Selling a House As-Is: Pros, Cons, and How to Get a Fair Price
If you want to sell your home, but it has large issues that you don’t have the time, money or desire to fix, you may consider listing your house for sale as-is.
Selling a home as-is can be a good strategy if you need to sell the home quickly, can’t afford the repairs, or want to attract a cash offer. But it also comes with a set of drawbacks that you should weigh carefully before you make your decision.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through what an as-is sale really means — and what it doesn’t. To make sure you have the best information at your disposal, we talked with top-rated real estate agents across the country who offered their expert insights to help you make the best decision for your home and your future.
What does it mean to sell a house as-is?
An as-is sale is pretty self-explanatory, but it comes with a few caveats. A house that sells as-is means that the seller typically isn’t willing to make any repairs or fix any issues that the home may have, and the home will sell in its current state. Now for the caveats:
You still have to disclose issues: Listing your home as-is doesn’t mean you can wash your hands of the property and say “you get what you get” to potential buyers. Federal and state disclosure laws require sellers to disclose certain issues with a property. Typically, things like a leaky roof, the presence of asbestos, and issues with the HVAC system or foundation need to be listed on the seller’s disclosure. In addition to federal requirements, each state may have specifics that sellers are required to list.
You can pick what comes as-is: In some cases, a seller may not want to list the entire home as-is if the issues are isolated to certain areas, like the garage or pool area, or for certain elements like a fireplace or broken appliances. If you go this route, a buyer could request repairs on areas not listed as as-is.
The buyer can still request repairs: Even if the home is listed as-is, the buyer can still order an inspection after making an offer and request repairs to areas of concern that come up on the inspection. The seller can then negotiate and decide to do the repairs or refuse.
