Your offer is accepted, the inspection is behind you, and closing is on the calendar. It feels like the finish line. But there’s one more step standing between you and the keys, and it’s the one buyers most often rush through: the final walkthrough.

I’ve walked hundreds of buyers through this exact moment across Montgomery County, and I can tell you the final walkthrough isn’t a formality. It’s your last real chance to catch a problem before you own it. Once you close, whatever condition the home is in becomes your responsibility, not the seller’s. So let’s slow down and go through this the right way.

What the Final Walkthrough Is Actually For

A final walkthrough serves three purposes, and none of them are about falling in love with the house again.

First, you’re confirming the property is vacant and broom-clean - no leftover furniture, trash, or debris the sellers were supposed to haul away.

Second, you’re verifying that any repairs agreed to during the home inspection negotiation were actually completed, and completed correctly.

Third, you’re making sure nothing new has gone wrong between the day you signed the contract and the day you’re closing. Homes sit empty for weeks sometimes. Pipes can freeze, roofs can leak, appliances can fail. You want to know about it now, not after you’ve signed the deed.

Know Your Timing Rights

Most Maryland contracts give you up to five days before closing to schedule your final walkthrough, and your home inspector is allowed to come along with you. In practice, most buyers don’t bring the inspector back for this - it’s usually just you, and often your agent walking the space with a checklist.

Timing matters more than people think. If the home needed several repairs, I recommend doing your walkthrough three to four days before closing. That buffer gives you room to call the seller’s agent if something wasn’t finished, and gives a contractor time to come back and fix it before you’re signing paperwork. If the home was in solid shape with few or no repairs, one to two days out is usually fine.

Don’t expect this to take as long as the inspection did. A full home inspection can run two to four hours. A final walkthrough is typically 30 minutes to an hour if you move through it with a plan.

The 8-Point Final Walkthrough Checklist

Here’s what I tell every buyer to check, in order, when they walk through their soon-to-be home for the last time before closing.

1. Bring a written checklist. It’s easy to get swept up imagining where your couch will go and skip right past something you needed to verify. A checklist keeps you focused on the job at hand instead of the excitement of moving in.

2. Get repair invoices ahead of time. If the seller agreed to fix anything during inspection negotiations, ask your agent to get you the repair invoices or receipts before you show up. Walk through with those in hand and confirm the actual work matches what was promised - not just that “something” was done.

3. Run every major appliance. Don’t just glance at the dishwasher, washer, and dryer - turn each one on and let it run through a full cycle if you can. A dishwasher that starts but doesn’t drain, or a dryer that doesn’t heat, is much easier to flag before closing than after.

4. Test the heating and cooling system. Confirm the HVAC actually works for the season you’re in. One caution here: if it’s winter, don’t flip the system over to air conditioning to test it, and don’t switch a cooling-season home over to heat. Forcing a system to run outside its season can actually damage it. Test what’s appropriate for the current weather.

5. Open and close every window. Check that each one opens, closes, and - importantly - stays open on its own. A window that won’t hold itself up is a common, easy-to-miss issue.

6. Check every faucet and drain, one at a time. Run showers, tubs, and sinks individually. Here’s a trick worth remembering: fill a sink about three-quarters full, let it sit for a minute, then pull the stopper and watch underneath as it drains. The weight of a full sink will reveal a slow leak that running water alone often won’t show.

7. Test the electrical outlets. Pick up an outlet tester for about $10 at Lowe’s or Home Depot. Plug it into outlets throughout the house to confirm power is actually flowing. It’s also smart to bring a couple of spare light bulbs - if a fixture isn’t lighting up, screw in a fresh bulb to find out whether it’s a simple bulb replacement or a bigger electrical issue worth bringing up before you sign.

8. Confirm the property is empty and clean. Walk every room, closet, garage, and storage area to make sure the sellers have fully moved out and left the place free of trash and debris, per the contract terms.

Why This Step Gets Skipped, and Why It Shouldn’t

By the time you reach the final walkthrough, you’ve been through a long process of offers, negotiations, and inspections, and it’s tempting to treat this as a quick, celebratory pass through the house. But this is genuinely your last checkpoint - once you close, any issue you didn’t catch becomes yours to fix.

Going in with a plan, a checklist, and about an hour of focused time protects you from moving-day surprises. If you find something during your walkthrough, tell your agent immediately - there’s usually still time to resolve it with the seller before closing.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long before closing should I schedule my final walkthrough?

Maryland contracts allow up to five days before closing. If the home needed multiple repairs, aim for three to four days out so there’s time to fix anything that was missed. If the home was in good shape with minimal repairs, one to two days before closing usually works fine.

Can my home inspector come to the final walkthrough?

Yes, your contract allows it, though in most transactions buyers don’t bring the inspector back for this step. It’s usually the buyer and their agent doing a focused check against the repair list and general condition of the home.

What if a repair wasn’t actually completed?

Bring it up immediately with your agent. This is exactly why it helps to schedule your walkthrough a few days before closing rather than the night before - it gives everyone time to get the seller or their contractor back out to finish the work before you sign anything.

Do I need any special tools for a final walkthrough?

Just two cheap and useful items: a $10 outlet tester from a hardware store to confirm power is flowing to outlets, and a spare light bulb or two to check whether a dead fixture is a simple bulb issue or something bigger.

What’s the difference between a final walkthrough and a home inspection?

A home inspection is a thorough, professional evaluation of the property, often taking two to four hours. The final walkthrough is a shorter check, typically 30 minutes to an hour, focused on confirming agreed-upon repairs were made, the home is vacant and clean, and no new issues have popped up since the inspection.

If you’re getting ready to buy a home anywhere in Montgomery County, my guide to buying a home walks through every step of the process, including what happens after your final walkthrough on closing day. And if you’re weighing a move to a specific area, check out my neighborhood breakdowns for Rockville, Potomac, and Gaithersburg.

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