“A Contractor Ghosted Us and the House Was Half-Done” (Painesville Case Study) Jan 28, 2026

“A Contractor Ghosted Us and the House Was Half-Done” (Painesville Case Study)

This is a real nightmare scenario in Northeast Ohio:

You start fixing the house.

You open walls.

You tear out cabinets.

You plan the whole remodel.

Then the contractor disappears like they got drafted into the NFL.

Now the house is:

• half demolished
• not livable
• not list-ready
• and definitely not financeable

This Painesville case study is about that exact situation.

The situation

A homeowner in Painesville started renovations and got stuck.

They had:

• partially finished work
• exposed areas
• incomplete kitchen/bath updates
• growing stress and uncertainty

They didn’t want to pour more money in just to “finish enough to list.”

They wanted a clean exit.

Why half-finished houses are hard to sell traditionally

Traditional buyers struggle because:

• lenders don’t like unfinished work
• inspections raise safety issues
• buyers fear hidden problems
• repair estimates get inflated

So the buyer pool becomes mostly investors and cash buyers.

What ForeverHome RE did

We evaluated the property as-is, mid-renovation, and made a cash offer that reflected:

• current state
• remaining rehab scope
• local Lake County comps

No need to finish the project.

No need to clean it up perfectly.

Just a clear path to closing.

The result

The seller sold, avoided more contractor drama, and moved on.

The takeaway

If your house in Painesville or Lake County is mid-renovation and you’re stuck, you can still sell.

ForeverHome RE buys houses as-is for cash, even unfinished projects. Reach out for an offer.