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Started By
Message
Selling inherited property
Posted on 3/30/18 at 8:31 am
Posted on 3/30/18 at 8:31 am
So I recently had a family member pass away. She was never married, never had kids, and was a bit of a recluse. She named me executor of her will, and left me her house and its contents. Now I have no idea what to do with this house. Here's what I can gather so far...
Mortgage of about $110,000, with monthly payments of $811, which includes the escrow for insurance and taxes.
My best guess is the market value is around $175,000. This is off some listing prices on some similar homes in the area, so that could be off by $10-20k either way.
House has been fairly neglected the last 5-10 years. It's a 4/2, and both bathrooms need to be totally redone, the landscaping looks terrible, every room needs to be painted, and one of the bedrooms is questionable as she was a bit of a hoarder and that room is where she hoarded everything. I can barely open the door. Everything else looks okay - fairly new appliances, roof and HVAC.
I don't know whether to sell it as is, or do some updates. I'm guessing it will be around $20k to get it move-in ready. She did leave me some money to fund the improvements, so I wouldn't be out of pocket. Just not sure I'd get that money back in final selling price. I've looked into renting it, but the numbers I ran don't generate enough cash flow to make it worth it. It's not really in a hot rental market either.
Mortgage of about $110,000, with monthly payments of $811, which includes the escrow for insurance and taxes.
My best guess is the market value is around $175,000. This is off some listing prices on some similar homes in the area, so that could be off by $10-20k either way.
House has been fairly neglected the last 5-10 years. It's a 4/2, and both bathrooms need to be totally redone, the landscaping looks terrible, every room needs to be painted, and one of the bedrooms is questionable as she was a bit of a hoarder and that room is where she hoarded everything. I can barely open the door. Everything else looks okay - fairly new appliances, roof and HVAC.
I don't know whether to sell it as is, or do some updates. I'm guessing it will be around $20k to get it move-in ready. She did leave me some money to fund the improvements, so I wouldn't be out of pocket. Just not sure I'd get that money back in final selling price. I've looked into renting it, but the numbers I ran don't generate enough cash flow to make it worth it. It's not really in a hot rental market either.
8
Posted on 3/30/18 at 8:36 am to The Spleen
Get an appraisal if there's a good amount of appreciation so you get the full step up in basis
Posted on 3/30/18 at 8:56 am to TheOcean
Oh yeah, meant to add that. I have contacted an appraiser to get an appraisal done.
Posted on 3/30/18 at 9:17 am to The Spleen
quote:
Oh yeah, meant to add that. I have contacted an appraiser to get an appraisal done.
Next step, unless you are handyman type, is to find a buyer (liquidator) to buy it "as is" even for discounted price and be done with it.
Posted on 3/30/18 at 10:03 am to The Spleen
You probably won't get back what you put into it, but you might not sell it at anything but a liquidation price if you don't do anything with it.
I'd find one of those "we pay cash" companies to come out and make you an offer. It will be lowball. But at least it gives you a floor, then you can decide what to do with it.
Have an estate sale to sell all the stuff in it.
I'd find one of those "we pay cash" companies to come out and make you an offer. It will be lowball. But at least it gives you a floor, then you can decide what to do with it.
Have an estate sale to sell all the stuff in it.
Posted on 3/30/18 at 10:31 am to LSUFanHouston
quote:
I'd find one of those "we pay cash" companies to come out and make you an offer. It will be lowball. But at least it gives you a floor, then you can decide what to do with it
Not a bad idea. It's really not in horrible shape, just outdated. It'd be a good house for a young couple to buy and fix up. It was built in 92 and has a lot of the original fixtures.
quote:
Have an estate sale to sell all the stuff in it.
Most of the good stuff has already been claimed by family members. She had a lot of antique family heirloom pieces I wanted to keep in the family. But not a bad idea for the rest of the stuff. My wife actually has a friend that loves doing garage sales and offered to host one for me.
Posted on 3/30/18 at 10:35 am to The Spleen
If I was going to try to sell it, I would get someone to clean up the yard/landscaping and maybe slap some paint on it if it looks terrible. Just stuff to get a little "curb appeal." Any money spent to remodel baths and the like will not be recouped.
Posted on 3/30/18 at 11:04 am to The Spleen
Get the appraisal, have an estate sale, hire a cleaning company to haul away trash and do a clean out, and sell it. Put it on the market at slightly below appraisal....it will sell faster, and you can take a loss on taxes. Are you the sole inheritor of the property, or are there other heirs who will get a portion of the proceeds? If there are indeed other heirs, be sure to document all of your expenditures and time you spend on the estate matters. Nothing like spending weeks and weeks dealing with this stuff to have lazy, uncooperative cousin Ed show up and ask for his share, expecting that you did all of this work for free.
Posted on 3/30/18 at 11:04 am to The Spleen
I wouldn't pay for anything before you bring a realtor in. Find a good realtor, and see what they say.
DON'T get a cash buyer. Goodness people. One of those "we buy ugly houses" people will offer $75k for a $175k house. You are MUCH better off trying to sell through a realtor and take a low ball offer. They are looking for desperate people about to lose their house.
Personally, I'd paint it, do some basic landscaping, and some other very basic cosmetic things for some curb appeal. Don't worry about it being dated.
Then price it reasonably and plan on taking a lower offer. It doesn't sound like you care a whole lot, so that's a great first step.
DON'T get a cash buyer. Goodness people. One of those "we buy ugly houses" people will offer $75k for a $175k house. You are MUCH better off trying to sell through a realtor and take a low ball offer. They are looking for desperate people about to lose their house.
Personally, I'd paint it, do some basic landscaping, and some other very basic cosmetic things for some curb appeal. Don't worry about it being dated.
