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Rice Properties GroupRice Properties Group

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We are a team of licensed real estate agents and investors, who understand the ever-changing market and the consumers’ needs.  We know that not every seller benefits from putting his or her home on the market the traditional way. From our perspective, sellers need to understand all of their options of selling.

What you don't know can cost you time and money when it comes to selling your house. The best source of information is your real estate agent, and we've put together a growing list of helpful resources about the home selling process. When you're ready for our team to structure the best selling option for you, give Lindsay Rice a call at 703-223-8676 to discuss how we can help sell your house.

How Much is My Home Worth?

Selling a home? Know your options!

June 5, 2020 by Lindsay Rice

Our sellers typically choose to:

  1. Hire our team of Real Estate Listing experts to list their home on the traditional market.  These sellers are:
    • Seeking top dollar and looking to cash out their equity in less than 60 days.
    • Ready to get their home in top condition by doing necessary repairs, maintenance, staging, etc. in order for our professional photographer and videographer to capture the best photos and video walkthrough. 
  2. Sell to our Investors on terms, such as a lease/purchase or owner financing.  The homes we typically purchase are from:
    • Sellers who cannot or choose not to sell traditionally, and do not need all of their cash immediately.
    • Sellers who choose to take more equity and not pay realtor commissions, in return for a delayed cash settlement.
    • Sellers who are “well-off” financially, owe little to nothing on their home and would prefer the cash flow over time, and want a premium sale price.
    • Sellers who have equity in their home and need it for their next purchase, yet are willing to refinance for the down payment of their next home, or willing to rent for a period of time.
    • Sellers who just want debt relief now and cannot afford to sell traditionally. 
    • Sellers who are selling for what they owe.
    • Seller who would prefer to sell on terms for financial planning and tax reasons rather than get paid all at once by a cash buyer or someone who can get an immediate loan. 
  3. Sell for cash to one of our Investors.

When you’re ready for our team to structure the best selling option for you, give Lindsay Rice a call at 703-223-8676 to discuss how we can help sell your house.

Filed Under: Featured, Sellers

Selling a House with Tenants

February 14, 2020 by Lindsay Rice

You’ve had an investment property, but you’re ready to let it go. The only problem is, the house still has tenants. How do you go about selling your rental property while people are still living there?

How Much is Your Home Worth?

Here’s what you need to know about how to sell a house with tenants.

Know the Law Regarding Selling with Tenants

Real estate laws vary from state to state, but you’re either going to have to ride out the terms of the lease or convince your tenant to not only vacate but also allow you to show the property while they’re still living in it.

If the lease you and your tenant signed includes an early termination clause, you can choose to vacate your tenants with proper written notice. Or, if the tenant has violated the lease or is faulty on rent, you can terminate the contract. But there is a more delicate approach.

Many landlords choose to list their property while renters are still in it, and they do so successfully.

Both you and your tenant have legal rights, and a lot hinges on your lease agreement. Whatever terms you and your tenant agreed upon in the lease have to be honored – or you must reach a compromise and re-write the terms of the contract.

If you’ve rented the home on a month-to-month basis, you may be required to give the occupants 30-60 days notice that you’re selling the property, and that they need to move. However, things may be more complicated on a longer-term lease.

You may have to work closely with and incentivize your tenant to work with you during the sales process.

Notify the tenant in writing as far in advance as you can. The more time they have to prepare, the more willing they may be to assist you in the sales process.

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Ask the Tenant if They Want to Purchase the Property

Your first and easiest option is to sell your house to the occupant.

In the best-case scenario, your tenant will both want to and be financially prepared to buy your house.

This arrangement is the ultimate win/win where you don’t have to show the house or find a buyer, and your tenant doesn’t have to move.

If they’re not prepared to purchase when you’re ready to sell, perhaps you could consider a lease with an option to buy, or an owner-financed arrangement.

Should I List or Should I Hold
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Buy-Out the Tenant

It’s not the most attractive option, but if your tenant is willing to move out early (or puts up resistance and needs more motivation!), you can offer to pay part or all of their moving expenses or buy-out their lease so they can afford to relocate.

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Sell to an Investor or as a Primary Residence

You can opt to sell your house as a primary residence to traditional buyers. But you don’t have to stop there. There’s a broader audience you can reach – and one with substantial purchasing power.

You might find another investor, like you, who is interested in taking on a rental property. An investor might make the sale a winning situation for everyone involved.

Investors may be more than happy to inherit your tenant, provided that there’s a history of timely rent payments.

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Showing the Property with Tenants

Even if investors are interested, they’re still going to need to view the property and will likely require appraisals and inspections, so you’re going to need your tenant to cooperate with you throughout the process.

