5 Ways Home Buyers Can Avoid Buying Liability

Home hunting is often very frustrating. There is an unfortunate and truly terrifying story of home buyers suing their real estate agent for $2 million after discovering their home was infested with snakes. This is a cautionary reminder that every home buyer should take the necessary precautions to ensure that they are not buying a home infested with snakes, or possibly worse. Here are tips to help home buyers avoid buying a liability.

1. Know Your Contract

Too often a property is listed for sale “as is.” It is important to understand exactly what the term “as is” means and the nature of the transaction. If you are buying an “as is” property, then it is important to conduct the inspections or anything at the property to make sure that it is structurally sound and safe before you actually buy the property.

2. Know your Lender's Requirements

If the property has problems or any issues, some lenders will not lend you money. They are very strict because this can delay the payment of your loan. For example, if the property has a leaky roof, or radon gas, then your lender may require you to correct those issues before you can buy the property.

3. Know your Property and Seller

Today, most everything is online. This does not exclude real estate. When it comes to the property, use the internet to find out as much information. You can also find information on the seller. For instance, if the sellers recently added on to the property such as an additional room, check the county records online to confirm that the addition was built with the appropriate permits.

4. Know the Seller's Disclosure

The seller’s disclosures are meant to inform the buyers of known defects with the property. This is often known as a “latent defect.” However, what happens if a defect was either not known to the seller or the seller failed to disclose a known defect to the buyer? The answer to this question is often buried in the fine print of your real estate sales contract and the only way to answer this important question is something the buyer should find out prior to completing the real estate purchase.

5. Get a Home Inspection

A home inspection should reveal every issue/problem that may exist with the property, if any. Home inspections can cost several hundreds of dollars but worth it. The money is well spent as the home inspection may reveal a serious issue that will need to be addressed at a later date. Issues revealed during a home inspection may also be serious enough that a home buyer may actually need to walk away from the transaction.

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