You Can Sell Your Home As Is; With the RIGHT Real Estate Agent

Inside Scoop: You absolutely can sell a home as-is, without renovations. You can even sell a home without even lifting a finger! It all matters who you list with.

How much can you make with your home sale? How much will it take to renovate your home to get its best price on the market? As it turns out, all that renovation often isn’t necessary. Many homeowners can get a great price after just a little cleaning and staging – provided you’re working with a real estate agent who knows their stuff. It’s rarely mentioned, but who you list with matters. There’s a difference between a weekend agent handling your sale in their own free time and someone who’s been dedicated to Seattle Eastside area real estate for over thirty years of hands-on market experience. Someone who lives, works, and breathes the area and knows exactly what it will take to get you the highest dollar for your home, and quickest sale.

The right real estate agent will see the potential for your home, know the neighborhood values, and help you connect with motivated buyers who want to give you a great price. I recently listed a home in SE Bellevue which sold as-is at the second-highest price per square foot in the Somerset neighborhood. The only home value that topped our recent sale had been recently remodeled while our home sold from the original owners without a single remodel or update.

The Home’s First Sale, Sold As-Is by the Original Homeowners

The challenge was set. When the SE Bellevue homeowners came to us, they had two goals. First, they wanted to sell the home for a good price and, second, they didn’t want to do any renovations. The home was to sell as-is, without renovations or updates after decades of being lived in by the original owners!

Usually, real estate agents lean on minor home renovations to make a decades-old home competitive on the modern housing market. In many cases, the increase in selling price only barely offsets the value of the renovations. Selling at a good price without renovations could easily result in more profit for the seller. We could see why our seller wanted “no renovations”, so that’s what we did.

We’re proud to say that our efforts resulted in a sale over $400K above the listing price within a week on the market.

How We Prepared for a Fantastic As-Is Sale

So how do we transform an as-is home into a highly competitive listing? My team got to work with a quick and effective strategy to make the as-is home feel welcoming and inspiring to local home buyers. We first removed personal items then cleaned, staged, and professionally photographed the home. The photographs and our now-intimate knowledge of the home helped us create a powerful listing that quickly produced a cash buyer and a one-week close.

Clearing and Deep-Cleaning

The first step for any home sale is deep cleaning. We scrub the grout, steam-clean the carpets, washed the windows, and polished the fixtures. We got this home as close to like-new as possible on the interior and gave the exterior a quick touch-up to spotlight the gorgeous architecture and mature landscape design. And boy did it shine!

Staging the Home

Stating is an artistic way to arrange sample furniture and decorations inside a home. Staging gives buyers a clear idea of how big rooms are, what they are for. Staging uses interior design elements to show off the best features and design potential of each room. We aim for each room to inspire buyers to imagine the life they could live in the staged home.

We staged this Bellevue Somerset home with a cozy contemporary style popular in the area. Its sunset views and multi-layer design made it easy to use natural light a warm color scheme to show the home’s best side.

Professional Photograph Tour

Professional photography is a must. Bridging in a professional ensures every angle is perfect and the photos will capture the essence of the home, not just the images. A professional photographer can design a photo tour that feels like walking through the home, and they know how to catch the best features in every angled shot while giving buyers a real idea of the space.

The Final Result: An Incredible As-Is Sale in Bellevue

After listing the home with a glowingly detailed description and professional photographs, we rapidly received nine sure bids from local buyers and closed within a week with a cash-sale more than $400,000 above the original listing price.

This home sold for such a great value because we knew the neighborhood, the buyers, and we brought the home’s potential to the surface. Buyers of as-is homes are often ready to improve the home independently and don’t need sellers to do a thing. A great opportunity for buyers to get into a great home in a great neighborhood and the sellers to pocket some great money! From the way we stage to the way we list; I leverage my 30 years of industry experience living and working in the area to help your as-is sale connect strongly with local buyers.

Can you sell your home as-is and still get a great selling price? Absolutely. It all depends on your local market and partnering with a truly effective real estate agent who knows your market like the back of their hand. If you are selling in the Seattle and Bellevue area and don’t want to renovate, my team can help turn your sale into an as-is success story. Let’s connect to talk about your plans for your home, whether it be selling today, or setting up a plan for the future.