Having a home inspected prior to listing is beneficial to the buyer also. When a buyer is told upfront of a problem or defect that needs to be repaired they are less upset than if their own inspector finds it. This is especially true if a problem has not been disclosed (maybe you really didn’t know), and the potential buyer’s inspector finds it. The buyer wonders what else might be wrong that you didn’t know about or care to tell him about. A pre-listing inspection can be very comforting to a buyer, particularly in the softer market that we are just coming out of.
So who do you pick and how? You need to choose an inspector based on reputation and credentials. In the State of California there is not a license for home inspectors but there is training that gives certificates. A home inspector must complete testing plus lots of experience to petition for a professional membership