Home Warranty Policies for the Seller

When you put your home on the market, I recommend ordering home warranty coverage for the listing time and the escrow period.  It seems to never fail that when you care the most about whether all of your appliances, etc., are in working order, there will inevitably be something that fails.  One listing that I had quite awhile ago, had what was then a very expensive instant hot water heater ($950).  The owner accepted an offer and wouldn’t you know it, the water heater ceased to operate.  The agent representing the buyer told the seller, “If your agent had ordered seller’s coverage, you would not have to pay for installing a new water heater.”  Because my clients are dear to me and I want to be their “Realtor for life”, I paid to have a new water heater installed.  I haven’t forgotten that experience, as I felt that I had not given the seller the best possible service.  Now I try to always inform clients that there is such a policy and that on average for less than a dollar a day their home’s systems and appliances can be covered and their only responsibility would be to pay the service charge of about $55, regardless of the cost to repair.  In future posts, I will speak more about the value of home warranties for landlords and buyers.