What is a Certified Pre-Owned Home?

• By Ken Small, REALTOR® ·
• Ken Small Real Estate Team, London, Ontario ·
• Century 21 First Canadian Corp., Brokerage ·
• Last updated: October 6, 2026 ·
• Reviewed monthly.

How a Certified Pre-Owned Home works, one part at a time

1. The pre-listing inspection

Before your home goes on the market, an independent, third-party home inspector checks it. Not us. We book the inspector and pay the bill.

You get the report first. Then a summary sits on the kitchen counter for every buyer to read before they write an offer.

The summary is for informational purposes only; it neither encourages nor discourages the buyer from arranging their own inspection.

Found a problem? You can fix it before you list. An item you do not fix stays on the summary. We do not hide it. Ask your lawyer what you must disclose when you sell.

2. The 1-Year Canadian Home Shield SafeClose™ Warranty

It covers the breakdown of major appliances and systems, up to $15,000, with a $100 deductible. It starts the day your buyer takes possession. Our team pays for it.

What that means for you: if the furnace dies next month, your buyer uses the warranty, not your bank account.

3. The 24-month certificate

Your buyer gets our Love Your New Home Guaranteed or I’ll Sell It For Free certificate at possession. Don’t love the home within 24 months? We list it at 0% listing-side commission. That applies when they buy their next home through the Ken Small Team, of equal or greater value. They still pay the buyer’s agency fee.

What that means for you: every buyer looking at your home is looking at a lower-risk purchase.

Both go to your buyer. So buyers can see the condition before they offer, and there is less for them to guess about.

See every guarantee and its rules →

What does a Certified Pre-Owned Home cost?

It is part of our published seller fee. Your $1,500 Launch Retainer, paid up front, pays for it.

The retainer also covers professional photo, tour and drone media. It is not our margin, and not a deposit on commission.

The rest of our fee is 3% listing-side commission, only when your home sells. We recommend 2% to the buyer’s brokerage, and that one is your call. HST goes on top.

See every line of our fee → · Seller Take-Home Calculator

What is the difference between certified pre-owned and pre-owned?

A pre-owned home is any resale home. A Certified Pre-Owned Home is a resale home in our program. It is inspected before it lists, with the warranty and the certificate attached.

What “certified” means here, and what it does not

There is no industry body, government body or licence that certifies a resale home in Ontario. Certified Pre-Owned Home is our program. We built it, and we stand behind it. It is not a stamp handed down by an authority.

What it means on your home:

• An independent, third-party home inspector, not us, inspects the home before it goes on the market.
• You get the report, and every buyer sees the summary, before they write an offer.
• A 1-Year Canadian Home Shield SafeClose™ Warranty and the 24-month certificate go to your buyer.

That is the whole thing. A known condition, shown up front, backed with money.

An agent tells you a resale home is “certified”? Ask two questions. Which body certified it? And who paid for the inspection? Ask us the same. Our answer is above.

Why a Certified Pre-Owned Home changes how buyers offer

Buyers fear what they can’t see. What’s broken? What will cost them money later? Surprise findings at the home inspection can collapse a deal or reopen the price. We answer those questions before your home goes up for sale. The aim: less for buyers to guess about, so they can offer with fewer conditions.

• 1
  Inspected before it listsProblems get found and fixed on your terms. Not in the middle of a deal, on theirs.
• 2
  Room for a firm offerWhen buyers know the condition, they have less reason to add an inspection condition.
• 3
  The hard moment comes firstAny surprise shows up before the sign goes up, not after an offer.

Who this is not for

• A newer home in good condition, with no red flags. It may add little.
• A home that is already well documented. Buyers may have what they need.
• A seller hoping to slide a problem past a distracted buyer. This program is the opposite of what you want. We would tell you so.

Is a Certified Pre-Owned Home worth it for your home? →

What London sellers say about the Ken Small Team

4.9 average from 14 Google reviews, as shown on our reviews page (October 2026). See all of them on our reviews page →

★★★★★

We would 100% recommend Ken Small if you are wanting to sell or purchase a home. After 65 years in the same house, my father and I had a huge task on our hands to clean it out and get it ready to put on the market. We were able to leave most of this with Ken and his team.

We honestly feel we could not have done this without him. He stepped right in and knew what needed to be done. We felt like he was on the same page with us and we had several offers to look at in less than a week. Ken is kind, personable, professional and turned a very stressful situation into a worry-free one for us once he was on the job.

Awesome job Ken, we can’t thank you enough. We second the other reviewer’s opinion that Ken goes above and beyond!

Denise F. · Seller · Aug 2024 · via Google

★★★★★

We sold our home! In the midst of interest increases and market pricing decline, Ken was steadfast in his commitment to sell our home. Ken used multiple outlets, went above and beyond to market our property and counselled us well along the way. In the end, we SOLD, and are beginning our next journey as a family. Thank you Ken!

Kristian W. · Seller · May 2023 · via Google

Common questions about Certified Pre-Owned Homes