Home warranties aren’t just about broken dishwashers; they can be a strategic incentive that keeps buyers confident, negotiations smooth and repairs affordable. In this episode, Judy Jernigan talks with Keri Smith (Choice Home Warranty’s “Your Warranty Gal”) about why offering a home warranty when you list your home can be a game‑changer. They demystify what warranties really cover versus homeowners insurance, explain seller coverage options, and share a clever hack for figuring out your HVAC’s age using the serial‑number sticker and AI. If you’re selling a home in metro Atlanta, here’s what you need to know.
Home warranty vs. homeowners insurance – A home warranty is a service contract that pays to repair or replace major home systems (HVAC, plumbing, electrical) and appliances when they break from normal wear and tear. Homeowners insurance, on the other hand, only covers sudden disasters like fire or storms. Pairing the two offers broad protection.
Typical cost and coverage – A seller’s warranty is usually purchased for a few hundred dollars and transfers to the buyer at closing. It covers most major mechanical systems and appliances; additional items like pools or well pumps can be added for an extra fee. Plans last about a year and require a modest service fee when you call for repairs. Warranties generally do not cover cosmetic issues, routine maintenance or pre‑existing conditions.
Seller coverage during the listing period – Many companies (such as 2‑10 Home Buyers Warranty) provide complimentary seller coverage while your home is on the market. If a covered item fails, you pay a service fee and the warranty company pays for the repair, protecting you from surprises and price reductions. At closing, the policy converts to buyer coverage, which is a powerful incentive because it reduces the risk of post‑closing disputes.
Negotiation benefits – Offering a warranty shows buyers you stand behind your home’s condition. It can help older homes compete with new construction and may even prevent last‑minute renegotiation during inspections. Judy’s 2025 Brookhaven market update recommends smart, controlled incentives like including a home warranty rather than discounting price.
Multi‑year plans and transferability – Keri explains that some sellers extend coverage beyond the first year or add upgrades (e.g., roof leak protection) when negotiating. Policies can usually be transferred to the buyer at closing without additional cost, giving buyers peace of mind.
ChatGPT HVAC age hack – Buyers often worry about hidden HVAC issues. Keri suggests snapping a picture of your HVAC’s serial‑number label and using AI (like ChatGPT) to decode the model and manufacturing date. HVAC technicians recommend starting with the manufacturer’s label; many brands encode the year of manufacture in the serial number, and examples show how codes like 9153S14F reveal that a Trane unit was built in April 2009. Knowing your system’s age helps you decide whether to repair, replace or negotiate a home‑warranty add‑on.
Home buyers compare your listing to brand‑new construction. A home warranty offers reassurance that if the HVAC fails or the water heater springs a leak, they’re not facing a huge bill. It also protects you as the seller: unexpected breakdowns during the listing period won’t derail the sale because you can call the warranty company to handle repairs. Judy notes that in a balanced 2025 market, controlled incentives like fixed closing‑cost credits or a home warranty help you stand out without sacrificing price. Including a warranty shows confidence in your home and can speed up negotiations and closing.
Get Top Dollar Using Incentives & Buyer Credits | How to Sell Your Atlanta Home: Episode 4 – Explore seller concessions, closing‑cost credits and rate buydowns to make your listing stand out (available on Judy’s YouTube channel).
Stage Your House While Living In It | Episode 5 – Occupied home‑staging expert Karla Giltner shares how to create emotional connection through layout, color and lighting without moving out.
Home Marketing Masterclass: Photography, Social Media & Storytelling | Episode 6 – Learn how high‑impact marketing and professional media generate buyer demand and higher offers.
What Home Sellers Need to Know About Title Insurance | Episode 7 – Real‑estate attorney Kirsten Howard explains why clear title matters and how enhanced title policies protect your sale.
Smart Tax Strategies for Home Sellers | Episode 8 – Tax strategist Alysha Harvey discusses capital gains exclusions, 1031 exchanges and record‑keeping to keep more of your profit.
