Every homeowner who is selling a home wants to sell it quickly and for a good price. Likewise, every home buyer wants to know that the new home they are purchasing won’t manifest a broken HVAC system, some burst pipes, or a dying major appliance within months of closing. While it’s not possible to predict all the problems a home might develop, especially if it’s an older home, there’s a way for both sellers and buyers to get what they want.
While your homeowner's insurance usually covers the structural aspects of your home in the event of damages caused by fire or certain types of natural disasters, a home warranty has a different scope. According to Realtor.com, home warranties can cover repair and/or replacement costs for kitchen appliances and the washer and dryer, as well as the electrical, plumbing, and heating, and air systems.
Since you get a COMPLIMENTARY WARRANTY when you list your home with me, you could offer to pay for a year or two of warranty coverage after closing. A buyer warranty can cost between $300 and $600, It’s a nice perk to offer buyers, but it’s not a requirement.
Back to the home warranty. When I offer a buyer’s home warranty on the house that I'm selling, Seller is better positioned to attract buyers with better offers. Buyers will feel more comfortable about purchasing a home if they know there’s some amount of protection for them, should something go wrong. After all, buyers are making offers without ANY contingencies these days. That means you’ll sell your house faster and get more for it than you might if you offered it without a warranty.
How a Home Warranty Provides Peace of Mind
Seller's coverage includes Appliances, Heating System, Plumbing, Water Heaters, Electrical System and Air Conditioning, and Heat Pump (can be added for $50 if selected, payment is due at closing), also Garage Door Openers *See Terms and Conditions of Service Agreement for Details. Seller coverage is for the listing period and begins immediately upon enrollment. Coverage for a term of 180 days until the closing of the sale or the listing is canceled, whichever occurs first.
When something malfunctions in the home, the warranty company sends out a local contractor to assess and repair it. The homeowner pays a small service fee,
If the Seller places a service request on an eligible item, a service fee is due.
(usually in the neighborhood of $100), and the home warranty company picks up the rest of the tab, and the home warranty company picks up the rest of the tab.
Home warranties can provide a lot of peace of mind, Provide budget protection for yourself. For example, the average HVAC replacement can cost $1500; a water heater replacement can cost $2,000. These repair costs often crop up unexpectedly, and many homeowners struggle to manage them on their own. These repair costs often crop up unexpectedly, and many homeowners struggle to manage them on their own.
What a Home Warranty Does for Sellers — And Buyers
A home warranty for sellers can have multiple purposes. Many sellers use them to defray the costs of repairs that a home may need during the listing period when the seller may be making two mortgage payments and may be short on funds to cover unexpected repairs to a home on the market.
When Seller provides a home warranty, it is a much less expensive option than replacing older appliances. It’s a way to provide value to a Buyer without spending bigger money to replace older but still-working appliances. Because even though it is a Seller’s market, speedy sales to preferred Buyers still matter to Sellers.
Offering a home warranty to buyers helps you sell your home faster — on average, 11 days faster than if you didn’t offer one. You can either transfer an existing home warranty to your buyer at closing, or you can offer a new policy to last for one year from the date of closing. Buyers will typically part with more money to purchase a home that comes with a warranty — $2,314 more, on average. Compare that to the average yearly cost of home warranty premiums, which range from $300 to $500, and you’ll see that a warranty is worth a lot to a buyer.
No buyer wants to purchase a new home and then has to fork out thousands for a major repair right away. Most new homeowners feel a bit strapped for cash, what with the new mortgage payment, closing costs, and the costs of moving into a new home. When a seller offers a buyer a home warranty, the buyer can proceed confidently into the purchase, knowing that they will have time to build up a cushion again before having to worry about covering the cost of significant repairs.
Who doesn’t hope that the sale of their home will take place as soon as possible after putting it on the market? Don’t let your home languish in the listings for months. When you offer a buyer’s home warranty along with your home, you’ll be selling more than just a residence; you’ll be throwing in the peace of mind that comes with knowing major repairs won’t end up compounding the buyer’s debt. Sell your house fast, get more money and move on with your life — offer your buyer a home warranty.
A home warranty can help bridge the gap and provide everyone with something they want.