Your goal when listing your rental property for sale is to have a healthy relationship with the tenant. It would help if you had the tenant’s cooperation throughout the sales process. 

If possible, meet with your tenant in person to discuss the upcoming changes. If applicable, thank them for being good tenants and assure them you’ll ease the process as much as possible, including helping them find another place if you can.

For showings, the house has to be presentable. Some sellers have to go through a staging process to show their homes, but by showing the house that’s already occupied, decorated, and tidied, you can one-two-skip-a-few over the staging process. Your tenant may even be willing to go the extra mile and start packing their personal effects to depersonalize the space.

To inspire your tenant to keep their space company-ready, you may consider offering a few gifts. Consider a lower rent, paying for a cleaning company when you know you’ll be showing the house to potential buyers, or offering them a flat-rate compensation each time the house is shown.

You’ll also need to ask your tenant to leave the house during showings – and to make arrangements for any pets. Leaving the house can be a significant inconvenience to tenants, so try to schedule showings when it’s convenient for them, such as while they’re at work. If your tenant has pets, it may be helpful if you offer to pay for boarding during showings.

If you don’t have a good relationship with your tenant, or if they react adversely to your situation, you might find it easier to wait until the lease expires.

Homes for Sale in Fairfax County, VA
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Your Real Estate Agent is Your Best Resource

Discuss your situation with your professional real estate agent. Your agent should have experience with investment properties and may have valuable information, tips, and tricks to help you ease the burden of evicting your tenants so that you can sell your rental property.

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Conclusion

Both you and your tenant are in an awkward situation when you have to tell them they need to move. And to make matters worse, while they’re trying to figure out what their next move will be, they have to help you sell the house.

It’s best to talk with your tenant in person to inform them of your situation. Assure them that the lease will either be upheld, mutually revised, or bought-out. Make them feel as comfortable as possible. You want the tenant on your side.

Be clear with your tenant about what you need from them: you need them to keep the house in excellent condition for showings, to leave when you show the house, and, potentially, to vacate by a particular date.

Offer to ease the burden by lowering the rent, hiring a cleaning service, helping them find a new place, paying their moving costs, or give them the first opportunity to buy. If your occupant isn’t positioned to buy, you could try to sell to an investor who might be willing to keep the tenant.

The better the relationship you have with the occupants of your house for sale, the easier it will be to sell your home with tenants.

And most importantly, consult with your real estate agent who can guide you through the legal matters and offer ideas on how to simplify the process for you, the tenant, and the buyer.

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Have Questions? Ask Lindsay!

Give Lindsay Rice a call today at 703-223-8676  to set up a time to discuss your current and future real estate goals in regard to buying or selling a home. We look forward to working with you to make your goals a reality.

Filed Under: Sellers

Should I List or Should I Hold

February 14, 2020 by Lindsay Rice

Deciding to sell your home can be difficult. And knowing when to list your property for sale can feel even more daunting. Your goal when selling your house is for it to move quickly and for as much money as you can earn on your investment.

But in the world of real estate, timing is everything. Here are some tips for determining if you should sell your house now, or hold onto it for a little while longer.

How Much is Your Home Worth?

Be Emotionally Prepared

Leaving the memories created in a home can be gut-wrenching, especially for homeowners who have spent ten or more years in their house.

For a seller who isn’t prepared to separate emotionally from the property, the sale can be painstakingly difficult, if not impossible.

An emotional attachment could influence the way you price your house for sale, the way you stage and present the home, and the way you perceive offers and negotiations.

You certainly don’t want to resist and resent the act of selling, so if you’re not emotionally ready to cut those apron strings, then it’s best to hold on to your home until you’re ready to part with it.

Selling a House with Tenants
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Analyze Your Reason for Selling Your House

There are many reasons homeowners decide to list their house for sale. In the best-case scenarios, the owners can level up to a more desired lifestyle, whether upsizing, downsizing, or retiring.  Or, they’ve built up an impressive amount of equity and are ready to cash out.

These savvy homeowners have the option of listing immediately or waiting until the market lends itself to even higher home values such as spring or autumn in a seller’s market.

But the reasons for selling aren’t always on the plus side.

It’s not uncommon for some homeowners to become overwhelmed by their property – either financially, or in the maintenance and upkeep. In these situations, owners may find themselves facing a foreclosure or a short sale. The owner may be in a pinch and need to sell faster.

Other reasons some people feel like they have to sell is in the case of a divorce or a transfer for work.

Are you selling your home to make a profit, a lateral move such as a work transfer,  upsizing, downsizing – or are you in a pickle where you need to get out from under the pressures of a mortgage or upkeep? These factors play a significant role in whether you should sell now or hold.

