Making an offer on what could be your dream home is as terrifying as it is exciting. You could spend the next three decades making payments on that property, or you might lose out because of how competitive the buying market has been recent. Trying to balance the need to make a competitive offer with the real value of the house can be a challenge.

One of the ways that those looking for a home have tried to make their offers more appealing to sellers involves waiving the home inspection. Doing so makes closing faster and ensures that the buyer has one less reason to back out before the end of the transaction.

It can be very appealing to a seller sorting through multiple offers on a property to have a prospective buyer offer to waive the inspection. However, not getting an inspection leaves the buyer in a vulnerable position.

You might pay far more than the property is worth

The most significant defects with a home are not always readily apparent. Foundation issues, problems with the electrical system, or out-of-date plumbing may all require tens of thousands of dollars to fix and will not necessarily be obvious when you tour a home–even if you feel like you and your real estate agent have inspected things closely

Appraisers and professional inspectors know how to check these systems and will report problems they find or adjust the value of the home to reflect those defects. If you don’t find those problems, you might offer way more than the property is worth and end up needing to pay for those repairs as well.

In the event that you do learn about major issues with the property prior to closing, waiving your inspection could mean that you can’t back out of the sale without losing your earnest money unless you included other contingencies in your offer. Anyone thinking about buying a home will need support in making decisions that protect them and their financial future. An experienced attorney can help.

Why would you opt to purchase a home with a bad home inspection?

There are times when you may want to purchase a home with a bad inspection even though there are areas in which the property failed. For example, if the property has a list of a couple of repairs that you are confident that you can complete, you may agree to purchase the home for a significant reduction in the home’s price. This could let you get the home you desire on a much smaller budget and give you an opportunity to make repairs that will quickly increase the value of your purchase for resale in the future.

Whether or not the home inspection results stop you from making a purchase will depend on what those results are and if you’re confident in making repairs to the property. The seller may also offer to make at least some repairs, which is something to consider before walking away from the sale.