As a home inspector I talk to real estate agents every day. Almost every agent tells me that there is a large inventory of unsold houses on the market and it is taking longer to sell houses than in past years. To help their listings sell, agents have become more creative. In some cases they will stage a house, (install furniture in ways that make the house more appealing to buyers). Agents also are asking buyers to repaint, or remodel older houses to become more consistent with what contemporary buyers are looking for.

It makes sense for sellers to make every stage of the purchase transaction as easy as possible. This also applies to the home inspection. After 17 years of inspecting houses, here are 10 recommendations I have for sellers to make the inspection go more smoothly.

Frank Niemeir/Staff (ENLARGE)

As an important part of the home sale process, the inspection needs to go smoothly.

1. Keep your house neat. Home inspectors are like everyone else, they like to be able to perform their job smoothly, without stepping over clothes, furniture out of place, or moving boxes in the middle of the floor. These items also often block access to things that need to be inspected or operated like electrical receptacles or windows.

2. Remove all furniture, stored items or other obstructions from in front of electrical panel boxes, furnaces and water heaters. The inspector will need to access these areas for close inspection and to read label plates to determine the size and age of appliances.

3. If areas like crawl spaces, storage sheds, or garages are locked, make sure to leave keys so the inspector can gain access.

4. Home inspectors need to go through all attic and crawl spaces. Sellers should clean out these spaces so that the inspector can get through them. All obstructions in front of attic and crawl space access doors should also be removed. This includes lawn mowers and other tools that are often stored just inside crawl space doors and clothes or other items on closet shelves if the attic access is in a closet ceiling.

5. Stored items should be removed from bathtubs and showers. Both bathtubs and showers have to be operated by the inspector. In my years of inspecting, I have had to move everything from clothes to kitty litter boxes from bathtub and shower areas.

6. If you have a security system, leave it off the day of the inspection. Nothing is more distracting to an inspector than an alarm going off.

7. If you are selling the clothes washing machine and dryer with the house, take all clothes out of them. The purchaser likely will want to know whether or not these appliances operate properly and most inspectors will not remove a seller's clothes.

8. If you have a dog, it should be removed from the house during the inspection. Some people are afraid of dogs no matter how friendly they are.

9. If the house is vacant, all utilities, gas, water, electric, should be turned on for the inspection. The inspector cannot do his job without them. This is also a requirement of the current edition of the Georgia Association of Realtors standard purchase and sale contract.

10. It is preferable if the seller leaves the house during the inspection. The buyer often accompanies the inspector on the inspection. The seller's presence can restrict open conversation between the buyer and inspector. If you must be at home, make arrangements for children to be away.