I need a Pre-Offer Home Inspection - Can I get one?

Are you offering Pre-Offer Home Inspections? 

The short answer is No. We are not providing pre-offer home inspections because they are a disservice to buyers: 

• They are limited in nature
• We don’t have the same authorization to be in the property as when there is an accepted offer
• Listing agents are limiting access to the home to do these inspections
• Most importantly, they are no longer needed, because you, as a buyer, have the legal right to a  home inspection - a new law passed in MA states that Sellers can no longer condition the acceptance of an offer to purchase based on the waiver or limitation of a home inspection. This means that you are no longer pressured to waive the home inspection contingency.
• More information on Pre-Offer Inspections and why they are not advised

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If this is law, what haven’t I heard about it yet? Why isn’t my agent telling me this?

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Most likely the reason you haven’t heard about it is because the regulations (the “how” of how the law will be enacted) have not been developed and promulgated (placed into effect), so agents, realtors, and brokers are being told by their attorneys that the law is “not enforceable” yet. That may be true, but it is law. 

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Another reason you aren’t hearing about it is that many agents and real estate attorneys are not even aware of it. This law passed in August of 2024, and still there has not been sufficient publicity around it yet, and as mentioned before, the regulations are not completed. 

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When will this law be fully enacted? 

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By June 15, 2025. It will be fully enacted when the regulations are fully written by the Massachusetts Office of Housing and Livable Communities. This branch of the state government is tasked with writing the regulations. They will determine what the offer to purchase stage of the process must look like to conform with the law. As soon as that happens, agents will have to follow the law - or face the penalty that will be also enacted as part of the regulations. 

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I am trying to buy a home now, so what should I do in the meantime? 

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It is unclear. We always advise against getting a pre-offer home inspection for the reasons itemized above. Here’s some more information about Pre-offer Home Inspections and why they are inadvisable. We would recommend that you do this: Make your offer as attractive as possible in every other way that feels sufficiently comfortable to you, but include the inspection contingency. If an agent pressures you to waive the inspection, tell them they can’t do that and that you have a right to an inspection because the seller is not allowed to accept an offer with a waived inspection contingency. They might not like it, and they might not “have” to follow the law at this moment, but it is still the law as of now. Here’s more information on the law. 

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Best of luck out there in this challenging market!! Let us know if you have any questions at all.

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