What Does Sold As Is Mean?

Separate the House's Condition From the Buyer's Right to Leave

An as-is label describes the condition being offered; to understand what the buyer can do after inspecting the house, you still need to read the purchase contract. Two separate issues.

Florida's AS IS contract makes that distinction concrete. Paragraph 12(a) gives the buyer an inspection period. During that period, the buyer decides, in the buyer's sole discretion, whether the property is acceptable. A buyer who delivers written termination notice before the period expires gets the deposit back under that provision.

A house that needs work. An offer you're ready to accept. That's when the distinction matters, because agreeing to sell the property in its present condition doesn't, by itself, answer whether an inspection can end the deal.

Before signing, locate the actual inspection deadline in your agreement, and ask an attorney to explain the cancellation language along with any repair promises elsewhere in the contract. Read them together. The Florida provision illustrates the distinction; it doesn't establish the terms of contracts used across the country.

Read the Disclosures and Loan Terms Beside the As-Is Language

Known defects. Buyer financing. Your as-is contract can address each in separate provisions, which means reading those provisions on their own terms even when the heading seems to say enough.

Paragraph 10(j) of Florida's AS IS contract includes a seller statement about facts materially affecting value that aren't readily observable and haven't been disclosed to the buyer. The as-is heading doesn't remove that statement from the agreement. Tell your attorney about known problems so the disclosure language gets checked against the facts of your property.

The same form addresses mortgage approval in paragraph 8(b). Its financing termination provision applies when the buyer can't obtain approval or timely meet its terms after a good-faith and diligent effort. Written notice must arrive before the loan approval period expires, and the deposit-refund provision requires that the buyer isn't in default.

Keep the conditions attached. Different exits, different triggers. An inspection exit and a financing exit have different triggers, even when both appear in a contract headed AS IS, so for a sale outside Florida, have your attorney identify the corresponding provisions in the agreement you'll actually use.

Compare Cash Flow Deals' Two Offers for a House That Needs Work

Cash Flow Deals offers two paths for a house sold as is. The Fast Cash Offer is an as-is sale directly to Cash Flow Deals, with no repairs for the seller to make. Its inspection period is 15 business days. Closing: 30 business days; the seller helps pick the date.

For the Premium Cash Offer: More money. A pre-approved FHA or conventional buyer we already have buys directly from you. This path covers only lender-required work. We cover repair costs, and we figure out a way, so nothing comes out of your pocket. Its inspection period is 30 business days. Closing: 45 to 60 business days (2 to 3 months); the seller helps pick the date.

For both the Fast Cash Offer and the Premium Cash Offer: The number is agreed before any work starts, and it changes only if you agree. The one exception: if something structural surfaces that was not visible or disclosed before we signed — foundation issues, hidden moisture, old wiring, cast-iron drain failure — we re-cost it and bring the number back to you. You decide. You can walk away. We disclose what we know at offer time so this almost never happens.

For the Premium Cash Offer financing fallback: If your buyer's loan falls through, that is our problem, not yours. You can still take our Fast Cash Offer, at its own number.

Before signing either agreement: Nothing is binding until a written contract is signed by both sides; you can take it to an attorney first.