The best way to approach home inspections varies by circumstance

It is normal, customary and highly recommended for all home buyers to get a home inspection before removing the contingencies on the purchase of your home.

Your home inspection will likely result in a list of items that either present a health and safety concern, are not working properly (or not working at all) or point out an opportunity for preventative maintenance.

This is invaluable information for buyers. You have an independent third party giving you expert information on the condition of the home.

Prevailing market conditions may influence how you use this information. For instance, if there are multiple offers to buy the home, you may decide to repair whatever may be broken or unsafe yourself, speeding up the close of escrow.  On the other hand, if the house had been on the market for a few weeks or even months, and you were not competing with any other buyers, you may want to ask the sellers to repair or replace some or all the items.

Current supply chain issues will make repairs a bit more challenging. If the heating and air conditioning system is broken, the replacement part could be on back order, with no guarantee of delivery before escrow is scheduled to close. What now?

There are several ways to handle this. You can take the repair off the table. This puts all the risk of the cost and timing of the repair on the buyers. Again, depending on the circumstances surrounding your offer, this may be the most prudent course of action.

Or, you can ask the HVAC repair company to give a fixed bid for the repair. Once you know how much the repair will cost, you might choose to ask the seller for a credit equal all or part of the cost of the repair, then the buyer at least has the money for the repair when the part arrives.

If a firm bid cannot be obtained, then both parties can agree to hold a certain amount of money in escrow after the close, then when the part arrives and the repair is completed, the vendors are paid out of the escrow account and any leftover money can then be returned according to whatever agreement is made between the buyers and sellers.

What could be simpler?

Leslie Sargent Eskildsen is an agent with RealtyOne Group West and a member of the California Association of Realtors’ board of directors.  She can be reached at 949-678-3373 or leslie@leslieeskildsen.com.