“Judy made the closing process easy and stress‑free. She was proactive and communicative, always on top of the details, and truly cares about her clients. Her professionalism and experience made us confident in every decision.” – Perrie & Associatessageandgracere.com
A home warranty isn’t a magic fix for everything, but as Judy and Keri explain, it’s a valuable tool for both sellers and buyers. When combined with professional staging, strategic pricing and smart negotiation, offering a warranty can give you the edge in Atlanta’s competitive market. For personalized advice on your situation, schedule a consultation with Judy and explore her other resources for home sellers.
Ready to take the next step? Schedule a consultation with Judy Jernigan, get your free home valuation or explore the Sage & Grace blog for more selling insights. Proper tax planning and expert guidance can turn a stressful sale into a strategic success.
Transcript
[Judy]
Selling a home comes with plenty of moving parts. What if you could protect yourself from last-minute surprises and make your home even more appealing to homebuyers? A home warranty can do just that.
In this episode, we're diving into how home warranties can help home sellers reduce risk, attract homebuyers and even increase your home's value. Today, I'm joined by Keri Smith, a home warranty expert with years of experience helping homeowners, realtors and homebuyers navigate the benefits of home warranties. With a background as a licensed realtor and a commitment to exceptional customer service, Keri understands first-hand what home sellers need to know when considering a home warranty.
She's worked with multiple home warranty companies and is here on How to Sell Your Atlanta Home with Sage and Grace to break down how home warranties can be a game-changer for people selling their homes. I'm your host, Judy Jernigan. Welcome, Keri.
[Keri]
Thank you for having me.
[Judy]
Thank you for being here. I'm excited that we're finally able to do this. Absolutely.
So really big picture, very basic question, what is a home warranty and how is it different from homeowners insurance? Sure.
[Keri]
Well, keeping this light and fluffy for you and not too technical, essentially a home warranty is a service agreement for the systems and mechanicals located within the home and that fail due to normal wear and tear. And normal people, I like to call people normal people outside of home warranty, is easier to understand is that home warranties act like a coupon. And I think everybody understands what a coupon is.
It's essentially there to help save money for unexpected repairs and or replacements. So as far as with keeping in mind and the consideration is that not all home warranty companies are the same. We're all different from each other.
And so it comes down to the understanding that small fine print with having the coverage.
[Judy]
Right. So let's talk about what a home warranty isn't for a second. I work with a lot of first time home buyers.
And while this episode is targeted for people selling their homes, still for the sake of understanding what we're talking about, homeowners insurance, some people call a fire policy, right? It's big picture if your home, heaven forbid, were to catch on fire or have a flood, there's big damage to a home. That's homeowner's insurance.
Home warranty is, as you said, more of the mechanicals, the refrigerator, the washer dryer, in some cases, depending on what you choose to get coverage for, right? And normal wear and tear as opposed to some really big bad event.
[Keri]
Correct. Homeowner's insurance and home warranty somewhat complement each other. Homeowner's insurance does, like you had said, keyword is damage.
It's a protection, especially for mortgage companies when there is a buyer who purchasing home, you're required here in the state of Georgia to have homeowner's insurance. You are not required in the state of Georgia to have a home warranty. It's optional in this state right now.
And so again, we complement homeowner's insurance with the normal wear and tear on things. You know, all too often people don't understand, especially the past few years since we went through COVID in 2020, everybody was shelter in place, locked in their homes, just about using their systems and mechanicals day in and day out, getting a lot of normal wear and tear. Things that they hadn't used in years, like, you know, person who never lived at home now had to have food in their refrigerator or, you know, or wash their dishes, God forbid, you know, things were getting used.
And so there had been a lot of normal wear and tear on these systems and mechanicals. So how we complement homeowner's insurance is that, say for instance, you know, you as a homeowner go on spring break right now with your children and you go to the beach for a week, come home and lo and behold, the water heater up in the attic started leaking because it was, you know, very old water heater and it created all this damage, you know, in and around the drywall, hardwood floors, and homeowner's insurance could possibly cover all the damage that was involved. And then if you had a home warranty, that could possibly cover the normal wear and tear of the water heater. So that's kind of how we complement each other.
