What repairs should the seller make?

It’s a question that can be one fierce debate: What repairs should the seller make? Whilst the seller is looking to maximize their profit the buyer is also looking to minimize their outlay. Although the two philosophies do not necessarily go “hand-in-hand” they must always be room for compromise in any negotiation.

The first thing that should be tackled when a seller asks themselves how much of the repairs they should make is the mindset that repairs will eat into your profit. This may not be the case; if you finance minor repairs then you can incorporate them into the listing price of your property.

The main problem comes when there are major repairs that need to be made. Depending on what the repairs are and how the buyer views your property will influence who pays for what, or what is in fact replaced.

The majority of all purchase contracts that are made between the buyer and seller will, at some point in the contract, include an clause relevant to an inspection of the property. The inspection clause is, in effect, a buyer contingency, allowing a buyer to back out of the agreement to purchase the property if numerous defects are found y an inspector, or gives them the right to re-negotiate the price or their repairs.

If repairs are found then buyer may not necessarily be too worried, as they may decide that they were going to change the water system, which has been found to be leaking badly, anyway. If the buyer decides that the repairs do need fixing before they purchase the house then a compromise must be met, and your realtor or attorney will be able to help you negotiate who pays for what, and to what extent of repairs need to be made.

The ruse in making the repairs, on the seller side, is not to overspend on pre-sale repairs, particularly if there are few houses on the market. If there are too few houses on the market then many buyers maybe willing to buy the property at almost any price. However, if the repairs that are needed are extensive then making such repairs may be the only way to sell your house in a down market.

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