What is a Walkthrough?

A walkthrough is a final visual check on the subject property before the purchase. Its purpose is to:

• Property Condition: To ensure that the subject property is in the same condition it was in when the buyers saw it and put an offer in on the property.
• Negotiated Repairs or Changes: In addition, if there were any agreed-upon repairs or changes to the subject property between the buyer and the seller, this is is the time to ensure those things were completed.  
• Confirmation of Included and Excluded Items: It is a good idea to do confirm included and excluded items such as there and not there. For instance included items might be the built-in vacuum canister and attachments, hot tub and equipment and heater pool equipment and heaters, window coverings,    built-in or loose shelving, etc. Excluded items might be personal items of the sellers like beds or clothing.

Sellers Should 

Do not wait to the last minute to move. Plan to be moved out of your home at least the day before possession. This will ensure that you will be able to get the home move-in ready for your buyers and clean which will help ensure there are not problems when the buyer walk through the home.  

If the buyers are expecting a vacant home, the home should be completely vacant. Do not leave items in the home which were not agreed to to be left in the “included items”. Please know the difference between chattels (take with you) and fixtures (stay with the home).   

The buyers will always expect that you thoroughly clean the home. How clean? Just imagine how you would want to walk into your new home, you would want it to be spotless so do the same for your buyers.  Take out the trash, clean the carpets, scrub the toilets, etc. You can always call professional cleaners and ask for a “move-in clean” and they will know what you mean. 

Collect all the manuals for the appliances you are leaving in the home for your buyers. This will help them learn how to use them, a good idea is to leave them neatly on the kitchen counter. They will have questions likely during the walkthrough so it will set them at ease to know, the manuals will be waiting for them on possession day.

Your buyers will want all keys, FOBs, and garage door openers. Typically you will provide the buyer or buyer’s agent with a key on possession day to get into the home, but you can gather all keys and openers and place them on the kitchen counter.  Label any keys and where they go – the buyer will appreciate knowing what goes to what doors –especially if all are different.  It is also nice to leave a list of any particular instructions, details about the house, garbage collection day(s), etc. for the buyer. 

Another benefit of moving out at least a few days before possession is that if you do cause any damage during the move-out, you have some time to fix it. Move out the damage can cause stress for both buyer and seller, so the more time to deal with it, the better. When moving out, always take special care, and do not rush, damage is very common. 

Buyers Should

Buyers should always be thorough and be and if you spot issues, please notify the listing agent or seller immediately, so that the issue(s) can be rectified. 

Spend enough time with the sellers so they can orient you with the home and go through how things work.

Never plan to start moving things prior to your possession date and time. Typically possession is the day after completion but sometimes it is the same day as the completion date. The completion date is when you legally own the home. Completion sometimes can be delayed till the end of business day so if possession and completion is on the same day, never start moving until completion is done, title is transferred and money is received. Before this time, you don’t legally don’t own the home and there could be issues with insurance coverage in case something happened between the time you placed your belongings in or on the property until the closing.

This sometimes does not seem like a big deal if the home is vacant, there is a lot of potential liability issues if something went wrong.