Step 18: Make repair requests

BINSR is an acronym for the Residential Buyer’s Inspection Notice and Seller’s Response and is the form used near the completion of the inspection period for the Buyer to potentially make repair requests of the Seller. There are three initial options for a Buyer on this form: 1. request repairs of the Seller, 2. accept the property without any corrections, or 3. reject the premises, thereby canceling the contract. We will write up this document for you based on your requests.

Submittal of the BINSR must be done before the inspection period ends and this act terminates your inspection period. Therefore, any repairs wanted by the Buyer must be on this form as it will only be submitted only once and no follow up request can be added to it. Make sure all investigations of the property are complete before asking us to send over the BINSR. This includes not just physical investigations of the property but also the neighborhood, nearby vicinity, etc.

Generally speaking we counsel most Buyers to focus on the items most important to them. Often these might be bigger issues in terms of expense or hassle. Every single inspection report will have multiple items that are found and it’s worth keeping in mind that you’re not buying a new construction home. Don’t expect everything to be 100% perfect when you purchase it. We’ve found that by focusing on the bigger items and foregoing some of the smaller issues a Seller is more likely to respond favorably to your requests. More often than not, a reasonable request generates a reasonable response. Again, each situation is unique so we’ll spend plenty of time discussing the best action to take for the BINSR.

AAR Residential Resale Purchase Contract - Inspection Period Notice
AAR Residential Resale Purchase Contract Lines 260-263

If the Buyer does request repairs the Seller can elect to respond by either 1. agreeing to perform all of the repairs, 2. agreeing to perform some of the repairs, or 3. choosing to do none of the repairs.

If the Seller agrees to all of the repairs the transaction moves forward without any further action needed by the Buyer. However, if the Seller elects to perform only some or none of the requested repairs you have the option to either accept the Seller’s response or cancel the contract.

Arizona Residential Purchase Contract - Buyer Disapproval
Arizona Residential Purchase Contract Lines 264-284

If the contract is cancelled during the inspection period through use of the BINSR and all required timelines are met, you will receive your earnest money back after being processed by the escrow company. The processing normally takes a day or two before a check is ready. If there are any inspection fees (often termite) charged to escrow that you did not pay up front, these will be deducted from the earnest money before being repaid to you in order to satisfy those charges incurred.

Next: The appraisal