PUTTING A HOUSE IN ORDER: EASY STEPS TO A HYPER-CONVERGENCE OF THE REAL ESTATE TRANSACTION.
It’s an intriguing thought: If you could sit down with a blank sheet of paper and redesign the real estate transaction – from home inspections to warranties to data and beyond — where would you start? And what would you do?

Recently, the Chairman and CEO of National HouseCheck Corporation, Dennis Conforto, took a little time to blue-sky-it in front of real estate industry movers and shakers at the T3 Summit in San Diego. Mr. Conforto’s thought-provoking talk – “The Hyper-Convergence of the Real Estate Transaction” – shared HouseCheck’s vision for creating an environment that’s better for real estate professionals and consumers alike.

“It’s all about putting things in the right order,” Mr. Conforto explained. “Take the residential home inspection process, for example. For as long as anyone can remember, the inspection occurs after an offer is made. Yet, what happens following the inspection? Far too often, it creates a bad seller and buyer experience and in some cases the deal falls apart!”

DOES THE ORDER OF WHEN HOME INSPECTIONS ARE DONE REALLY NEED FIXING?
Each year in the United States there are some six million home transactions. Anyone who’s been involved in the sale or purchase of a home – especially real estate agents – know that inspections often make or break a sale. Statistics bear this out. More than 400,000 deals are cancelled annually following the issuance of the inspection report. That’s a lot of failed transactions. And a ton of bitter disappointment for all parties concerned.

Enter HouseCheck’s simple yet revolutionary idea: Rather than having the inspection in the middle of the transaction, move it to the beginning of the process. When a home is inspected before it’s put on the market, great things can happen for sellers as well as buyers. The uncertainty and anxiety that typically happen during the inspection period are replaced with clarity and confidence. When sellers know the true condition of a home before listing it, they have the power to correct any deficiencies and give the buyer a lot more value.

BUNDLING INSPECTIONS AND WARRANTIES: MORE THAN THE SUM OF THEIR PARTS.
Traditionally, home inspections and home warranties are two separate, unrelated items. But Conforto and the HouseCheck executive team saw an opportunity to bring together these two critical components of the home purchasing and ownership cycle. Here’s how it works, in two clear and easy steps:

First, when a consumer purchases a HouseCheck Home Inspection, the inspected house is automatically covered by a 120-day warranty. Second, because HouseCheck also provides home service plans, home buyers can purchase coverage from the same company that provides the inspection.

This is seamless, of course. But it’s much more than that. By adding a 12-month warranty onto the already covered four-month period, home buyers wind up with 16 months of coverage. There are also sizeable benefits for the real estate agent, who is now able to single-source home inspections and service plans.

BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE: INTRODUCING THE CERTIFIED PRE-OWNED HOME.
Another step in Conforto’s Hyper-Convergence model is HouseCheck’s Certified Pre-Owned Home. This innovative program takes the typical chain of events – where an inspection happens following an accepted offer – and turns it on its head. Instead, with the Certified approach, the house is inspected and covered with a one-year warranty before it’s put on the market. This leads to a simpler process that is attractive to seller and buyer alike.

There is also a benefit to agents. The Certified Pre-Owned Home has been shown to increase listing commissions by enhancing agent value – instead of offering discounts. Prospective buyers can access more information and can be more confident with their offers. It is a better experience for everyone.

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER: MAKING MORE DATA AVAILABLE TO AGENTS, BUYERS AND SELLERS.
The next evolution in HouseCheck’s hyper-convergence plan is to empower everyone involved in a real estate transaction with the industry’s most comprehensive property report, HouseFax. Similar to the car history report that’s so popular in the used vehicle market, the HouseFax Property Report provides a breadth and depth of information that’s as complete as it is easy to assemble. Buyers, sellers and their agents will be far more informed. This will translate into a real estate transaction featuring less friction and more cooperation. As Conforto states it, “Does it make sense in today’s world to know more about your car than your home? The answer is both obvious and self-evident.”

THE LEADING EDGE OF INDUSTRY HYPER-CONVERGENCE.
Putting the home inspection at the beginning of the real estate transaction process…marrying home inspections and service plans…providing the Certified Pre-Owned Home Designation…offering the comprehensive HouseFax Property Report – HouseCheck is committed to reducing fear, erasing doubt and raising the confidence level throughout the sales and lifecycle of the home. But that’s just the start of HouseCheck’s plans. In part two of our report, we’ll take a deeper dive into these topics, and explore how HouseCheck is looking to create optimal home environments with services ranging from environmental testing to home energy monitoring systems.

Ready to learn more now about HouseCheck’s innovative, value-driven approaches to supporting home buyers, home sellers and the real estate industry? Please join us at housecheck.com.