Becoming an executor or administrator of a Connecticut estate with real estate can be an overwhelming and unexpected experience. The probate process can be complicated, and getting the home sold quickly, and efficiently is always a desired goal.
What to consider when marketing a probate home for sale:
Pricing right, showing right, and marketing right are always the key ingredients for get any home sold for the most in the least amount of time! While most of the basic property sale marketing techniques also apply to probate homes, there are a few key differences between marketing traditional sales and probate sale.
SPEED: Homes in probate are usually vacant, meaning they are a magnet for damage from natural disaster, mechanical failure, and local vandals. There are also costs incurred by maintaining a vacant property, which may be a financial drain to the estate. Prepping a probate home quickly and locating a buyer quickly to minimize marketing time will get you a smooth start to the sale process!
CONDITION ISSUES: While some homes in probate are in move in ready condition, many more are not. It is generally not advisable to make significant repairs to a probate home beyond general cleanup and maintenance, and instead to sell the property as-is. If the property needs significant work or has conditions which prevent some types of financing, appealing to investors is key. An experienced probate Realtor will be able to pinpoint your most likely buyer base and gear marketing to that crowd.
PATIENCE FOR THE PROCESS: While finding a buyer quickly is ideal, there will be some delay during the transaction as the sale still needs to gain the courts approval. It is imperative that the listing agent qualify the buyer’s side and set up proper expectations, so the ideal buyer is secured the first time! You will need a buyer that is prepared to wait, is not facing time critical situation, has the proper financing method and understands the timeline involved. The last thing you will want to do with a probate sale is go through the court approval process, have the sale fall apart due to a buyer issue and, only to begin the process all over!
The easiest way for you to have a smooth probate sale experience is to leave the details in the hands of an experienced probate sale professional!
Last Updated on June 6, 2018 by Minna Reid
Thanks for the heads up not to make any significant repairs to a probate home. One question: how can you make a home probate? Is it similar to a mortgage? If a home has the probate status, can the homeowner still live in it or not?
Probate is what happens when someone dies and their assets need to be liquidated/disbursed. The homeowner is deceased.
Marketing a home does seem like a tricky thing to do. It is good to know that you should market the speed at which the sale can be processed. If a sale was going to go through quickly that would be very appealing to me.
Amazing tips for sale probate house. As we know selling probate house is a tedious task & find suitable buyers in a short amount of time! I would like to recommend Cash home buyers who buy houses in any conditions such as probate, old, poor house and many more. Cash home buyers are the option to sell any house fast without waiting.
Wonderful review! thanks for blogging this, learning new things especially in RE is a huge advantage that may come handy in the future needs.
People are very careful about probate homes and agents made a lot of clarification when it comes to sale. I saw pathetic marketing approach by some experts about the marketing of probate homes but your provided 3 tips are very helpful in this regard.