selling a home - questions

[SteveH]

we listed it lower than what the agent suggested. If you look on Zillow (I know not exactly reliable for that) it doesn't show any houses sold nearby.

Did your agent not show you the comps for the area? You're right Zillow isn't as accurate as the MLS, if they didn't show you that I would question how good this agent is. I know some agents won't touch an older home with trailers around it, but a hungry agent will. But if that agent isn't sharing # of tours and feedback as well as comps you may want a new agent. Good luck with the sale.

 

[GreatLakes]

That was the case here until September. October on, sales just ground to a halt. After years of houses selling within hours of listing, now similar houses have been on the market for 70 or more days. One house on my street sold in March to investors and they took their time doing a light remodel before relisting it. Interest rates have soared, and at this point, they will be lucky to get their money back between what they paid for the house and the improvements. They just sat on it too long.

Around here houses that are priced correctly are still selling pretty fast. It is the people that bought to flip in the last year or so that are going to have trouble selling at a profit but people that have lived in a house for a while and are looking to sell should be able to do just fine if they priced correctly.

 

[DisneyHardin]

I recently looked at a listing that was for a house that was from an estate. The listing didn't specifically state "as is", but said something like "This house is part of an estate and the heirs have done all they are going to do to the home to prepare it for sale", which I took to mean "you get what you see".

 

[tvguy]

I recently looked at a listing that was for a house that was from an estate. The listing didn't specifically state "as is", but said something like "This house is part of an estate and the heirs have done all they are going to do to the home to prepare it for sale", which I took to mean "you get what you see".

My wife sold her mom's house and I sold my mom's house as an estate sale. One of the things this means is that the the sale was exempt from some disclosures. That was because there are things we did not know about the houses because we hadn't lived in them, in my wife's case in 17 years, and in my case in 31 years.
My wife's house beyond that was a normal sale. An inspection by the buyer revealed some dry rot, which we fixed before the sale closed.
My mom's house, I was prepared to make repairs if an inspection found issues, however the buyer's offer specified they did not want to have an inspection, and that THEY wanted to buy the house "as is"

 

[luvmyfam444]

My wife sold her mom's house and I sold my mom's house as an estate sale. One of the things this means is that the the sale was exempt from some disclosures. That was because there are things we did not know about the houses because we hadn't lived in them, in my wife's case in 17 years, and in my case in 31 years.
My wife's house beyond that was a normal sale. An inspection by the buyer revealed some dry rot, which we fixed before the sale closed.
My mom's house, I was prepared to make repairs if an inspection found issues, however the buyer's offer specified they did not want to have an inspection, and that THEY wanted to buy the house "as is"

ohh I didn't know about the estate sale rules - good to know - I'll mention it to them - yeah dh hasn't lived there in 28 yrs.

 

[disykat]

One of the things we put ON the disclosure sheet is that we had not lived in the home for many years and were not sure of all of maintenance history, etc. Thankfully, you're not expected to disclose what you don't know.

 

[gmi3804]

One of the things we put ON the disclosure sheet is that we had not lived in the home for many years and were not sure of all of maintenance history, etc. Thankfully, you're not expected to disclose what you don't know.

In Illinois, where I practice, sellers who haven't lived in the home during the previous year need only to disclose that, and aren't required to fill out the rest of the Real Property Disclosure. This happens mostly with rental properties and inherited real property.

 

[_19disnA]

Real estate laws may also vary from one state to the next. If the seller hires someone to do an inspection, I doubt you can claim ignorance of identified defects just because you didn't live there. I would expect most buyers to also hire an inspector prior to closing on the sale to avoid unwelcome surprises after the fact.

If I happened to inherit property where I have never lived, I would certainly hire an inspector to have some idea of what I am dealing with before putting it up for sale. Some items might be easily repaired and avoid any issue with potential buyers who are considering purchasing the property. Buyer's typically use their inspection report as a negotiating tool to get a lower price. If simple items are resolved before you put the house up for sale, you eliminate those as an issue with potential buyers.

 

[gmi3804]

Real estate laws may also vary from one state to the next. If the seller hires someone to do an inspection, I doubt you can claim ignorance of identified defects just because you didn't live there. I would expect most buyers to also hire an inspector prior to closing on the sale to avoid unwelcome surprises after the fact.

Sellers don't hire inspectors in IL, unless it's proactive before listing, to identify and fix any potential issues. The buyer is still expected to do due diligence; some may waive an inspection or, when buying "as is," not demanding any repairs if they find anything during an inspection. IL license law is very clear about disclosure requirements.

 

[barkley]

ohh I didn't know about the estate sale rules - good to know - I'll mention it to them - yeah dh hasn't lived there in 28 yrs.

One of the things we put ON the disclosure sheet is that we had not lived in the home for many years and were not sure of all of maintenance history, etc. Thankfully, you're not expected to disclose what you don't know.

confer with a licensed realtor in the state the home is listed in-real estate laws can vary tremendously state to state so what applies in one may have been long struck down by the courts in another.

 

[disykat]

I certainly didn't mean to imply that you can claim ignorance to everything if you didn't live there. (!?!) You disclose everything you know AND you make it clear that you didn't live there - meaning that there may be stuff you don't know. This is not to get the seller off scott free, but to notify the buyer to do their due diligence. No one wants to be in trouble for not disclosing info, or the sale to fall through at inspection, so the whole point is to make sure the buyer knows what they are getting.