Being a landlord doesn’t preclude you from having to sell your home.
There are numerous reasons why a property owner with tenants may need to sell a home. It may be financial, the amount of work involved, or maybe it was never intended in the first place. The average landlord only makes about $10,000 more than they spend on maintenance per year.
Whatever your reasons are, figuring out how to sell a house with tenants can feel a bit overwhelming. You never want to put anyone out, but at the same time, you need to look after your own interests. If you’re thinking, “can I sell a house with tenants?” then you’ve come to the right place.
You can never trust the real estate market to remain stable, so selling now might be your best bet at getting out of the hole. Keep reading, and you’ll know exactly what you need to do.
“Can I Sell a House With Tenants?”
In short, yes, you can sell a house with tenants still living in it. Depending on your particular situation, it could either make the selling process much easier or much harder.
Most state laws dictate that a tenant is allowed to remain in a rental until the lease or agreement has expired – even after the home has been sold. Although this is better for the tenant, it might make finding a suitable buyer a little bit more difficult.
Pros of Selling With a Tenant
There are lots of property investors out there that would view an existing tenancy as a good thing. They won’t have to look for a new one, and they’ll receive immediate rental income after the property is transferred over. As long as you’ve got a good tenant, it’s possible that nothing would change for them.
It’s also great for buyers that may want to live in the house but aren’t ready to move in yet. In this scenario, the tenant has time to sort out their options, and the new owner gets rental income while they’re waiting to move in.
At the end of the day, it really depends on the terms of the lease. If it’s month-to-month, then the new owner just has to abide by the state laws for rental termination, which is usually 60-90 days.
Cons of Selling With a Tenant
There’s no denying that marketing and showing the home will go a lot more smoothly without a tenant. Without one present, you’d open yourself up to a much larger pool of prospective buyers, and you’d never have to worry about the tenant being around while you’re showing the home.
If you’re trying to renovate the property before you sell, having a tenant will make it almost impossible. Without the ability to keep the property maintained, the chances of you getting good market value for your home are slim. Smaller things are possible, but larger renovations may take months to complete.
You also have to consider the demeanor of your tenant throughout this process. If you’ve got a good relationship with them, then they might make things easier on you, but they don’t have to. Plenty of tenants will exercise their full tenants’ rights to ensure that selling your home is more difficult.
How to Sell a House With Tenants
When you decide to go forward with selling your home with a tenant, there are a number of things you need to think about. Follow these tips and the process should go as smoothly as possible.
Terms of the Lease
Be very cognizant of the terms of your rental agreement, as well as the tenant laws in your state. You can’t violate the terms of the lease, but you can work with your tenant to come up with a compromise.
If they’re in a month-to-month agreement, then you just need to give them the proper amount of notice to vacate the property. If you’re locked into a year-to-year agreement, you may have to wait it out if they don’t want to leave.
Being Up Front
The best thing you can do for your tenants is to be upfront about the fact that you’re trying to sell the home. Yes, you’re bound to give them a certain amount of notice, but try to give them even more if you can so that they can make plans to find their next accommodation.
Helping the Tenant Out
If you feel bad about the situation you’re putting your tenant in, try to help them out as much as you can. Offer to pay for their moving costs or make sure to give them a great landlord reference. Anything you can do to ease the transition between your apartment and the next one is worth doing.
Offering an Olive Branch
Another thing you could do is give your tenant the chance to buy the home. If you’re in a scenario where you’re willing to take a bit less to sell the home quickly, this could be a great option. It doesn’t require you to do much in terms of moving, so it’s an elegant solution to your issue.
When You Need to Sell Quickly
As long as you give your tenant enough notice to get out of your rental property, you’re fine to sell it at your leisure. Trying to figure out how to sell a house with tenants can cause things to take longer, but so does the traditional house selling route.
Waiting for realtors, paperwork, and buyers can take months. If you want to sell your home quickly for a fair price, then visit us at ibuyhomes.com. All you have to do is fill out our secure online form and we’ll contact you to get more information about your home.
With this info, we’ll come up with a suitable cash offer that you can accept or leave on the table. As one of the most reputable cash buyers in the real estate market, there’s never any pressure to sell your home, but you won’t find a better cash offer anywhere.
After you’ve informed your tenant of your intent to sell the home, contact us and get a cash offer today.
