If you’re thinking of selling your home but want a quick, easy sale with no repairs and no conditions, you’re probably considering selling “as-is.” Unfortunately, selling as-is isn’t always as simple as it seems. To help you understand why, we’re going to briefly review what it means to sell as-is, conditions to be aware of when you sell as-is on the market, and one method of selling as-is with zero conditions.
What is selling “as-is”?
When you sell your home as-is, you are basically signaling to potential buyers that your home may need some work, and that you’re not planning to do that work before selling or to offer any credits for that work to be completed by the buyers.
Selling as-is on the market:
When you sell on the market there can be all kinds of conditions–even if you’ve listed your home “as-is.” This is because listing as-is doesn’t change the legal rights of the buyer, or their ability to negotiate. Here are some things to know about listing as-is on the market:
- When listing as-is, sellers must still meet minimum disclosure requirements in accordance with state and federal law. Check out these 5 common real estate disclosures you should know, and be sure to research your state laws or contact an experienced real estate attorney.
- Selling as-is usually does not exempt the seller from revealing issues that they’re aware of if those issues aren’t easily visible to potential buyers (again, check your state law on this).
- Buyers will likely still conduct a real estate inspection before the sale. While listing as-is makes it understood that the seller won’t be fixing issues they discussed with the buyer, nothing prevents a buyer from trying to negotiate if additional pricey issues come up during the inspection.
- As long as an inspection contingency was written into the contract, the buyers can walk away with their deposit if the inspection reveals more than they want to deal with and if the seller refuses to negotiate.
- As-is homes can also cause issues for conventional financing, depending on what the needed repairs are; when listing as-is, you may be limiting yourself to selling to a smaller pool of potential buyers.
Bottom line:
Selling as-is can be the right choice in some cases. If the needed repairs are small and you just don’t want to deal with them, some buyers may be willing to take on the risk. Be aware, though, that listing as-is does not exempt you from disclosure law, nor does it escape potential issues with inspections or buyer negotiation and finances.
Work with MarketPro:
If you’d like to sell your home TRULY as-is, there’s a better option. At MarketPro Homebuyers, we mean it when we say we buy as-is. We’ll give you a fast and fair cash offer for your home just as it is now; no repairs, no inspection, no commissions or fees. Our team will walk you through your quote, including a review of what the home would likely bring on the open market.
If you’re in one of our service areas of Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Washington, D.C.,or Florida , we’d love to show you how easy and stress-free the sales process can be. Contact us today for a no-pressure quote.