The OTHER Reason to See a Home That’s “Sold, Subject to Inspection”
The usual reason for prospective Buyers to see a “For Sale” home is . . . they’re interested in buying it.
But, if the home in question is “Sold, Subject to Inspection” — that is, it’s already under contract, but not past inspection — the odds that it’s available 
range from “low” to “very low” (the relevant variables include the home’s size, age, and condition; how solid/committed the current Buyer is to the deal; and how reasonable the Buyer and/or Seller are resolving any inspection issues that arise).
So, what’s the other reason to see the home, before the home’s status is switched to “Pending” and showings are discontinued?
The Buyer has strong interest in the immediate area, and wants to get a sense of prevailing prices (note: a home’s “sold” price — as opposed to its asking price — typically becomes public within a few days of closing).
Previews, Listing Agents & Appraisals
Want to guess who else has a strong vested interest in how much the (very similar) home a few blocks away just sold for?
Yup . . . upcoming neighborhood Sellers.
Which is why their agents can also scramble to get into a home that’s under contract but not past inspection (in Realtor’s parlance, the agent would set up a “preview”).
Ditto for listing agents (representing Sellers) who are representing nearby “For Sale” homes that are “Pending,” but haven’t appraised yet.
Technically only “Sold” homes are relevant for appraisal purposes — that is, qualify as a Comp (“Comparable Sold Property”).
However, in a Seller’s market like today’s, a home that went “Pending” almost immediately after debuting on the market likely sold for full price (or over), and could very well be a tie breaker for helping a similar, nearby home appraise.
See also, “More Than This, Less Than That“; “Real Estate Bracketing ” Advanced Beginner Version;” “The Science ” and Art ” of Doing Comp’s“; and ““Bracketing,’ Explained.”
“The Heisenberg Principle” — Real Estate Version*
While a long shot, there is one other scenario where it can make sense for a prospective Buyer to see a home that’s “Sold, Subject to Inspection.”
If the current Buyer and Seller are stalemated over inspection issues, it’s possible for Buyer #2 and the Seller to execute a backup offer that immediately becomes effective if/when deal #1 derails.
In fact, having a better backup offer in hand could cause the Seller to reject any inspection issues Buyer #1 raised — even legitimate ones — to get out of the deal.
The catch for Buyer #2?
Their price, terms, etc. must be sufficiently strong to entice the Seller to walk away from the first deal.
In other words, forget about getting a deal or even a discount (usually).
See also, “Why the Neighbor’s Home Usually Isn’t a Comp“; and “What Lowball Offers Really Accomplish.”
*In layman’s terms, The Heisenberg Principle stands for the proposition that the observer influences the thing that’s observed.
