Selling a House Quickly in Greater Cleveland
Tips for real estate owners who want to sell on a short timeline in the current transitionary market
Currently the Greater Cleveland real estate market is in the beginning throes of transitionary market where buyers have more leverage than in the past couple of years and sellers are more panicked because of all the uncertainty. As the Greater Cleveland real estate market cools and normalizes, home sellers can expect longer listing periods due to decreases in demand coupled with increases in inventory. In this article, we will give tips on how to sell a home quickly and avoid some common pitfalls that could delay a sale.
When a property needs to be sold quickly
A person may want to sell their property quickly for a variety of reasons, for example:
Moving to a new city
Divorce
Problems with tenants
Being unable to get insurance on the property
Non-paying tenants
Inheriting unwanted property
Needing to make expensive and unaffordable repairs
Discovering dangerous conditions on a property
Unexpected financial problems
Avoiding foreclosure
Making the necessary repairs
The first thing anyone wanting to sell a property should consider is what repairs their property needs and whether they have the time and funds to make those repairs.
Many cities in Cuyahoga County and Summit County such as Shaker Heights, OH, Cleveland Heights, OH, and Twinsburg, OH will require sellers to complete a point of sale inspection before entering into a contract to sell a property. City inspectors will identify code violations that the property seller can fix or ask a potential buyer to assume. Some cities inspect the exterior of the property only while others may inspect both interior and exterior.
In addition to scheduling a point of sale inspection, a seller seeking to sell a property on the market needs to make sure there are no major problems with the property and that it is in move-in condition. Buyers typically cannot get conventional or FHA mortgages for properties in disrepair. Major problems including structural problems, electrical problems, plumbing problems, etc. should be addressed before entering into a contract to sell. Waiting to make those repairs during the contingency period will likely delay the closing and could jeopardize the sale.
Sell “as is”
What if you want to sell a property that is in poor condition and just do not have the time for repairs or cannot afford them? The fastest way to sell a home in bad condition is to put it on the market for a price low enough for an investor to not only renovate the home but to also make a good profit. Typically, a realtor would advertise that the property is being sold “as is” to notify prospective buyers that the seller will not make any repairs.
Choosing the right buyer
A buyer’s reliability and ability to close are particularly important for a seller on a short timeline who needs to sell quickly. For sellers who do not have any back-up offers, spending 30-60 days waiting to close on a property and having it fall through at the closing table can be problematic. In a cooling and uncertain market, a home that falls out of contract one month from now may not fetch the price it would today. Sometimes it may be wiser to choose a smaller offer from a dependable buyer than the highest offer from a buyer who instills less confidence.
Sellers should prioritize offers from buyers who have seen the property (exceptions to this may be buyers who waive all contingencies and give a high earnest money deposit). It costs nothing for a buyer to write an offer just to lock a property down because the buyer can typically cancel a contract without any penalties and without forfeiting the earnest money deposit provided certain contingencies have not been waived. Out of state buyers sometimes take advantage, offering a high price and later, after seeing the property, negotiate it down significantly and forcing a time-crunched seller to decide whether to start over or accept the lower price.
The buyer’s finances are also important to consider. Can and will the buyer close in the agreed-on period? Sellers need to make sure that their chosen buyer has been preapproved for a mortgage and ask for proof of funds. Lastly, sellers should be careful about committing to buyers who promise to fill in the gap if the property does not appraise. Without proof of funds, gap addendums are meaningless.
What to do if your property falls out of contract
Having a home fall out of contract can make it harder to attract new buyers and sell a property on a short timeline. Potential buyers may think something is wrong with the property or question why it fell out of contract. One way to combat this is by being upfront with buyers about what happened. Sellers should also be upfront with the next buyer about the repairs they are willing and unwilling to make. For example, if the prior buyer found a problem with your roof that you are unwilling to repair, you need to make sure the next buyer cannot back out of the purchase contract for that same reason. One solution is to ask the next buyer to waive the inspection contingency with respect to the condition of the roof. The seller can also offer to pay for a home warranty that would cover repairs down the line.
Selling directly to a real estate investor
Selling directly to an investor is a good option for property owners who need to sell their property quickly. This is particularly true for properties that require extensive and unaffordable repairs or have other problems that make them tough to finance. In these situations, property owners can save a lot of money by selling their home directly to a buyer (i.e., without using a real estate agent). On average, real estate agents will charge a seller 5 to 6 percent of the sale price as a fee. That means that for every $100,000 of sale price, the seller is losing $5,000 to $6,000 of their money. By selling directly to a buyer, sellers could save a significant amount of money that they would otherwise spend on realtor commissions. That is just the big-ticket item, but many buyers working directly with a seller when no realtors are involved are also willing to compromise on things like escrow fees and other closing costs, which can save a seller even more money. Local, dependable, and experienced investors like LP Property Group buy properties in all sorts of conditions for cash and help stressed out property owners out of their property nightmares.
Need to sell quickly? Call or text us at (216)694-8246 for a fair cash offer. We are local (East Side) property buyers, buy properties all over Greater Cleveland in all sorts of conditions, and close quickly.
Disclaimer: The above is solely intended for informational purposes and in no way constitutes legal advice or specific recommendations.