Talk with your real estate agent about market conditions and when might be the more advantageous time to list your home.

How to Buy a House and Rent it Out
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Earning Escrow or Paying Taxes?

The longer you’ve owned your home, and the more you’ve paid on your mortgage loans, the more equity you’ll have in the house. It could be a great time to sell.

However, if you’ve lived in the home you’re selling for less than two years, you could end up paying a big fat fee to Uncle Sam for a Capital Gains Tax.

If you’ve lived on the property for at least two years, you can deduct up to $250,000 on the profit. For a married couple, that amount doubles for up to $500,000 in deductions.

On the flip side of that real estate coin, if you sell your home before living in it for two years, that deduction disappears, and you pay tax on the profit from the sales price of your house.

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Buyer’s Market or Seller’s Market?

A buyer’s market is when more properties are for sale than there are people wanting to buy them.

The buyers can afford to be more choosy and seem to have the upper hand in negotiating a better price for themselves. If you can hold off for a shift in the market, a seller’s market will prove much more profitable.

A seller’s market is when an area has more house-hunters than there are houses to hunt.

In this case, buyers scramble to beat other buyers to the chase and submit competitive offers. And, in an ideal setting, a seller’s market can spawn a bidding war, raising home values substantially. During a seller’s market is the ideal time to sell your home.

How to Buy a House with Cash

Choosing the Right Season to List Your House for Sale

Believe it or not, the seasons – yes, the weather – can play a leading role in how quickly your property will sell and how much money goes into your bank account.

Think about this: Do you enjoy going out in the middle of winter? Most people don’t feel good about going outdoors in freezing temperatures, rain, or snow.

On the same token, summers can be detrimental for showing homes. Buyers tend to avoid going out in the scorching heat. That’s not to say it doesn’t happen, but there’s definitely a mood-shift in buyers that is influenced by the seasons.

Spring and autumn tend to be much more lucrative in the real estate industry. In the spring, people are feeling inspired, revived, and excited about what’s to come. In autumn, people are determined to make choices before the turn of the year.

Your home may also be easier to stage in spring and autumn. It can be difficult to enhance curb appeal if your yard is buried in snow. But in spring, flowers are blooming – and in autumn, the leaves are changing. Temperatures are gentler. You can use nature’s influence to sway your real estate transaction.

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Is Your Home in the Right Condition to Sell?

Before you can list your home, you’ll need to make sure it’s ready to show to buyers. When buyers tour properties, they want to find a home that’s move-in ready, in most cases.

There are those, however, who don’t mind buying a fixer-upper, but you’ll quickly discover those offers come in with much smaller price tags and may have more stringent terms.

If you’re not selling to an investor or a cash buyer, the buyer’s lender will require an inspection and appraisal.

During the inspection, the inspector surveys the property, including the land and the structure, to ensure that it’s free of any major problems such as faulty heating and air, plumbing, electrical, and roofing.

If problems are discovered, you are required to make repairs before closing, or there may be more dollar signs subtracted from your asking price so the new owner can make repairs.

The next step in getting your house prepped for listing is staging. Staging a property is when you spiff it up to its absolute best condition.

You’ll depersonalize the space by removing your personal effects such as family photos, kids’ drawings, religious or political items, and anything that might make a buyer feel more like they’re visiting your house rather than shopping for a home of their own.

After depersonalizing comes a deep clean, from baseboards to ceiling fans, and from the inside of the house to the out. It may be necessary to add fresh paint to the walls or shampoo the carpets.

Until your property is in tip-top shape, inside and out, you’re not quite ready to list your house for sale.

Homes for Sale in Fairfax County, VA
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Conclusion

Once you know the reason you’re thinking of selling your house, you’ll be more prepared to move forward. If you’ve got time to spare to wait for a ripe market, you may want to hold on to your home.

But if it’s a seller’s market, you’ve got equity, and the seasons are in your favor, then strike while the iron is hot.

If you’re selling because of a divorce or financial hardship, speak with your real estate agent about the best way to move forward with listing your house for sale.

Fairfax County Fairfax
PenderbrookDC Metropolitan of Northern Virginia
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Have Questions? Ask Lindsay!

Give Lindsay Rice a call today at 703-223-8676  to set up a time to discuss your current and future real estate goals in regard to buying or selling a home. We look forward to working with you to make your goals a reality.

Filed Under: Featured, Sellers

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Lindsay Rice – Realtor
License #: 0225216700
Broker – Keller Williams Capital Properties
4031 University Drive, Suite 500
Fairfax, VA 22030
703-223-8676

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