Then price it reasonably and plan on taking a lower offer. It doesn't sound like you care a whole lot, so that's a great first step.
Posted on 3/30/18 at 11:21 am to hungryone
quote:
Are you the sole inheritor of the property, or are there other heirs who will get a portion of the proceeds?
I think so. I'm new to this, but the will explicitly names me executor and explicitly states the house is mine. I don't know if I have to wait for probate to clear or anything. I'm meeting with a probate attorney next week to help me figure all this out. She didn't have any debts that I know of other than the mortgage on the house. She left her retirement accounts to my younger cousins. It's not a huge family, and most everyone is financially comfortable and not looking for a payday, so I can't think of anyone that may pop in the picture. Always a possibility though.
Posted on 3/30/18 at 12:46 pm to The Spleen
Get the appraisal so you know what the value of the house is when it became yours.
As others have said, do some basic cosmetic work on it, but don't go all in to renovate bathrooms or anything. Just spruce it up to make it nice. Keep track of every penny you spend on this to add to your cost basis for tax purposes when you sell it. That way you either have a smaller gain or a larger loss.
As others have said, do some basic cosmetic work on it, but don't go all in to renovate bathrooms or anything. Just spruce it up to make it nice. Keep track of every penny you spend on this to add to your cost basis for tax purposes when you sell it. That way you either have a smaller gain or a larger loss.
Posted on 3/30/18 at 2:35 pm to PJinAtl
I agree...just do the basic curb appeal inside and outside...it Will help with the sale value and move quickly...just clean out the house first and leave any basic furniture for curb appeal....just paint and do any type of minor repair work to help the apperance....
What city is the house located in....
Also consider yourself lucky that the house was left just to you...having to deal with family members is not always a pleasent experience...espically if they are difficult to deal with....ive been there done that
What city is the house located in....
Also consider yourself lucky that the house was left just to you...having to deal with family members is not always a pleasent experience...espically if they are difficult to deal with....ive been there done that
This post was edited on 3/30/18 at 2:42 pm
Posted on 3/30/18 at 3:04 pm to tigers1956
Most of this side of the family is pretty level headed. I don't expect any headaches, especially since her will is so explicit on everything. The one person I was concerned about is only related by marriage and she hasn't said a word, nor put her husband up to saying anything. My aunt hated her so I'm surprised she didn't put something in the will to not give her anything.
House is in Tuscaloosa. House a few down from it just went on the market at $205k, but it is completely renovated and turnkey. House with the same floorplan sold in November for $195k.
House is in Tuscaloosa. House a few down from it just went on the market at $205k, but it is completely renovated and turnkey. House with the same floorplan sold in November for $195k.
Posted on 3/30/18 at 3:20 pm to The Spleen
Sorry you got stuck with the house....that’s gotta go through probate. If the recipients of the retirement accounts were named as beneficiaries on the accounts, those don’t go through probate. So they’ll get their funds faster & with far less headache than dealing with the house.
Again, be sure to document your hourly efforts related to settling the estate. You can be paid out of estate funds for your time in dealing with all of these affairs. I know it seems miserly, but it can turn out to be a HUGE time task, and you should be compensated for it out of the estate.
Again, be sure to document your hourly efforts related to settling the estate. You can be paid out of estate funds for your time in dealing with all of these affairs. I know it seems miserly, but it can turn out to be a HUGE time task, and you should be compensated for it out of the estate.
Posted on 3/30/18 at 3:21 pm to baldona
quote:
DON'T get a cash buyer. Goodness people. One of those "we buy ugly houses" people will offer $75k for a $175k house. You are MUCH better off trying to sell through a realtor and take a low ball offer. They are looking for desperate people about to lose their house.
That's why I said bring one of those people in, to establish a floor. It will be a very low offer, but no harm in getting all the info you can.
Posted on 3/30/18 at 3:36 pm to hungryone
quote:
Sorry you got stuck with the house....that’s gotta go through probate. If the recipients of the retirement accounts were named as beneficiaries on the accounts, those don’t go through probate.
Do her bank accounts go through probate? She had a few bank accounts, and left one to me I was planning on using for the house expenses before it sells. The one she left to me I'm actually already a signer on, so I'm guessing it doesn't, but have no clue. It has around $20k in it.
Posted on 3/30/18 at 6:35 pm to The Spleen
Are you named on the account as a co-owner or are you merely an authorized signer on an account in her name? If you are a joint owner, you can draw on the funds. If you were merely an authorized signer on an account in her name only, those privileges cease to exist when she died.
You need an attorney to open the succession. He/she will be happy to help you sort through this stuff. Expect to pay, but not a ridiculous amount (unless you’re in a major metro area).
You need an attorney to open the succession. He/she will be happy to help you sort through this stuff. Expect to pay, but not a ridiculous amount (unless you’re in a major metro area).
Posted on 3/30/18 at 6:45 pm to The Spleen
Unless you think rehabbing it could possibly net you more profit then I would forget about it. Slap a fresh coat of paint on it and do a little landscaping and let it go. It's basically free money right? Take the money for rehab funds and pocket it.
Who knows what you'll find when you start ripping everything up. You might end up spending more then anticipated if you run into problems.
Who knows what you'll find when you start ripping everything up. You might end up spending more then anticipated if you run into problems.
This post was edited on 3/30/18 at 6:47 pm
Posted on 3/30/18 at 7:43 pm to 420centraltime
Great advice in this thread. I've flipped dozens of houses and agree with the appraisal, landscaping, paint, and sell.
The two big expense items are AC and roofing. Sounds like those are ok.
The two big expense items are AC and roofing. Sounds like those are ok.
Posted on 3/30/18 at 8:16 pm to The Spleen
Which state? If the house was in her name alone and the will makes a specific gift to you, it's yours.
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