to be
the solution.
Sometimes that requires us tomake hard choices, to say no,
and sometimes it requires us tosay yes, yes, yes, yes, yes and
eliminate all of the doubtthat's coming because it's made
(02:13):
up.
We made it up in our head.
Corwin Jackson (02:15):
So, yeah, All the doubts all the distractions
and just being able to stayproductive.
What is it?
The 80-20 rule, where 80, the,the, the volume we generate is
done by 20 of our activity.
But I think the challenge isjust diving into what is the 20.
What's actually creating?
Uh, those phone calls that arecoming in?
Maria Quattrone (02:37):
what is the 20?
Yeah, well, that's somethingthat we all have to figure out
for ourselves so today, todayunpacking, like you know you've
seen in past years with multipleoffer situation, people leaving
home, inspections and I'm not abig proponent of that unless
you are, you know, a seasonedbuyer and know what you're
(03:00):
looking at.
But nonetheless we've seen thatNow we're going into a more
normalized, stabilizedmarketplace where property's
sitting longer and buyers have alittle bit of upper hand.
So in regards to homeinspection Corwin.
Some of the things.
How does it work for people?
(03:22):
What should they be looking outfor?
How does it work for people?
What should they be looking outfor?
How does it work with yourcompany?
Corwin Jackson (03:27):
awesome, so sure .
So with the home inspection, youknow, a lot of times what I try
to uh bring to light with theclients is, during that home
inspection process, that's themost time that you're going to
spend in the house before youtake ownership, right?
I know a lot of times, ifthey're going out to see the see
the home, it going later in theevening, it may even be dark
outside, or maybe on a Sundaywhere they've seen five
(03:48):
different homes but for somereason it stood out.
But now you're at the homeinspection, you're probably
going to spend two and a half tothree hours there, right?
So some of the things that webump into that's more
problematic or more costly isthe roofing systems that haven't
been well maintained, right?
And that's important because,or that comes up because that's
one of the scenarios where, onthe home inspection, of course,
(04:10):
the client is standing rightthere while we're testing the
heating system.
They're standing right therewhile we're looking at the
structural components, butthey're already a little nervous
about the roofing systembecause, guess what, they're not
going to get on the ladder andwalk the roof with you, right?
So just you, you're you beingable to explain everything
that's going on with the roofingsystem and that could be a
(04:31):
really expensive repair right.
Maria Quattrone (04:34):
Anytime a roofing system has to be
replaced so that brings up apoint that we just had an
inspection where, because theroof was older, the buyer
couldn't get insurance.
Corwin Jackson (04:50):
We're seeing that more and more where the
home inspection is taking placeand, of course, after the home
inspection is done, negotiationshappen again, the appraisal
comes back, the appraisal comesout to be completed.
Happen again, the appraisalcomes back, the appraisal comes
out to be completed and theappraisal will just have
appraisal will just havequestions, right?
Hey, we're seeing somediscoloration down at the
(05:13):
foundation wall.
Is it mold?
Right?
And then that scenario you knowa lot of times.
As the inspection company,we're coming back out.
One of the things that thebuyers should know is hey,
what's in the scope of theinspection versus what's an
ancillary service or outside ofthe inspection?
Mold is certainly one of thosethings where, unless they elect
(05:35):
for it, right, unless they'reasking for mold testing or mold
inspection to be completed, it'snot going to happen, right?
Same thing with termite, samething with radon, same thing
with sewer scope.
These are all ancillaryservices, all services that can
be done in addition to theinspection, but the client has
to elect for it.
(05:56):
So good point with theappraiser.
And they're calling out hey,issues because they feel like
the roofing system is older.
From my chair I'm just seeingthe appraisal, the appraisers,
coming out and just playing amore, a larger part in the
entire transaction.
Maria Quattrone (06:13):
They are playing a larger part in the
transaction.
So one of the things I think isa misconception with home
inspections is that the homeinspector is there to kill the
deal.
You've heard that, wow.
Corwin Jackson (06:24):
You've heard that.
Wow, I've heard that.
Maria Quattrone (06:28):
And you know that-.
So what is the home inspector'sjob?
And they're not buying a brandnew house, right?
They're buying a used home,basically.
Corwin Jackson (06:39):
In most cases they're buying a used home, and
that's a very important pointbecause the buyer are even more
so.
We know if the buyer has a hostof family members there, then
they're feeling a bit anxious aswell.
But there are certain scenariosLike let's talk about the
heating system, for example.
A lot of times we may have anolder heating system that's 25
(07:02):
or 30 years old that could befunctioning just fine, right,
but from the buyer's standpointthey feel like, because it's an
older system, it can be taggedas defective.
But that's not the way it goes.
