To begin, I would like to personally extend condolences from us here at Mike Buys Houses – we understand that this is a difficult time and is actually one of the factors that led to the beginning of our journey. Bill’s mom inherited a house unexpectedly and we learned about the process that real estate professionals use to help homeowners. And we learned for years while preparing and saving and now we help homeowners as real estate professionals.
You may possibly be thinking, “I inherited a house in Bristol, what should I do with this house?” Should I rent it? Should I sell it? Where do I begin? How do I sell it? What am I to do with this inherited house in Bristol
Basically, you have a few options and we can help.
We’re local guys who are real estate professionals in Bristol real estate, and we’re looking to buy several houses each month in the Bristol PA area. If you are looking for a solution then we may be able to help you – even if we are not the buyers for you then we will point you in the right direction with our expertise.
After learning about the process to sell an inherited house in Bristol, we realized how confusing it can be – so here is a little guide to help you sell your inherited house.
I Inherited A House in Bristol, What To Do Next?
Consider these things:
1) Figure out how much is owed on the house.
While this sounds like it is an obvious thing to consider, sometimes due to the unexpected turn of events you may have inherited a house suddenly. There may or may not be a mortgage on the house and that amount owed can really determine which steps you want to take moving forward. We have seen too many times where family members inherit a property that is worth less than is owed against it and therefore they don’t even know where to begin.
Example:
Janet inherited a house that has a mortgage owed against it for $100,000
The house needs some updating and is worth about $90,000. In this scenario, even if she were to sell the house for sale by the owner and avoid realtor fees then Janet will still need to pay $10,000 to the bank when she sells the house.
She will lose money to sell this house – does that make sense? We help homeowners in situations like this all the time.
In the above situation there are a few options:
Often a short sale may be a good option for them, but this is complicated by the inherited situation and is often not the route that family members want to go during this time. We are able to help in this situation so feel free to reach out if you have inherited an underwater property.
Well if there is a mortgage on the property, then you need to start making that payment because you inherited the house and the mortgage. Unfortunately, it is not common for banks to allow for any grace period so figure out if there is a mortgage on the property quickly and then begin communicating with the banks in order to ensure that the mortgage remains current.
Based on the bank, you may either have to assume or refinance the loan so that will mean that you’ll need to be able to afford this house. If you don’t think you’ll be able to work with the banks then renting your inherited house may not be the best option for you
2) Prepare a management plan
When deciding what to do with your inherited house in Bristol, if you are planning to rent the house out then you will need to start formulating a plan to manage the property. A rental property is a business and if it is not treated as such then it will cost a lotttt of money over the long run.
So what things do you need to consider if you will be managing a rental? First, you need to get tenants, which means getting the house rent ready, taking photos, setting up marketing for tenants, fielding calls and sending out applications, reviewing applications, interviewing tenants, runnings credit checks and background checks, showing the property, signing and getting the lease together, inspecting the home with the tenant and setting up the payment system.
You just need to be prepared to manage the property and the hassles that can go along with tenants and toilets.
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It’s rare to see a building that’s been perfectly maintained. Most inherited houses need major improvements. Deferred maintenance on a property (work that needs to be done) accumulates quickly and often leaves people who inherited a property with a lot of work to be done. This is costly, time-consuming, and stressful – it may be the right option for you but there are other options that you should know about.
We bought a house that had been in such bad shape that if you looked at it on google maps you couldn’t even see the house behind all of the overgrown bushes and the lawn. If this is something that you just inherited then I think we may be able to help you find a solution.
Consider hiring a professional property inspector to give you a detailed rundown on what you’ll need to do within the next five years, along with estimated costs. Surprises are very, very expensive.
If you are setting up to be a landlord via this newly inherited property in Bristol then you will definitely want to have a plan for the expected renovation costs as the general wear and tear is inflicted on the house by tenants.
4) There are costs to selling your house with a realtor
If you don’t want to deal with making repairs, updating kitchens, improving landscaping, and overall cleanup, don’t worry. Check out this video where we talk about all of the costs that are associated when selling your house to a realtor. Luckily, We buy Bristol houses for cash, as-is.
5) HOLD for appreciation.
We can help you analyze the value of your property today versus the long-term benefits of renting. If you can use the equity in your property in another way that outpaces the performance of the real estate market, you should.
If you don’t have anything better to do with the money and the neighborhood is rising in value, hang on – real estate can be a great investment if you know how to correctly read the market.
6) Consider the inheritance tax in Bristol and don’t forget to check for any inheritance taxes in PA
Don’t forget to discuss your inheritance with tax and legal professionals before you take action.
It’s too much to get into here, but basically you will want to check on the status of inheritance taxes in Bristol before deciding what to do. You may decide to keep the house only to find out there are some costs associated with the house that you didn’t know about.
There are major property and income tax consequences that will dramatically impact the cost of owning your investment.
7) Consider all your options.
In certain situations, we may be able to help you structure a lease-option agreement that allows you to rent and sell at the same time – capturing the best of both worlds.
This is definitely a little bit more of an advanced strategy, but it is an option and we’d love to talk you thru it if it is something that you want to explore. If you have inherited a property in Bristol and need to explore some creative options in order to sell the property then you should definitely reach out to us. This is especially the case if the property is worth less than is owed on it.
These kinds of deals can be complicated, but our Southampton investment experience can help you win.
8) Compare a few scenarios.
We’ll help you determine prices for any property near Southampton – if you sold it today without doing any work, the highest price the market will bear, and the projected value of keeping it as a rental (along with the costs). We can help you analyze the numbers and determine what to do with your inherited house in Bristol.