Selling a House ‘As Is’ in Arizona

Are you considering selling your home “as is” in Arizona? Whether you’ve got a fixer-upper or recently inherited a relative’s home, sometimes the goal is to skip repairs, get a fair offer, and move on.

Why sell your home “as is”? According to John Billings, a top-selling agent in Pima County, Arizona, with nearly 20 years of experience, one of the most common reasons is that owners don’t want to (or can’t) deal with making extensive repairs.

“The property needs work. The owners don’t want to do anything with it,” he says.

Billings has over 500 transactions in his market, with an average price of $354,000.

“If the property is popular and they know that it’s going to have multiple offers, they know that they can use the “as-is” [tag] to select the best offer,” he adds.

However, selling a house “as is” usually means accepting a lower offer, and it doesn’t always prevent buyers from trying to negotiate savings.

Let’s look at how to sell a house in Arizona, your options for getting an offer, and what to expect from the process.

Fast facts about selling a house ‘as is’ in Arizona

What is ‘as is’ condition in real estate?

“As is” is a type of home sale where it’s understood that no improvements will be made to the property. When selling a house, “as is,” the seller is choosing not to entertain buyer requests to complete repairs or provide a credit for fixes.

An as-is sale may also indicate that the functionality and longevity of certain home components, such as a stove on its last legs or an older roof, is not guaranteed.

When selling a house “as is,” the general condition of the property should already be accounted for in the home’s purchase price to the best of the seller’s knowledge.

“If the house needs a lot of work and the seller wants to obtain the best price, I usually tell them it’s not the best idea to try to sell it “as-is” because it’ll make it harder to sell,” Billings says.

“If it’s a requirement because the house is in disrepair, then we usually make it part of the marketing that the house needs work and to fix up; it’s just different by each scenario,” he says.

Which types of homes are sold ‘as is’?

Homes sold “as is” often need work or may be cosmetically outdated. It’s not a label you’ll likely put on a listing in pristine, move-in-ready condition.

“As is” sales often attract investors searching for their next flip or buyers seeking a bargain, perhaps on a home in a great location with lots of potential.

What problems do you have to disclose in Arizona?

Selling a house “as is” in Arizona doesn’t mean sweeping known problems about the house under the rug.

A good time to fill out Residential Seller’s Property Disclosure Statement (SPDS) is before listing your home or requesting an offer so that you know it’s taken care of.

According to the document, Arizona legally requires sellers to disclose material facts about the property even if not asked by the buyer or real estate agent.

The form will walk you through documenting what you know about the property, such as any liens that may be recorded or title issues.

You’ll also be prompted to fill out information about:

• Roof, ceiling, interior wall, floor, chimney, or fireplace issues
• Foundation or structural problems (cracks or settling)
• Any damage caused by fire, water, flood, or hail
• Past or current presence of termites or other wood-destroying pests
• Electrical, HVAC, and plumbing problems

No matter what method you choose to sell your home, you must make these disclosures to the best of your ability. However, Arizona does not allow certain exceptions for sellers who haven’t lived in the home and requires sellers to obtain and provide information truthfully and thoroughly and provide explanations in the form if they do not have the personal knowledge to answer a question.

Review your options to sell ‘as is’ in Arizona

The main options to sell a house ‘as is’ include:

List ‘as is’ with the help of a real estate agent

A great real estate agent will assist in listing and selling a home “as is.” An agent gives simple presentation tips to improve marketing, helps to set an appropriate price that reflects the home’s condition, and works to find a buyer willing and eager to buy your home in its current state.

Sell directly to a cash buyer

Someone needing to sell their home “as is” can also work directly with a property investor or house-buying company rather than list, where getting an offer from a limited buyer pool may be difficult.

We Buy Houses operations buy “as is” at a discounted rate and generally seek out homes needing significant repairs. These companies can help sellers cash out quickly, and many will cover a seller’s closing costs.

Steps to list ‘as is’ with the help of a real estate agent

Find an agent willing to list the home ‘as is’

Your choice of real estate agent always matters, but especially when selling a property “as is.” It’s important to find the right match. You’re looking for an agent who doesn’t shy away from listings that need a little TLC and maybe has a strong network of investor connections.

Your agent should also be willing to go the extra mile on marketing. Considering 80% of Americans say they would prefer to buy a move-in ready home, an “as is” sale likely has a reduced buyer pool from the start.

Billings says disclosing any defects or issues with the property is important, but for sellers who inherited the property, this can be difficult, as they may not know the full extent of the problems within the home.

“Sometimes the sellers have been given the home when someone passes, and they don’t know much about the house,” he says.

“We usually recommend that they put in there that they don’t really know about the property, they’ve never lived in it, and to fill it out to the best of their knowledge,” Billings adds.