So the home inspector is thereto determine what's functioning
properly versus things that mayneed to be fixed, repaired,
replaced at the time ofinspection.
(07:24):
Right, that's the criticalpiece at the time of the
inspection.
So a lot of times we'll get thequestion well, how long is this
heating system going to last?
Or, okay, the roofing system is12 years old.
How long is the roofing systemgoing to last?
We can give them themanufacturer's timeline right,
meaning that typically a boilersystem is going to last 30 to 35
(07:49):
years.
But we have no magic globe tosay, hey, this thing is going to
stop working in the winter of2028.
We don't know.
We're there to determine isthat system functioning properly
at the time of the inspection,right?
And then the other piece thatwe get into as a home inspector.
As the home inspectors, we'recompleting a visual,
(08:11):
non-intrusive inspection.
So a lot of times you knowwe'll watch these shows where
you'll have a home inspector andhe's tearing off the wall board
or he's pulling back the doormolding.
Well, guess what?
That's absolutely 100% notgoing to happen during an
inspection.
Because guess what If the ownercomes home and they see that
(08:33):
the door has been dismantled orthe carpet has been pulled up to
see what type of shape thesubfloor is in?
Someone's got to write a checkfor that right.
So there are limitations withina home inspection.
Where that the buyer needs toappreciate.
The home inspection companythat you work with should be
(08:54):
sending out hey, this is ourschool of work, these are the
things that we're going to beevaluating and inspecting and
here's how we're going to goabout doing it.
That way you kind of keepeverybody on the same page and
you really level setexpectations with the home
inspection.
Maria Quattrone (09:10):
That's extremely important and we talk
about that with the buyers priorto even buying a house, and
then the home inspector there tolet you know everything that is
going on with the house today,and the home inspection
generally shouldn't be killingdeals.
In fact, I talk with all mysellers about doing a
(09:31):
pre-inspection so that they cangive it to the buyer prior to
them making an offer.
Corwin Jackson (09:39):
I love love, love that idea of a pre-listing
inspection.
And here's why I really thinkthe home inspection happens at
the wrong part of the realestate transaction.
Traditionally right.
What happens is the buyer goesout, they're going to find a
home that they like, they'regoing to agree at some point to
the price, right After they gothrough negotiations, and what
happens next?
Then the home inspector comesalong, right After they go
(10:02):
through negotiations.
And what happens next?
Then the home inspector comesalong.
Right, traditionally that's howit goes.
The home inspector comes alongand he's going to go into that
area of the attic that theseller has not been in in five
years.
He's going to go into that areain the basement where people
only go once a year to removeitems for the holidays.
Thanksgiving is coming up,christmas is coming up, they're
now bringing up some of thoseornaments and he's going to find
(10:25):
he or she is going to findstuff that needs to be corrected
, those things that they find ata minimum.
Typically they're going to forcethe buyer and seller to go
through a level of renegotiating.
Well, what if the homeinspection was done before the
property was listed?
Right, that way, if there areany concerns, any damaged joists
(10:49):
, potential mold on a subfloor,a heating system that's not
working properly.
That doesn't mean that theseller needs to fix those items,
they just need to disclose them.
Even better if they disclosethem and they associate a cost
to it.
That way, if a buyer stillbrings along their own home
inspector, then guess what?
(11:09):
These things are alreadydisclosed.
They don't have to enteranother level of renegotiating
right those things the buyer isalready aware of.
Renegotiating right, thosethings the buyer is already
aware of.
So I'm a big fan of pre-listinginspections.
We do have a ton of brokerages,teams, agents that we work with
(11:29):
through that, and again theirreasoning with that is whatever
price they now set on that home,the buyer comes in.
They already know thechallenges.
Hey, there's an older waterheater, there's a few windows
that don't function properly.
They don't have to go over aheavy renegotiation or aha
moment.
Here's what's going on with theproperty.
Maria Quattrone (11:51):
I think that's critical.
Nobody wants to put the houseon the market and then it come
off during inspection and thenput it back up and it comes off
during inspection.
Corwin Jackson (12:01):
That's just a big waste of time.
Maria Quattrone (12:03):
It's a big waste of time.
The seller's time, the listingbroker's time and the three
buyers agent who bought, buyerswho still didn't buy the house.
Corwin Jackson (12:12):
Who still didn't buy the house.
There you go.
So, yeah, you will hear thatout there about the deal killer.
But typically what we'relearning is it's never what's
said, how it's explained, right?
So a really good home inspectoris not only going to go over
hey, here is a leak at theroofing system, but also guess
what?
(12:32):
The leak is typically caused bya flashing issue, right?
It doesn't necessarily meanthat the roof needs to be
replaced, but the flashing needsto be corrected, or the
low-lying area needs to becorrected or the roof needs to
be sealed.
