Closing repairs are the list of repairs agreed to be completed by the buying and selling parties in a home transaction.

Since the seller has lived in the home, they are responsible for paying for the agreed-upon closing repairs. Depending on who you hire for closing repairs, it is paid upfront or at closing. Another option is for the seller to agree to credit toward repairs following closing. For example, the seller agrees to a $1000 credit toward a specific plumbing repair done by a particular company following the sale. This allows the home's sale to continue uninterrupted and enables the seller to schedule the repairs at their convenience.

A home inspector. A home inspection is a necessary part of the sale of a home. If you're working with a realtor, they will have a home inspector they regularly work with to inspect the house. The inspector will then inspect the home and assemble a list of recommended repairs to bring the home up to an appropriate level to sell. The home inspector provides this to the buyer/buyer's agent, who decides on the list of closing repairs to request (a repair addendum).

It protects buyers. If you're about to purchase a 400K home but upon inspection, it needs foundation work, wood rot repairs, and structural repairs that will cost 30K, that's information a buyer needs before confirming the home purchase

It can be a bit overwhelming. Even if your home is tip-top, you shouldn't be surprised to see a multi-page inspection report with 30-40 items and corresponding pictures. The older the house, and the greater the state of disrepair, leads to a longer list of repairs (we've seen 20-plus page inspection reports). However, do not fear; a long list doesn't necessarily translate to a hefty price tag. Many items on the list can be handled quickly, with minimal cost, or negotiated out of the closing repairs.

Cost generally varies based on size, age, and upkeep. The bigger the home, the more likely you'll have a more extensive list of repairs to tackle because more homes need repair. Older homes, particularly homes with a single owner for multiple decades, typically require more repairs due to evolving housing codes. There's also the reality that people are rough on homes, and the longer you live there, the more work it'll need. The last consideration is general upkeep. If you've maintained your house well, regularly service your utilities (HVAC, water heater), take care of your crawlspace (we wrote a whole blog about that here), and don't let needed repairs go too long unaddressed, you'll minimize the closing repairs required. On the other hand, if you've allowed things to get out of hand, you could be looking at a hefty closing repair cost.

Typically, closing repairs cost $750-1500 on the low end (with ten or so essential items on the repairs addendum) but can have a broad range similar to general home repairs, costing on the high end $10,000 plus.

The short answer is no. The inspection report is presented to the buyers, and then both the buyers and sellers negotiate the list of repairs. If your home is in high demand and a seller's market (high demand, low inventory), you may be able to sell as-is or take care of a handful of necessary closing repairs. Most of the time, the agreed-upon list of repairs is negotiated from the whole list to what the buyers deem non-negotiable.

Certain repairs, such as structural or unsafe wiring that can be a fire hazard (the most common one), are necessary for the loan to be accepted (this can vary from loan to loan). Cosmetic repairs (trim cracks, paint chips, and faucet drip) are often negotiated.

Moving is always stressful, but there are ways to minimize the stress in this process. Having a great realtor with a long track record who can navigate the process for you is a huge plus). You can also have a home inspection done and repairs taken care of before you put the house on the market; this is called pre-listing repairs. Lastly (and most importantly), you need a trustworthy contractor.

There are certain costs when you sell your home (closing costs are the common term). These include realtor fees, attorney fees, home inspection, radon inspection, closing repairs, etc. These fees are paid upon the home's sale, typically out of the equity built up during your time in the house. This means that while you might have 65K equity in your home based on the sale price, you'll only get a check for 50K, considering all the closing costs. Pre-listing repairs allows you to tackle all the repairs you'll need on the front end, and while you'll pay for the repairs out of pocket, you'll also have the peace of mind of knowing a big chunk of equity you've built up in the home isn't going to evaporate in closing costs.

If you'd like to get pre-listing repairs done, follow the link here (prelisting repairs link)

We've arrived at the pain point in the process. As you can imagine, the number of potential repairs needed on a home is massive, with some requiring a licensed plumber, electrician, or contractor. To date, we've cataloged over 300 different repairs we've done as part of a closing repair. So, while you could hire a handyman to handle the repairs, you need a combination of a home repairs specialist, a licensed contractor, and a one-stop shop.

Owners Choice is your solution! We have in-house home repair specialists and relationships with specialist trades we can bring in to tackle any repair you may need. Also, for most contractors, this type of work is filler when they're slow, but our company has a whole division explicitly dedicated to closing repairs. This team means we can execute the job and have the processes and personnel to give you a great experience.

Most homes are under contract for 30-45 days, so the window to get the inspection, repairs addendum, quote, and repairs done is very tight. We understand this and typically quote repairs 1-2 days after we receive the repair addendum, and due to the time constraints, we maintain scheduling flexibility to accommodate any timeline, even if it's just a couple of days.

We have a great working relationship with many local realtors, but many of them have yet to hear of us! So when you're your inspection report, request Owners Choice to quote your closing repairs; you'll be glad you did!