What to know when selling a house “as is” in Atlanta
Sell your Atlanta house “as is.”
Selling a house can be hard enough, but it becomes even more difficult when you are trying to sell a house that needs repairs. You may decide that you want to sell "as is" to skip paying for home improvements, dealing with concessions, or haggling with buyers. Whatever your reasons are, selling your house “as is” could make your home sale easier. Let’s discuss your selling options, the deciding factors that go into choosing how you sell, and what it means to sell your Atlanta house “as is.”
What does it mean to sell a house “as is?”
When you sell your house "as is," it means listing it on the market without making any repairs, renovations, or preparations at all. You also won't be responsible for any issues found in a home inspection report. However, selling your house "as is" does not mean you can sell your house through misrepresentation of your home's condition or features. A seller's disclosure isn't required in the state of Georgia, but keep in mind that lying about or hiding your home's defects could result in serious legal action against you or your real estate agent if you are working with one.
Paperwork to sell your Atlanta house “as is”
In Atlanta, selling a house "as is" works no differently than selling a house normally. This is due to the paperwork required by the state, called the Georgia Residential Purchase and Sale Agreement. This agreement is a real estate contract that serves as an "as is" sale agreement. That means home sales are conducted in the current condition the property is in, unless otherwise specified by either party. And remember—while disclosure isn’t required in the state of Georgia, sellers are still obligated to inform buyers of any known material defects in the home's condition that would not be found upon reasonable inspection.
Pros of selling a house “as is”
Before making a decision, it’s important to know the benefits you can expect when selling your property without making improvements. When you want to sell your house "as is," you get to:
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Save money: Making repairs can get expensive fast, and these costs eat a hole into the profits you're expecting from your home sale. When you sell your house "as is," you don't have to worry about paying for any repairs.
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Save time: You won't only save money when you skip repairs, but you'll save time as well. You won't be waiting for contractors to finish renovations, and you may even be able to skip the mortgage approval process if you work with a home buyer that pays in cash, like We Buy Ugly Houses®.
Cons of selling a house “as is”
While there are definite benefits, you should also keep in mind that there are a few drawbacks to selling your house "as is," including:
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Fewer offers: A lot of buyers want a move-in ready home, which means that your buyer pool will shrink significantly when you decide to sell your house "as is." On top of that, interested buyers may not be able to get approval from mortgage lenders when trying to buy a fixer-upper.
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Lower profits: Selling your house "as is" means that you are acknowledging the fact that the property needs some work, and the buyer is accepting that burden and cost. When you sell a house "as is," you should expect lower offers than you would if you had fixed the issues yourself.
What are Minimum Property Requirements?
When you sell your Atlanta house “as is,” you may also need to consider Minimum Property Requirements. Also known as MPRs, these are property conditions set by HUD (the Department of Housing and Urban Development) that must be met for a prospective buyer to qualify for a home loan. The three main requirements are that a property must be safe, secure, and structurally sound. If you are looking for a buyer who might need to qualify for a loan, it is important to keep this in mind.
Can you sell a house “as is” without an inspection?
In Georgia, it is up to the buyers whether they want to conduct a home inspection. Selling your house "as is" does not prevent buyers from inspecting the property. However, you won't be liable for any damages or defects found on the property during the inspection. Georgia is a “buyer beware” state, which means that it follows the laws of caveat emptor. This means buyers cannot claim fraud against sellers for not disclosing property defects if they can be found during an inspection. The burden is on the buyer to ascertain the condition of the house. The seller only needs to worry about disclosing any material defects, which include anything that could pose a safety risk or severely and negatively affect the value of the property.
How to sell your house “as is” in Atlanta
As you decide how you're going to sell your house "as is," you have three options. You could:
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Sell your house "as is" with a real estate agent: When you want to sell your house "as is" and you still want to sell through a real estate agent, you can use a discount broker. Discount brokers are real estate agents who have experience in selling houses "as is" and will cover the administrative and marketing work for your home sale for a nominal percentage fee. This is usually at around 1% of the sale price, as opposed to the 6% commission agents usually receive with traditional sales.
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Sell your house "as is" by owner: If you'd like to sell FSBO (for sale by owner), you can list your house using a "flat-fee MLS" service to put your house on the market and keep your information as the point of contact for the sale.
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Sell your house to a real estate investor: Maybe you'd like a hands-off approach to your "as is" home sale. Many real estate investors specialize in buying houses in less-than-ideal conditions. These real estate investors can include house flippers, iBuyers, and cash home buyers like us.
Sell your Atlanta house “as is” for cash with We Buy Ugly Houses®.
We’re home buyers with a lot of experience buying homes "as is"—for the past 25 years we have helped over 150,000 homeowners get a fast, easy home sale, regardless of the conditions of their properties. That's because when you work with We Buy Ugly Houses®:
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We don’t need an inspection: When we come over for a free, in-person consultation, we do a home evaluation where we inspect your home and property. You won't need to worry about MPRs either, since we secure our own funding.
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You don't need to pay a thing: We don't mind if your house needs repairs and renovations, and we don’t need you to spend money on staging. We don’t even need you to clean before we come over. And since we don’t charge agent commissions or hidden fees, and we pay all typical closing costs, you can focus on what you make instead of what you spend.
We have a simple, seller-focused buying process that works in 3 steps. You get a consultation, we make an offer, and then together we figure out a closing date that works for you. All you need to do is reach out to one of our property specialists to start the process of selling your Atlanta house "as is" with We Buy Ugly Houses.