[Judy]
Definitely complement each other. So with new, so for home sellers, when they're getting ready to list their home, why, what should they know about and why should they consider a home warranty? How can it help home people selling their home?
Sure.
[Keri]
There's several options as a homeowner can explore when listing their home. And especially through you, you do such a great job with listing homes and marketing them is that if the homeowner doesn't currently have a home warranty on their home, you as their preferred realtor, we have in our real estate department, a service called a seller's coverage during the listing period. There is so many items of value to having that, or at least a home warranty during your listing and marketing of it because it can essentially bring peace of mind to a buyer who is out shopping around homes.
And especially if your home is older, your systems or appliances are at or past its life expectancy, you're up against new construction. The new construction is blowing up everywhere. So your used home is up against all this new stuff right now.
So you may want to consider having a home warranty on your home as it's listed. That way, number one, it can be transferred to the buyer at closing. Secondly, you can advertise that you're negotiable about providing one.
You don't necessarily have to commit to it, but you can at least have it in your back pocket to negotiate with the buyer if it comes down to that. Because you never know what the buyer is going to ask for. You know, you certainly, if your water heater is 17 years old, you know, you don't want the buyer coming in and either asking you to reduce the price of your house $10,000 or buy a new water heater when it's perfectly fine.
Use that as a negotiating tool by having the home warranty with that buyer that may come along. Did I answer that?
[Judy]
Yeah, that's perfect. So you mentioned several things in there. I want to dive into a little bit more.
You mentioned new homes come with a home warranty, right? New construction.
[Keri]
Possibly.
[Judy]
Possibly.
[Keri]
Yes. The big bulk builders, saying no names, but the big bulk builders, they typically, yes, they do have contracts and partnerships with specific new construction, excuse me, home warranties. So, you know, the builder may provide not only their builder one-year warranty, but they may provide an extended warranty on top of that.
But then there's spec home builders, you know, with new construction to where they don't have partnerships with big new construction home warranty companies. So they may have their one-year builder warranty, but then nothing extends after that. However, most all the home warranty companies that do service in and around, you know, the state of Georgia, Metro Atlanta, they do have products that can be extended past that one year specifically for new construction.
[Judy]
So this was, this is the same idea though, what home, existing homes, someone who's lived in their home for many years and is getting ready to thinking about selling it, listing it. Is there a way to offer something very similar to what's being offered to buy new construction? It was sort of my point.
Do you see what I'm saying, Mikey? Something that home buyers find reassuring is that new construction comes with, with several warranties. And this is a way for existing construction to also offer some, as you said, peace of mind to home buyers.
Is that a stretch?
[Keri]
It's not a stretch. Most certainly, like I said, with the sellers can offer, you know, in their marketing material that they are considering negotiating for a home warranty at closing. And, you know, as far as with, as a seller, if you don't already have a home warranty on your house, which would be transferable if it was paid in full, you know, to consider as far as with a specific price range that you would feel comfortable with providing the buyer would be my recommendation.
[Judy]
So home warranties come in one year, two year, three year terms?
[Keri]
Depending on the company, most real estate departments and most home warranty companies do offer at least a one year that can, with choice, we're kind of known for our discounted multi-year plans, but we can go all the way up to a five-year policy. So there's a stretch there. But, you know, as far as with, I am seeing over the past six months to a year that there has been an increase of home warranties incorporated with buyers asking them for the seller at closing.
And the reason is because the homes are somewhat, in some areas, staying on the market a little bit longer. So I have seen as far as with the sellers who are more accepting about providing one, their homes are getting off the market a little bit more quicker.
[Judy]
Yeah, for sure. Yeah, the home buyers have more negotiating power than they did in years past, and this is something they can negotiate and ask for. So let's say a home seller purchases a one-year home warranty, and they just listed their home, and it's going to be on the market for, let's say, for the sake of conversation, a month before it goes under contract, then another month before closing.
So we're two months into a 12-month home warranty. When it transfers to a new home buyer, they get the benefit of the remaining 10 months. Is that how that works?
