Tips To Help You Sell A Vacant House

The ad looks too good to be true -- a home with all the prerequisites you want is on the market in a fabulous neighborhood. The community is near work, the schools are great, there are lots of activities nearby -- and the asking price is competitive.

When the prospective buyers approach the newly listed home, hopes plummet -- the place is vacant. Unfortunately, a home which is merely "lived-in" when furnished and occupied may look bare and blemished when empty. But the good news is that selling a vacant home isn't an impossible task, especially if you follow these pointers:

Remember first impressions. Regardless of whether your home is vacant or not, its appeal from the street is crucial in making a positive impact with potential buyers.

Paint or fix up the front entrance as required.

If you have a lawn, keep it mowed. Hire a neighborhood teen or local landscape service to keep it maintained. If you have an automated irrigation or sprinkler system, you'll want to leave it on, or ask a neighbor to water for you. This is especially crucial in regions with scorching summers.

If your house is on the market in fall, be sure you or someone you hire keeps leaves cleaned up. Likewise, if it's winter and you live in a snowy area, be sure driveways and entrances are cleared.

Spruce up landscaping before you leave. Plant some new shrubs, lay down some fresh ground cover, or brighten it up with some colorful annuals.

Go through every room of your house, paintbrush in hand, and touch up any walls that have been scuffed or marked up. After moving furniture out, you're sure to find a slew of such marks.

Walls painted in bold, bright colors are wonderful attention-getters when complemented by furniture, rugs, and accessories. However, in an empty room, these bold colors may put buyers off. You may want to consider painting neutral colors throughout the house before you sell.

Get carpets professionally cleaned once everything is moved out. If the floors aren't taken care of, the prospective home buyer may wonder what else isn't?

Clean your house thoroughly in every nook and cranny -- including windows and fireplaces -- before you let potential buyers look at it.

If at all possible, try to leave some furniture in the house. This will give prospective buyers a sense of size and proportion -- and a place to sit down. Empty rooms tend to look smaller than they actually are.

Don't set your deserted house up for potential break-ins. You may want to invest in exterior sensor lights that automatically turn on when it gets dark and turn off at sunrise. Make sure you cancel your newspaper subscription and forward your mail.

If you have a security alarm, use it -- just be sure you leave your entrance code with your real estate broker.

Be sure you review the provisions of your homeowners insurance. Many companies have a cap on how long coverage will last while the property is vacant.

As you prepare a vacant home for sale, also consider this idea: Some buyers like the flexibility that comes with buying a vacant house. They can move in as soon or as late as they'd like, and they don't have to worry about floors getting soiled and walls getting banged up when you move out.

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The Home Buying Process - In a Nutshell

The Loan Pre-Approval Process

Obtaining pre-approval for a home loan cannot be stressed enough. Not only does it assure you that you are looking in the correct price range, it also assures the seller that you are a legitimate buyer. If you need a recommendation of a lender, I can provide you with several contact names. Searching for a home can definitely start in advance of the loan pre-approval, but it is best to be pre-approved before submitting an offer to a seller.

Let's Make an Offer

When you find the right home, the next step is to write an offer on the property. Keep in mind that if you like it, chances are you are not alone. Acting quickly can make the difference between living there and telling your friends about the house that got away. Writing up an offer generally takes about an hour. Once the offer is completed I will call the listing agent and let them know that I have a buyer for their listing. I will need to include a pre-approval letter from your lender and if there are multiple offers it can often work in your favor to include a personal letter talking about the house and why you want to purchase it.

How Firm is my Foundation? The Inspection...

Most offers to purchase are written subject to the buyer approving of a home inspection. I strongly advise doing this. The cost (around $400) is paid for by you, but it is cheap insurance if it keeps you from buying a money pit. The inspection will cover items such as the roof, gutters, wiring, plumbing, foundation, framing and insulation. It is a good idea to accompany the inspector that you hire so that you can learn the good features about the home as well as the areas that need attention. Should there be other areas of concern (heater, oil tank, foundation issues, etc.) you may want to hire a specialist in those areas. Sewer scopes are also common in the home inspection phase. I will be there during any inspections. If some items come up during the inspection that are not satisfactory to you, it is possible to negotiate with the seller to make the necessary repairs. The seller is not obligated to agree to do this, so if they don't, you are not obligated to complete the purchase.

Once you have approved the home inspection, the only hurdle left is financing. Since you have taken care of most of this by getting pre-approved, completing the process only takes about two weeks. The two main items needed are: an appraisal on the home and a preliminary title policy showing that the property is free of liens or other clouds on the title.

The Financing Process

Appraisers know the purchase price when they do their appraisal, so it is rare for an appraisal to come in above or below the agreed upon price. The main concern with appraisals has to do with the work orders. Quite often, appraisers set a value on a home conditioned upon certain repairs being made. If the repairs are not completed, the appraisal is not acceptable to the lender and the financing is not approved. This can be a problem if your desire is to get a good buy on a home that needs work, with the intention of fixing it up yourself later. I have met many appraisers on site and have a very good idea of what will and what will not get called out. I will council you during the offer preparation as to how to deal with these issues.

A Clear title is usually not difficult to obtain. Rarely do transactions fail due to unmarketable title. You will have an opportunity to review the preliminary title policy prior to signing the closing papers.

When loan approval is obtained, closing documents are drawn up and sent to escrow. The escrow agent's function is to facilitate an orderly transfer of ownership from seller to buyer. Taxes need to be prorated, any underlying liens on the property must be paid off, and many documents will be reviewed, signed and notarized. Utility transfers may possibly be handled by escrow, or you and the seller may agree to handle these on your own.

The Escrow Process - The Sale Closes. Time to Move In!

The signing of documents does not constitute closing. Closing occurs without you being present, when the documents are recorded and the proceeds check is available for the seller. If any questions or concerns arise after closing I will be there to help you.



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