While a prelisting home inspection doesn’t replace a buyer’s home inspection, it provides many benefits to the seller. Here are a few reasons you should consider a prelisting inspection if you’re planning on putting your home on the market.

Reduce surprises. While you’ll never eliminate surprises completely, a prelisting inspection will reduce surprises later on, explains Gary Scott, president of Long & Foster Real Estate. An inspection report will let you know if there are issues with your home. The big ticket items, such as appliances and home systems, are especially important. If defected, it’s a good idea to repair or replace these items to make your home more marketable. The prelisting inspection will also inform you of minor issues, which you may consider taking care of yourself, costing you much less.

Decrease stress. A prelisting inspection provides you with ample time to make decisions before listing your home, suggests JB Haller, president and CEO of US Inspect, a partner of Long & Foster’s Home Service Connections. Your real estate agent can recommend which issues you should repair and help you plan and budget for those repairs. While the buyer will likely still request an additional home inspection, if you wait for those results, you will have much less time to assess the repairs, find vendors, budget and complete the repairs. It’s a lot less stressful when you’re not on a limited timeline.

Set your property apart. “Disclose everything,” suggests Scott. “Transparency gives prospective buyers confidence and peace of mind.” Even if you decide to sell the property as is, the prelisting inspection report provides the buyer with additional information about the property upfront. “Transparency helps sell homes,” said Haller. “The more transparent you are with prospective buyers, the more likely your home will sell quickly and at a higher rate.” In hot markets, prelisting inspections are growing in popularity as a way for sellers to differentiate their properties.

Get to closing faster. If you wait for the buyer’s inspection and issues arise, the repairs can delay closing. With a prelisting inspection, you are less rushed to get the repairs done and your home is ready come closing time. There is also much less friction between the seller and buyer about inspection defects, explains Haller.

“Getting an inspection conducted every few years is a great idea from a maintenance perspective,” said Scott. “Don’t only prepare your home for sale, but prepare your home to live in it, too.”

If you’re considering selling your home and you’re interested in more information about prelisting inspections, reach out to your local real estate agent. They can walk you through the entire home-selling process.