[Keri]
If it is a purchased home warranty, yes. The remaining balance of time left on the policy term can be transferred to the buyer at closing, and then that would extend to whenever the expiration date is. However, a service that I believe that you provide is that complimentary seller's listing coverage while the home is listed on the market.
So when a seller doesn't have a home warranty, you as a realtor can use the tool of a seller's complimentary coverage during the listing period, meaning that the policy would go into effect the day the house goes into the multiple listing service. It has to be through a realtor. For sale by owners cannot do this.
This is a value add for the realtors in providing exceptional service to the seller. And that seller's coverage, at least the company I work for, is good for up to 180 days during the listing period. If the house expires, withdraws, or it sells and the home warranty is not negotiated within the contract with the buyer, we can cancel it out of the system.
It doesn't, you know, nobody owes any money. The only time the seller pays for the warranty would be if, in fact, the buyer and the seller has agreed that the seller is contributing to the warranty at closing, and that way we then get together an invoice for closing and then the attorney will collect the payment out of the seller's net at closing and then send us a check after closing. So there's no upfront cost to the seller's coverage during the listing period.
Now it is a bit more restrictive than a regular paid policy. It has a $3,000 cap limit overall, so of course, you know, setting the right expectation, that's not going to replace your five-ton AC unit, you know. So with setting the right expectation, however, it can possibly, and I say this very generically, possibly assist with maybe some items that the seller, the homeowner did not know about or were not aware of, of something failing with their systems or mechanicals during the period that they're living in their home that maybe a home inspector comes in during the due diligence period and finds and brings to your attention like, hey, this isn't working right. We can explore seeing if the seller's coverage would cover that particular failure.
However, everything is to be in good, safe working condition at start of coverage, so that's very universal between all of the companies, so.
[Judy]
I see vacant homes when someone's no longer living in the home. There isn't going to be wear and tear, but on the flip side, there isn't any preventative maintenance happening. Is this a good idea for home sellers who know that they're moving out and?
[Keri]
It depends on the home warranty company. Now, please be aware, some companies do have the restriction that it has to be occupied. There are some other companies it doesn't have to be occupied, but again, it goes back to the small, fine print that everything is to be in good, safe working condition.
One thing I think that all the companies can agree on, we don't cover excuses or assumptions. You can't assume that something's going to be covered, so we don't know what's going to be covered as a home warranty company until a licensed technician comes out to further evaluate. It all comes down to the policy terms and conditions as to what the cause of the failure is.
Is it normal wear and tear or was it damage? But the positive about as a homeowner, as you as a realtor guiding your clients in the right direction, there are local representatives for some of these companies, national companies that are here in and around Metro Atlanta that are a great source of information in setting the correct expectation and asking questions. Such as yourself.
Yes, and I'm happy to do so.
[Judy]
Go ahead and give a shout out to your company.
[Keri]
Sure. I've been with Choice Home Warranty now for six years. My anniversary was last week, so six years with Choice Home Warranty.
I do work in business development, marketing side of the real estate department within Choice. I've really enjoyed doing that. I was with a different company for five years before that.
Then I was a realtor for 11 years. I worked with buyers and sellers. Having these conversations with your clients are super important.
But yeah, I enjoy it.
[Judy]
Let's talk specifics with your company. What are the different types of plans and what's covered under each plan? Sure.
[Keri]
Our real estate department is very different than our consumer department. Our real estate department is at chwpro.com and that has our most comprehensive coverage that you can get with Choice. Has higher cap limits than consumer department.
It has more coverage. Of course, it's more targeted for people who are going through a real estate transaction buying a used home that they've never lived in. It covers things such as failures due to lack of maintenance, rust and corrosion.
But we do have three levels of coverage. Of course, a basic and standard plan, middle plan called the Choice Plus Plan, and then our top tier plan is called the Ultimate Plan. With each plan, as you level up, they cover more things.
Correct. Like a cheese pizza to the ultimate pizza in between there. But it's definitely an industry that you get what you pay for and it does come down to the small fine print.
