David Barr's Sarasota and Venice Real Estate Blog

I belong to Trulia Voices Community, where prospective buyers and sellers can ask Trulia Realtor members questions about Sarasota area real estate. Today, a new home inspector was asking Realtors questions whether to purchase an electronic key for access to lock boxes. You can read the thread here: http://on.trulia.com/1itQIHE Trulia is of the same ilk as Zillow as far as inaccurate listing data, but they do provide an excellent forum for consumers to evaluate agents based on their responses to questions.  On this particular thread, one of the agents said they hired the home inspector. Realtors should never hire home inspectors for their home buyer customers, nor should they ever recommend an inspector.  If something goes wrong after the buyer closes on the property, or the inspector misses something, there's a huge potential conflict of interest. Read more about Sarasota home inspections here on my website:   www.davidbarrhomes.com/home_inspection

After working with a couple of recent customers and sharing stories with some of my colleagues, I thought it was time to revisit the role the home inspection plays in the home buying process. The home inspection contingency has been put in place in FL real estate to help buyers determine if a home has hidden (latent) major deficiencies, that are not readily visible from the buyer's personal observation. Repeat:  Hidden major deficiencies not readily visible. The home inspection report will note every single aspect of the home, including worn flooring, old paint, old appliances, and old systems such as water heaters and HVAC.  Buyers can readily view these items, even the age of the HVAC and hot water heater, during the showing appointment (or I can point them out to you if you make an offer sight unseen).  As your real estate agent, I can provide advice on how your offer should take these items into account in your offer price. The home inspection is also requir...