Establishes the right to inspection of residential real properties

◆ The sponsor's argument

Why Rachel May says this is needed

New York is facing a housing shortage, with far more buyers clamoring to purchase homes than houses available for sale. This housing shortage is expected to continue into the foreseeable future, and it has made the housing market extremely aggressive and competitive. A disturbing trend that has emerged in the wake of this competitive market is a practice of encouraging prospective buyers to waive housing inspections to have their offers accepted. According to the National Association of Real- tors, in 2020-2021, nearly 20% of homebuyers waived their rights to a home inspection. This is a dangerous practice, as the inspection is where significant and/or structural defects are identified and used to negotiate a fair price for the home. When home inspections are waived, prospective home buyers may wind up unknowingly purchasing a home that is in need of far more repairs than the buyer realized, resulting in devastating conse- quences for the unsuspecting buyer. It also impacts other homes in the community because the owner may decide to just cut their losses and abandon any repairs whatsoever, leaving the home uninhabited and in disrepair. This is especially problematic in states like New York, which has some of the oldest housing stock in the country. This bill seeks to address that problem by creating a buyer's right to have their home inspected. By passing this legislation, New York would join the handful of other states that have already eliminated this dangerous practice by creating a buyer's right to inspect.

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.