Negotiate the Price of an "As Is" Property After an Inspection
The process of buying a home can be a long and emotionally exhausting one. You have searched for the right home, finally found one you liked, agreed upon a sales price with the seller and are now doing your due diligence on the home to make sure you approve of its condition. If the seller is selling the home in "as is" condition, it means they prefer to sell it exactly the way it is without making or paying for any repairs. That is what the seller prefers but you can certainly still try to negotiate after inspections have been completed.
Instructions
1. Make sure to be as thorough as possible when having your inspections done. At the very least, you will need a home inspection and a termite inspection. This covers the entirety of the home but if either of those inspectors find something suspect, they may recommend a further or specialty inspection such as on the roof or for mold.
2. Review the inspection reports closely with your Realtor. The termite reports will put price tags on the repairs needed but the home inspection generally does not. You can call around for estimates or have contractors come out to the house to give more accurate estimates. It is important to put a price on the repairs needed.
3. Decide which repairs are important to you and that you would like to be reimbursed for. In an "as is" situation, the seller will rarely agree to do the repairs, so asking for the money is your best option. You may ask for the entire amount or a percentage that you feel is fair. In an "as is" situation, they would probably be more willing to share costs rather than pay for all repairs.
4. Submit an addendum to the purchase contract through your Realtor. The addendum changes the original contract and asks the seller for the amount you have decided on. You can either ask for the purchase price to be lowered by that amount, for the seller to put the money towards your escrow fees or for them to leave a credit for you in the escrow account. You can also have them write a check directly to a contractor and leave the check in the escrow account to be used after the close of escrow.
5. Write a letter to go along with the addendum or have your Realtor write one for you, detailing what the money will be used for. Choose repairs that you did not anticipate or that might be a deal breaker for you. The seller most likely wants to negotiate rather than lose the sale.
Tags: your Realtor, After Inspection, escrow account, home inspection, Negotiate Price, Negotiate Price Property