The challenge with that isthat's not what the buyer wants
to hear.
In most cases, if the buyerunderstands that there's a leak
(12:55):
in a roof, what are they askingfor, maria?
They want the roof replaced.
They want the roof torn off andreplaced, right?
That's why the listinginspections become so important,
because if it was a pre-listinginspection, right, that seller
would be in a driver's seat tocorrect that before the buyer
was even made aware, right?
(13:15):
So now that seller is in adriver's seat, they can get the
flashing corrected, they canhave the roofing system resealed
and now they have a roofingcertification, sometimes a
company with a warranty thatthey can turn over to the buyer
before they even have thatinspection completed on the
(13:35):
buyer's side.
Maria Quattrone (13:37):
So a big, big fan of pre-lifts.
It's like when you're buying acar, the car gets treated in at
the dealership.
The dealership that's thelisting broker gets the property
ready for sale and one of thethings they do is pre-certified
(13:57):
car.
Nobody wants to buy lemon.
And it's not buyer beware inthe state of Pennsylvania on
residential real estate.
It is in commercial real estatebut not in residential.
Corwin Jackson (14:14):
Yeah, and speaking with some of the
listing agents, I think some ofthe challenge that I hear from
them is hey, we're working sohard to get the listing, the
last thing we want to put infront of them is there are the
costs.
Hey, when we list this house,you're going to have to pay for
an inspector to come out.
I think a lot of times you knowthat becomes a tough
conversation with them.
Maria Quattrone (14:35):
I know because we have on average what is say a
three-bedroom, two-bed town rowhome.
Generally costs for aninspection or a pre-inspection.
Corwin Jackson (14:48):
If we're below 2,000 square feet, you're going
to be right around $450 withmost home inspection companies.
Maria Quattrone (14:55):
So I look at it like this that's their fee,
they have to pay for it and theyhave to negotiate.
They have to contract, excuseme, you for inspection directly.
However, that $450, what couldtheir mortgage be't?
(15:19):
A pre-inspection or worse thanthat it goes under contract.
It's on the market for twoweeks, goes under contract,
inspection happens another twoweeks, it gets canceled.
It's a month now and now over.
I'm going to start all overagain.
Corwin Jackson (15:37):
There you go.
Maria Quattrone (15:39):
So penny wise pound four.
Because I always go see, thesellers aren't required to do
anything.
They can simply present thefacts as facts and the buyer can
decide to move forward up frontor not and waive the inspection
because they have an inspectionwhich gives the buyers a little
(16:01):
bit more room for negotiationbut keeps the seller deal intact
.
The seller then at leastthere's an opportunity to
negotiate because there's anoffer in hand.
Corwin Jackson (16:15):
Yeah.
Maria Quattrone (16:16):
And the value is there is such a thing as
market value and then perceivedmarket value.
Perceived market value.
So I could say that your houseCorwin is worth $625,000.
But the perceived market valuecould be $580,000.
Corwin Jackson (16:35):
It's what that buyer is going to come along and
is willing to pay for it.
I've had to learn that onemyself the hard way I think like
most sellers do at some point.
Maria Quattrone (16:45):
Well, everybody wants more than the house
really is worth and I always sayto the sellers you are the
highest bidder.
There's no bidders coming along.
There's no shelling, so there'sno bidders.
And I can't negotiate when Idon't even have a shelling.
There's no shelling, so there'sno bidders, and I can't
negotiate when I don't even havea shelling.
Systems and processes are whatmakes listings sell.
(17:07):
If you, as a buyer, are lookingat a home that's a
pre-inspected home, you have amuch better chance of knowing
every single thing that's goingon with that, because most
inspectors are going to do that,are that are reputable, are
going to do or find the similarthings.
Corwin Jackson (17:28):
I would say nine and a half out of ten times and
most scenarios, because they'rethe same scope, right, they're
going by the same scope.
It may be a different uhprocess, but as far as the scope
of work of what they're whatthey're evaluating is going to
be in alignment, right.
So I know the worst casescenario was to go under
contract and then somethinghappens with that the buyer side
(17:48):
of the inspection, because whenthe new buyers come along and
now they catch wind that hey,this thing came apart because of
the home inspection, they'realready coming into it a little
bit nervous, right, of course.
So that's just one morescenario where that pre-listing
inspection is going to get infront of it right To remove any
(18:08):
of those issues.
Maria Quattrone (18:09):
So buyers should get an inspection.
If there's not a pre-listinginspection, sellers, if you want
the deal to stay intact, shouldget a pre-listing inspection
because it actually gives themmore power.
And the $450, and we're talkingabout hundreds of thousands of
(18:30):
dollars, if not more is nothing.