Consider a pre-listing inspection

A pre-listing home inspection is the same as a standard one except that the seller pays for it before listing their home on the market. It may sound like a counterintuitive step for an as-is sale, but getting the inspection results upfront can illuminate any issues that could impact the home’s value and inform an accurate pricing strategy. If a buyer requests further deductions to the price based on their inspection, you may be able to point to how the estimated cost of certain repairs was already baked into the list price.

Billings says pre-inspections ultimately give sellers more tools to entice potential buyers better.

“They know what the issues are ahead of time that they can resolve before selling the property, so it’s in moving condition for the buyers. More buyers want that move-in condition with high prices,” he says.

Price to reflect ‘as is’ condition

The median sale price for homes in Arizona hit $430,990 in the fourth quarter of 2023, a 1.8% decrease over the year prior.

Billings recommends dropping the price, particularly if it’s a home that needs a lot of repair.

“Usually, if it says it needs a ton of work, we’ve tried to reduce the purchase price or the list price by 10% to 15%.”

You can start with a free estimate from HomeLight’s Home Value Estimator (HVE).

Our HVE combs public data, including tax records and assessments, and pulls recent sales records for other properties in your neighborhood. Using a short questionnaire, we also factor in specifics about your home, such as the property type and described condition. Input your address, and we’ll give you a preliminary home value estimate in under two minutes.

How Much Is Your Arizona Home Worth Now?

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Do ever-so-light preparations

Even for as-is home listings in Arizona, Billings typically recommends sellers complete basic tasks, such as ensuring the roof or major appliances like the air conditioner are in working order.

He suggests “taking care of the main parts of the home like the roof, the air-conditioning, water heater, and appliances, making sure those are all in good shape and repairing those if needed.”

There are several other ways you can spruce up your home’s curb appeal on a budget, including taking care of the lawn or cleaning the windows. It’s important not to spend too much time or money, however, as making extensive repairs defeats the purpose of selling the home “as is.”

Photograph to show potential

Your home listing warrants professional photography no matter the property is condition. A professional photographer will take steps to shoot each room from the best angle, ensure optimal interior and natural lighting, and edit for the ideal brightness and exposure.

A high-quality camera with a wide-angle lens is also essential to showcasing entire rooms rather than half or three-quarters of what’s there. For these reasons and more, professionally photographed homes can help earn homeowners up to a 47% higher asking price per square foot compared to houses marketed without professional photos.

Your real estate agent will almost always arrange for professional photos as part of the listing process.

Highlight the surrounding area

A home’s location will be important to buyers seeking out a home with potential. Mention in your as-is listing if your home is close to any of the following:

• Downtown areas
• Major employers
• Parks and green spaces
• Sports venues and entertainment districts
• Waterfront views or access (ocean or a lake)
• Highly rated schools
• Access to outdoor activities
• Public transportation

Include ‘as is’ in the listing

Unless you explicitly mention that your house is being sold “as is,” buyers will have no idea of your intentions with the listing. Other common descriptors mentioned in as-is listings in Arizona include priced to sell, fixer-upper, handyman special, or a “call for investors.”

To balance the focus on as-is condition, work with your agent to craft a property description that highlights the best features of the home,

Understand buyers may still negotiate

Listing “as is” provides no guarantee that buyers won’t try to negotiate savings on their purchase, even on an asking price you felt was already reduced to reflect the home’s condition. One of the best defenses you can have is an agent who takes a hard stance to prevent a deal from going south for the seller.

Be aware of minimum property standards for certain loans

When you place your home on the market, it’s hard to predict if your top offer will come from a cash buyer or a buyer pre-qualified for a home loan.

But if you do end up working with a financed buyer, be aware that different mortgage types (such as conventional loans or government-backed FHA, USDA, or VA loans) have different minimum property standards. These are standards related to the overall condition of a property, which will play a role in the willingness and/or ability of a lender to finance a buyer’s loan.

Before properties can be financed, their value and condition are typically examined by a state-licensed, independent appraiser contracted by the buyer’s mortgage company.

If you’re unsure whether your home will meet appraisal requirements, you can start by taking a look at the FHA minimum property standards. If your house complies with FHA, then it complies with most other lenders’ requirements.

Prioritize a cash offer if you receive one

On occasion, conventional lenders may even finance a fixer-upper property sold “as is,” it’s not impossible to finance a fixer-upper with an FHA loan. However, if you’re selling a house “as is” — especially one that needs heftier repairs — you may want to consider accepting a cash offer if you receive one. Cash eliminates the lender-ordered appraisal and the time it takes to close on the buyer’s loan, creating a faster and clearer path to settlement.