Home Inspection Repair Requests to Take a Pass On

After a potential buyer completes an official pre-sale inspection of your home, he or she may come back with a laundry list of items for a homeowner to address before the home purchase can be finalized. Although some major issues – termites, mold damage, major electrical defects, and lead paint are a few examples – may be worth addressing, more often than not, buyers can lose sight of the main purpose of a home inspection and make some pretty unreasonable requests.

Cosmetic issues

Any cosmetic fixes should not be a seller’s responsibility to repair. Say no to re-staining a deck, touching up paint, or replacing cracked tiles. These fixes are not a priority and should be easy fixes for the buyer to make after the home is purchased.

Anything under $100

Any repair that requires less than $100 to fix is unreasonable to ask a homeowner to address. Potential buyers should be aware that a seller may not have endless time for the closing process and those little requests may agitate the seller and potentially lead him or her to cancel the sale and proceed with a different buyer instead.

External buildings

It is very common – accepted even – that a home’s outbuildings are not in the same condition as the main house. As long as the buyer was aware of the condition when he or she made the offer on the home, an owner can leave those fix requests off the to-do list.

Loose fixtures

Loose doorknobs, light fixtures, or railings may be a nuisance, but it is not worth asking a seller to fix. These are easy fixes that require little or no effort to complete. It is not wise to risk overwhelming the seller if the issue can be fixed with a basic hand tool. A home appraiser will point out any issues that should cause a safety concern.

As a buyer, try to be reasonable in managing your expectations and understand that it is nearly impossible to find an absolutely perfect home. As a homeowner, educate yourself on how to properly prepare for a home inspection to avoid issues that may lead to a stressful inspection negotiation with a potential buyer.