Many cities and towns in Marin County require mandatory re-sale inspections before a seller transfers home ownership to a buyer.
Marin Cities that require resale inspections
- Belvedere
- Corte Madera
- Fairfax
- Larkspur
- Mill Valley
- Novato
- San Anselmo
- San Rafael
- Tiburon
Fees range widely from about $100 to close to $300 in Novato. Ouch! In addition, what is inspected during these inspections vary widely. Most check to make sure permits for any property improvements have been pulled. The cities also note issues that may not be compliant with current building codes, check on zoning, property usage, etc. Re-sale inspections in Marin county do not cover property condition, quality of construction, general defects with the property, termites, etc. Look for a general home inspection and a termite inspection to cover these items.
Marin sellers are strongly encouraged to perform the city/town re-sale inspections prior to going on their market. Your Marin real estate agent should help you arrange this. Some Marin cities and towns take an extended period of time to schedule inspections and also to return the inspection report. If you do not get the report in time, you could end up delaying close of escrow.
If you have not pulled permits, you may be fined, asked to pull those permits retroactively and in some instances, sellers have been asked to remove unpermitted improvements.
I have seen many deals fall apart after the reports are returned on a city/town resale inspection. Buyers don’t like surprises at the last minute. It is much better to know any issues relating to the city inspection before you find a buyer!
Marin home buyers: Never sign off on your resale inspection unless you have seen the report in your hands. Even if you attend the inspection, the city inspector may add mandatory items that you aren’t expecting. View the actual report. Some Marin cities and towns (such as Tiburon)do a re-inspection of required items (with an additional fee). If you fail to make corrections within your allotted time period, you may get fined per day. At last check, Tiburon fines racked up fines at a cool $103 a day. Now that can add up quickly!