One of the questions I get asked most often by sellers is whether they should have their home inspected before listing it. The short answer is: it depends on what kind of inspection you’re talking about. The nuance there matters quite a bit.

The case for targeted pre-listing inspections

There are two inspections I almost always recommend sellers consider before listing: a roof inspection and a sewer line inspection. Here’s why these two in particular.

Roofs and sewer lines are the two items that most frequently derail transactions, or at minimum create significant renegotiation after a buyer’s inspector flags them. Both are expensive to repair or replace ($10,000+ for a roof, and a sewer line can easily be another $10,000+ repair), both are easy for a seller to overlook in daily life, and both are invisible to most buyers during a showing. When a buyer’s inspector finds a failing sewer line or significant hail damage on the roof ten days before closing, everyone scrambles. That scramble rarely goes well for the seller.

Knowing about these issues in advance gives you options. You can repair them before listing, price accordingly, or disclose them proactively to put you in a far stronger negotiating position than having the buyer discover them mid-contract.

The same logic applies to any major known issues like a furnace that’s on its last legs, a foundation crack, or significant water intrusion. If you already know about it, addressing it (or at minimum disclosing it clearly) before listing is almost always the better path. Surprises in a transaction benefit no one, but they tend to hurt sellers most.

Why a full pre-listing inspection is more complicated

Here’s where the calculus shifts: a comprehensive whole-home inspection, the same scope as what a buyer would order, carries meaningful liability implications for sellers.

In Colorado, sellers are required to disclose known material defects. Once you have a full inspection report documenting every issue in the home, even minor ones, those findings become part of your knowledge base. You’re now legally obligated to disclose everything flagged in that report, and buyers may still choose to order their own inspection anyway, which means you’ve potentially created a problem without gaining a material benefit.

Buyers almost universally want to conduct their own inspection. It’s part of how they gain confidence in their purchase decision. A pre-listing inspection doesn’t replace that process. So if the goal was to give buyers peace of mind or eliminate the inspection contingency, it rarely achieves that in practice.

My recommendation

Before listing your Denver home, I recommend:

• Get a roof inspection, especially if you’ve had hail in the last few years (in Denver, that means almost certainly). Know what’s there before a buyer finds it.
• Get a sewer scope. A camera inspection of your sewer line runs $150–$300 and can prevent a five-figure surprise mid-transaction. Worth every penny.
• Address major known issues when possible. If you know the water heater is failing or there’s a drainage problem, fixing it before listing typically returns more than it costs in negotiating position alone.
• Skip the full pre-listing inspection unless your agent specifically recommends it for your situation. The liability exposure typically outweighs the benefit.

Every home and every situation is a little different, and sometimes a full inspection does make sense, particularly for older homes with complex systems where sellers want a clear picture before pricing. But as a default strategy, targeted inspections on the highest-risk items give you the information you actually need without the unintended consequences.

If you’re getting ready to sell and want to talk through what makes sense for your specific home, I’m happy to walk through it with you. A little preparation before you list almost always makes for a smoother transaction on the other side.

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Questions about preparing your home for sale in the Denver market? Reach out. I’d love to help you think it through.