The roof, the basement, the furnace: selling a house that needs work
Some houses need a weekend of paint. Others need a roof, a boiler, new wiring and a dry basement before most buyers’ lenders will even consider them. If you don’t have the money, time or energy to take that on, you can sell the house as it stands. This page explains how we look at condition, how repairs turn into a price, and which disclosure rules still apply when you sell as-is.
What we are actually looking at on the walk-through
Our visit is not a home inspection, and you don’t need to prepare for it. Greg or Brett will go from the basement to the attic and outside around the foundation, mostly asking one question: what will it cost to make this house solid and livable again? The big-ticket items drive the number far more than cosmetics do.
| What we check | What tends to turn up in older Hudson Valley and North Jersey houses |
|---|---|
| Roof and gutters | Several layers of shingles, sagging sheathing, leaks showing as stains on upstairs ceilings. |
| Foundation and basement | Fieldstone or block walls with seepage, efflorescence, a sump pump that runs all spring. |
| Heating | Oil-fired boilers decades old, abandoned oil tanks, some in the basement and some under the lawn. |
| Electrical | Fuse panels, ungrounded outlets, knob-and-tube wiring hidden behind plaster. |
| Plumbing and water | Galvanized supply lines, old septic systems, private wells that haven’t been tested. |
| Paint and materials | Lead paint in pre-1978 homes, asbestos pipe wrap, damaged plaster. |
None of those things stop us from buying. Each one simply becomes a line in the renovation budget we have to carry after closing.
How repairs turn into an offer
Our starting point is the value the house would have in good condition, based on recent sales of comparable homes nearby. From that we subtract what we expect to spend on repairs, plus the costs of holding, financing and eventually reselling or renting the property. What is left is the price we can pay. We will walk you through the pieces if you ask. You may disagree with our repair estimate, and that is a fair conversation to have. Getting a contractor’s quote of your own is never a bad idea.
Why not just fix it and list? Sometimes you should. If the work is modest and you can manage the project, a renovated house on the open market will usually bring more. The math tilts toward selling as-is when the repairs are structural, when you would have to borrow to pay for them, or when the house can’t pass a buyer’s lender appraisal in its current state.
As-is does not mean “say nothing”
Buying as-is means we accept the house’s condition. It does not cancel the disclosures the law asks of sellers, and being candid helps us give you a number that won’t change later.
New York: Real Property Law section 462 has most sellers of houses with one to four units fill out a Property Condition Disclosure Statement for the buyer. The form asks about fuel storage tanks above or below ground, lead plumbing, certificates of occupancy, and now a set of flood questions: whether FEMA maps put the house in a special flood hazard area, whether flood insurance is mandatory under federal law, and whether flood damage claims have been filed. As of March 20, 2024, swapping in a $500 credit instead of the form is no longer allowed.
New Jersey: beginning March 20, 2024, the Flood Disclosure Law requires sellers to answer specific flood questions in their disclosure statement, grouped under a heading titled Flood Risk. Separately, the state’s fire code says a one- or two-family house can’t be sold until a certificate of smoke alarm compliance has been issued; the contract should say which side arranges it.
In both states, a home built before 1978 also falls under the federal lead-based paint disclosure rule. Sellers share any known information about lead paint and hazards, and buyers are entitled to 10 days to arrange a lead inspection, a right they can waive.
Why these houses stall with financed buyers
Most people buying a home borrow to do it, and their lender sends an appraiser before approving the loan. A missing handrail can be fixed in an afternoon, but a failing roof, an active leak or a dead heating system can lead the lender to require repairs before closing or to decline the loan outright. Meanwhile the buyer’s own inspector produces a long report, and the renegotiation starts. Paying cash, we don’t need a lender to approve the condition of the house, so that whole round of appraisal-driven haggling never happens.
Repairs you started and never finished
A half-gutted bathroom, a kitchen with no countertops, an addition framed but never closed in. Stalled projects are common, and they often come with an open building permit. That can matter at closing, because title searches frequently include a check with the local building department. If that is your situation, read selling with code violations or open permits. An empty house that is deteriorating has its own risks, covered on selling a vacant house. And if you inherited the house and it has not been updated in decades, see selling an inherited house.
What you don’t need to do
- Patch, paint or replace anything before our visit.
- Remove an oil tank or treat a wet basement first.
- Haul away furniture, debris or the contents of the garage.
- Pay a commission to anyone on the sale.
Have us take a look. Describe the problems when you phone (845) 367-4898, or in the contact form. The more you tell us beforehand, the closer our first number will be. See how it works for what follows the visit.
Disclosure duties depend on your property and the exact contract. If you aren’t sure what you are required to tell a buyer, talk to an attorney before signing anything.
Questions about repairs and condition
Do you honestly buy houses needing a roof and foundation repairs?
Yes. Major repairs come with most of the houses we buy. They lower the price, because we pay for the work after closing, but they don’t stop the sale.
Is a disclosure form still required when the sale is as-is?
In most cases, yes. New York requires a Property Condition Disclosure Statement from most residential sellers, and New Jersey requires sellers to disclose flood risk information. For homes from before 1978, the federal lead paint disclosure applies too. Your attorney can confirm which forms apply.
Is there an underground oil tank problem I should know about?
Many older homes in the region were heated with oil, and some have tanks that were abandoned rather than removed. New York’s disclosure form asks about fuel storage tanks. Tell us what you know; we price a tank into our number rather than asking you to remove it first.
Should I fix things before I call you?
No. Dollars spent fixing a house you then sell to us seldom come back one for one. If you are deciding between fixing and listing or selling as-is, call first and we will tell you honestly which seems to make more sense.
Why is your offer lower than what the house down the street sold for?
That house was probably finished and bought by someone using a mortgage. Our price starts from that kind of sale and subtracts the repairs, holding costs and resale costs we take on. We are glad to show you the math.