Corwin Jackson (18:33):
Absolutely.
And he's on a dollar, so andhe's on a dollar.
Maria Quattrone (18:36):
Yeah, it takes a little bit of time to have it
happen, but I think knowledge ispower and what you do with that
I'm giving the knowledge toinformation.
That here you should do it.
Now you have the power becausethe ball's in your court.
Corwin Jackson (18:57):
Absolutely.
I think we want people toappreciate about the home
inspection right Is that itgives the buyers the opportunity
to learn everything about thehome.
It's so many times I have tosay that there may be some an
inaccuracy in the seller'sdisclosure because sometimes the
seller just don't know right.
(19:17):
I can remember being on a homeinspection a few weeks back
where the heating system waslisted as gas.
It was actually an oil operator, heating system, right.
And the seller who was it was ascenario she had been in the
home forever but the husband wastaking care of everything,
right.
So she's kind of filling outthe seller's disclosure the best
(19:38):
way she knows how.
So you'll be surprised oractually you wouldn't be, maria,
been in the business so long.
But I guess most consumerswould be surprised how many
things they learn about thehouse just by attending you know
that inspection.
What type of water heater doyou have, how it's operated, the
, the, the electric panel?
Sometimes you have what'scalled a service disconnect.
(20:00):
We see that more and more atthe exterior right.
But just those things oflearning how to function a home,
how to function, how to operateeverything in the house, right.
If there's an emergency goingon at the home.
Where do you turn the watermain off at right?
All those types of things thatthat's typically learned at the,
typically learned during a homeinspection.
Maria Quattrone (20:22):
I mean, and think about it, I bought this
house on May 4, 2011.
So, whenever, how many yearsago that was 14?
I can't believe it.
Corwin Jackson (20:32):
Wow, life happens fast.
Maria Quattrone (20:34):
I couldn't tell you how to turn off the water
main.
I have no idea.
I probably have no idea abouthalf the things going on.
I also have a husband and I'mnot the person right.
Corwin Jackson (20:45):
There you go.
Somebody at the house needs toknow.
Maria Quattrone (20:50):
Somebody needs to know, but say he's not here.
It's good to know these thingsright, so you need a refresher,
is my point.
You don't remember what youlearned 14 years ago.
Corwin Jackson (21:01):
Because who's going to remember?
You know how often you changethe filter, where the filter
needs to be changed, at thesmoke detectors.
How often are they tested?
So what we're seeing, maria, ismore and more people are more
home inspection companies alsodeveloping maintenance programs,
maintenance programs, right, orhandyman programs, because,
let's face it, some people, theymay understand how to do those
(21:24):
things, but life is so busy,right, life is so busy, it's
easy to miss that thing on acalendar where the smoke
detectors need to be changed or,like I said, filters and things
like that.
So what we're seeing is morehome inspection companies come
out with different maintenanceprograms, handyman programs,
things of that sort, just tomake sure that the house is.
(21:45):
If that house is well kept, asyou know, then they're going to
get their asking price when theyturn around a list to sell the
house five to seven years fromnow.
Right, If it's not well kept,then guess what?
They're going to have otherissues.
Maria Quattrone (21:58):
That's true, they're going to have other
issues.
It's not well kept, then guesswhat?
They're going to have otherissues.
That's true, they're going tohave other issues.
Corwin Jackson (22:06):
So it's important that people know, when
you do buy a home, that youhave to maintain it.
Maria Quattrone (22:08):
When you do sell a home, you have to
disclose it right.
Corwin Jackson (22:11):
And if you don't ?
Maria Quattrone (22:12):
know, pre-home inspection is almost a guarantee
that the house will get sold atsome point.
And the more I say, the moreinformation you provide, the
more everybody is better suitedto move things through the
process.
Corwin Jackson (22:32):
We want to avoid those surprises, right, we want
to avoid that skeleton in thecloset.
You know, when home inspectionis done from the buyer's side,
every home has it right.
Every home has something thatyou guys have to turn and
renegotiate for.
The pre-listing inspection isgoing to help get the seller
past that hurdle to a largeextent.
(22:54):
The issues that do come upguess what?
They can stay in the driver'sseat.
Absolutely, we probably couldhave did this whole session of
pre-listing inspections.
Maria Quattrone (23:02):
I think it's a great session and, corwin, you
are an expert in what you do andI'm blessed and thankful for
you today and thank you forbeing the solution.
Corwin Jackson (23:17):
Hey, I appreciate you for taking the
time to have me, maria.
I know there's no shortage ofreal estate professionals as
often calling you, knocking youon the door, just looking for
time to connect.
So I appreciate you keeping mein mind, my pleasure.
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