One thing I have learned in this industry and being a representative and having the opportunity to work with so many realtors as well as homeowners with explaining coverage, I can't stress enough that no matter what home warranty company you are shopping around, making sure that number one, you understand the coverage and then secondly, really try to shoot for a top tier plan because that is going to maximize your coverage when something does go wrong or a failure does happen.
[Judy]
So let's back to the sort of bigger picture. If a home seller has an item that is covered during their listing and sales process that stops working, what do they do? How does it work?
[Keri]
If they have the seller's coverage during the listing period, something is brought to their attention, it's failing. The process with choice, our claims experience process, what it looks like is that when a failure happens and the homeowner wants to explore to see if the home warranty policy will cover that particular situation, our process as a claim has to be placed. I like to call it a work order because claim just sounds really harsh.
And so there's usually an online portal, right, to put in the work order.
I like to guide people to the website first, because it is super simple.
If whatever's failing in your house isn't on a dropdown, it's not covered. So it's, you know, pretty easy. It's pretty, you know, as far as with easy to use, user-friendly.
The 888 number's a little bit more automated. So I find myself getting a little bit more frustrated because sometimes I slur my words or I just don't sound right and it misunderstands me, but you can place your claim online.
[Judy]
Okay. So you can go online or there's an 888 number if you prefer. Okay.
[Judy]
You had something really fun I saw on social the other day where you scanned an HVAC sticker. Can you tell us about that? It was a brilliant trick.
[Keri]
Well, I would love to say that I thought of it, and I'm just brilliant, but I'm not. And it was kind of like copy, duplicate. But I did see it on one of the social media platforms and me not being techie, and I get asked the questions a lot from people as far as with how do I find out how old my HVAC is, or like maybe a technician didn't thoroughly diagnose, or what have you.
When I see information in our system, like it won't have the age of the system, so I'll ask the homeowner, like can you send me a picture of your model number, serial number. And the video that I had posted was that in learning about chat GPT is that I didn't realize that you can upload a picture or a video to chat GPT and ask chat GPT to decipher it or to provide more information. And one of the things that I had educated everybody about was that you can take a picture of a model number, serial tag on the HVAC or water heater, or even your refrigerator, any sort of appliance.
Take a picture of it, upload it to chat GPT, and ask the prompt how old is this HVAC system, water heater, refrigerator, dishwasher. According to this photo, and it will list out the manufacturer's name, the date that was manufactured. So it's a really great feature with learning that chat GPT.
The Debbie Downer though, and I didn't think about this on the other side, is that sometimes these older HVAC systems, or units, or appliances, they don't have tags, or maybe it's like rubbed out because the leather got So you have to have the sticker.
[Judy]
As long as you have the sticker, it's the best and easy way to find out the age. And you're like, what size air filter do I need? Because please, everyone, public service announcement, change your air filter.
So where can we, so you mentioned that was on social, where can folks find you online?
[Keri]
All my social tags, the ones that I'm on, you can find me at Your Warranty Gal. That's my all my social platforms. That's the tag is Your Warranty Gal.
But as far as with on Facebook is my most active one, but there is an Instagram, Twitter, I probably have not posted on there since 2017. Who knows, it's been a while, but all the platforms are Your Warranty Gal. Really old school, you can always give me a call and holler at my cell phone is 770-570-7544.
My email address also to old school. it is ksmith at chwpro.com. Perfect. Thank you so much for joining us.
Thank you for having me. This has been great. So anytime.
[Judy]
And thanks again to Keri Smith for breaking down what home can and cannot do for home sellers. If you're getting your home ready for the market, it's details like this that can make a big difference. I'm Judy Jernigan, and I bring more than a decade of experience helping homeowners sell smarter.
With a background in negotiation, digital marketing and a lifelong love of education. Thanks to growing up with two school school teacher parents I'm here to help you move forward with clarity and confidence.I also Learned the art of the deal young working in my family's antique business where I developed a sharp eye for value and the negotiation skills I use every day when you're ready to talk about your specific real estate goals and situation visit SageandGracere.com to book a chat. Download my free pre listing guide and check out more episodes. I'd love to help you prepare plan ahead and position your home sale for success
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