No matter how many years I remain in real estate, it still shocks me when Buyers forego the opportunity to conduct a final walk-through, prior to closing.
To me, this last ‘look’ at a house before funds are transferred is one of the most important steps in the Buying process.
Typically, an offer to purchase a home includes a clause that grants the Buyer some number of revisits. It’s wise to save a visit until one or two business days prior to closing. This way, you get a final look at the home you’ve bought, and have time to resolve any issues that arise.
What Do I Look for in a Final Walkthrough?
First, I look for obvious signs that the Sellers are leaving. If I don’t see boxes and signs that they’re vacating, it raises a red flag. This is particularly important with tenanted properties. Sometimes, people just leave things until the last minute. This still poses some concerns. The Seller is expected to be entirely moved out of the home when funds transfer and keys are exchanged. Occasionally, a Seller thinks they have until midnight on the day of closing to be out. Nope! So, if there’s no sign that anyone is moving out, I call the Seller’s Realtor and start a discussion about what is going on.
I always bring a copy of the Agreement of Purchase and Sale with me and I use that as a check-list of sorts. Are the items that we requested still on site, and are they in working order? Honestly, you hear and see just about everything in this business. Appliances swapped out with cheap replacements – or simply gone. There are plenty of clauses designed to protect a Buyer’s interest when it comes to this sort of nonsense, but you need to know in advance of closing if items are missing.
Next, I test appliances. I literally run everything I can for at least a partial cycle. I test the furnace and, if it’s not too cold, the air conditioning. I run all of the taps and look for leaks under sinks. I flush toilets to ensure they’re working properly. And so on.
Condition of Property in a Final Walkthrough
At all times, I’m looking to see that the general condition of the property (inside and out) is comparable to its state when we made our offer. Here again, a Buyer’s agent has clauses at their disposal to protect their clients’ interests and ensure the home doesn’t deteriorate. The same applies to garbage and leftover chattels that weren’t requested. No, a Seller can’t just leave a rusted old chest freezer because “they thought we’d want it.” If items – be it garbage or extra appliances or outdoor furniture, etc. – are left behind, they must be dealt with before closing.
Lastly, is the home clean? Most Realtors include a clause requiring the Seller to leave a home in what is referred to as broom-swept condition. That means exactly what it sounds like: the home should be swept or vacuumed. What does ‘clean’ mean? Well, this can be a grey area in real estate law. In some cases, if a home is in rough shape and extremely dirty, we see a request that the Seller have the home professionally cleaned prior to or on the day of closing. Similarly, if there are pets in the home a Buyer’s agent should include a clause requiring any pet feces to be removed from the property.
In a perfect world, every Buyer gets a vacant final walk-through. It’s a clean, fresh look at a property and gives a very clear picture of what the home will look like on closing, in a day or two. This by no means always happens. It’s something to discuss with your Realtor well in advance of closing and, once again, there are clauses designed to ensure a vacant final walkthrough is possible.
From my experience, Buyers usually have a sense if there may be issues upon closing. Homes, for example, where hoarding has become an issue or where tenants don’t want to leave. These can be very emotionally-challenging situations for Sellers and Buyers alike.
How We Resolve Issues that Arise in a Final Walkthrough
Ultimately, the goal is to seek assurance that everything will be as the Buyer expected it to be. If it’s not, often I start with a simple request to the Listing Agent. Other times, the issue is too complex or serious, and I go directly to a Buyer’s Lawyer and get them to jump in and sort things out. Either way, the end goal is a satisfied client. The last thing anyone wants is some kind of situation to spoil what should otherwise be a very happy day.
The bottom line? Don’t forego a final walkthrough. If your schedule is too tight, ask your Realtor to conduct this on your behalf, and either take a video or loop you in via some kind of video conference. A home is one of the biggest decisions you’ll ever make, and once the keys are yours it’s a lot harder to go back to a Seller after closing to seek a resolution. Avoiding these problems in the first place is the way to go, if possible.
