Is It Possible to Stay in Your Home after Selling It As-Is?

Selling a home as-is can be stressful. It’s only more stressful if your circumstances mean that you need to find a way to stay in your home. After all, that’s not usually how it works when you sell your home. You sell it, move out, and the buyer moves in. While that’s often how things go, it may be possible to stay in your home after selling it as-is.

The Lease-Back

Have you ever heard of a lease-back option in real estate? A lease-back option is when you lease your home back from the buyer after the sale has been completed. Whether or not you’re selling your home as-is has no inherent bearing on your ability to lease your home back. Whether or not that’s something you can do is up to the new owner, so you’ll have to negotiate that option.

Include It in the Terms of Sale

If the buyer agrees to a lease-back arrangement, make sure it’s included in the terms of the sale. That makes it far more binding than if you were to only have a verbal agreement. Include as many details as possible about the lease-back you’ll be participating in. Make sure you discuss and include things like the duration of the lease-back agreement and any responsibilities each party has to one another and the property.

Make Yourself an Attractive Tenant

To put yourself in the best position to negotiate a lease-back agreement, take steps to make yourself an attractive tenant. Choosing to sell the house as-is usually means that there are some problems with it, which may be a turnoff for buyers. It’s reasonable for the buyer to expect you to continue to care for the home as you have so far. If that doesn’t fit with how they want the property cared for, it’ll be harder to convince them to rent to you. Do your best to take care of your home to show that you’ll be a responsible tenant.

If your circumstances are such that your best option is to stay in your home after selling it as-is, the good news is that it may be possible to do just that. There are no guarantees, of course, but you can always talk to the buyer and see if that’s something you can negotiate. After all, you have nothing to lose by asking.

Have other questions about selling your home? Atlas Residential has answers! Click here to see some of the questions we’re asked most frequently and our answers to them.