The Real Estate Browser Volume 10, Issue 3 | Page 10

10 — Say you saw it in The Real Estate Browser of Lynchburg — Volume 10 Number 3
www.LynchburgRealEstateBrowser.com
How to use the Home
Inspection
as a Marketing Tool
By Drew Howard , President, HomePro, Inc.
In my 25 years of inspecting homes I have
experienced the cyclical ups and downs of
the real estate market. When my career
started in 1993 Lynchburg was a true col-
lege town. The spring and fall market were
busy times, and the winter/summer months
were quiet with little activity. Around 1999
the market became year round with activ-
ity. Liberty University was starting to explode
with growth and Lynchburg’s economy was
experiencing the same. From 1999 to 2007
the economy and real estate market reached
heights that had never been seen. Along
came the great recession and 2009-2012 were
lean and mean years. The last 5 years have
been business as usual with strong growth
again in the housing market.
In the middle to late 90’s a pre listing
inspection were a great marketing strategy to
offer potential buyers of your home. Around
the year 2000 the market was heating up and
homes were selling fast. I personally did not
have the time to perform pre listing inspec-
tions because the market was so hot. After
the great recession we have new players, mar-
keting strategies i.e. Zillow, Trulia, and many
other search engines that did not exist before
the recession. I am starting to see the prelist-
ing inspection come back as a marketing tool.
The inspection report is 1 tool that an
agent can use in their marketing strategy to
set them apart from the competition. A good
home inspection report will list the major
components of your home, the age of equip-
ment, and compare your home to similar
homes in the neighborhood. The report can
be sold at a fee to interested parties. This
does several things:
1. It recoups money that you spent for the
service.
2. It lets you know who the really series
parties are that are looking at your
home. This also lets your agent know
what type of home they are looking for
if your home sells before they make an
offer.
3. It is something that the competitors of
Trulia and Zillow at this time cannot
compete with.
4. A seasoned agent can also recommend
what items you should address in help-
ing for a speedy home sell.
You can also have an inspection to address
any issues that might arise from a future
inspection. This gives you the opportunity to
correct any items before you put your home
on the market. This eliminates any surprises
or unknowns with the home. This will help
speed the process along. If you have any home
inspection questions, radon testing or indoor
air quality concerns please let me know.
Drew Howard [phone]
http://www.lynchburgrealestatebrowser.com/index.php?/properties/price_reduced
http://www.lynchburgrealestatebrowser.com/index.php?/properties/newest_listings