Rehabbing a property has its risks, and the expense is often more than a person can afford to risk. As such, many people choose to sell off the land and pay themselves their legacy. However, this requires you to sell off someone else’s dream and means that there was no point in leaving it to you in the first place.
If you have inherited a home that needs rehabilitation or your family keeps giving you houses as gifts then now is an excellent time for something called house flipping! House flipping involves buying up fixer-uppers at low prices (with as little as 20% down), sprucing them up, and selling them for a profit (anywhere from 10%-100%+). To do well with this type of investing you will need good contractors.
If the home is still in probate, the executor is responsible for these costs. If you are not the executor or there is no will, begin your search with a call to the county clerk’s office and work your way down the list.
– Mortgage (if applicable)
– Property Taxes (not yet billed; usually due in arrears October 1 st )
– Insurance
– Utilities
– Yard Care / Landscaping / Snow Removal
(Try to find someone who currently does this and pay them monthly.) Be diligent and stay on top of all regular expenses as they come due. This common responsibility may seem overwhelming but it is essential to protect your investment until it can be sold. Once all outstanding debts have been satisfied you can then sell the home to the prospective buyer.
Taxes
Having these types of costs does not change the fact that an inherited home is a liability, not an asset.
As long as you are on title for this property, there’s always the chance of being sued by someone who slips and falls on your property. It doesn’t matter whether or not they have insurance because you may be held liable to cover their medical costs plus any legal fees incurred in getting them what they want.
It’s stupid to feel emotionally attached to a house that still has the same monthly expenses associated with it while providing nothing in return except having a place to sleep. The previous owner should have never signed over the permanent responsibility of maintaining something that he could no longer afford. Now it will cost you more money each no matter how much care you take to act with honesty and thoroughness.
Insurance
When you are considering these types of options, you might also want to look at the value of the property.
If your market_city home is considered by real estate appraisers to be “underwater”, meaning its market value is less than the outstanding balance of your mortgage, then it may not make financial sense for you to hang onto that house. Also, if your inherited home has a low tax assessment, but insurance costs are high (because of location), it might make fiscal sense for you to sell even though you could probably still get some return on your investment if you hold onto it.
Assumption of Mortgage
Keeping the property will require you to pay the taxes, insurance, and expenses.
If a person originated a reverse mortgage on their property, they should have gotten a life insurance policy for this purpose. The term “reverse mortgage” is a bit of a misnomer since it sounds like it’s the opposite of a regular first-mortgage loan. In fact, it’s not that simple. A traditional home mortgage has set terms because it is secured against the home itself as collateral. If you fail to make your monthly payments then your lender will foreclose on your house as repayment for what you still owe. In contrast, with a reverse mortgage, there are no monthly principal and interest payments required – only tax, insurance, and maintenance fees.
Utilities
Once you have closed on the property, you can begin settling the bills with each respective company. But if you are trying to save money and looking for a quick way to lower your utility costs, try disconnecting service at the main breaker in the house for an entire month. That will surely get their attention and prompt them to send out a representative that will quickly set up a payment plan just so they don’t have to deal with figuring out where all of their equipment went!
Maintenance
Holding costs can eat up a lot of your monthly income, which could mean you are unable to maintain ownership. At the end of the day, it might be best to make a decision with your head rather than your heart.
Make sure that if you are living in one state but working in another that you will be able to time travel between both states for work or family emergencies. Time travel can be an expensive lesson for those who are unprepared. Research the cost of flights back and forth from house sitter locations accordingly.
If your job requires frequent business trips abroad, you should consider renting out Colorado Springs homes via short-term homes rental sites such as Airbnb or VRBO while away on-location shoots or conferences. Between plane tickets and hotel expenses, you will be lucky if there are any profits leftover for you the owner.
Yard
Our company has built its reputation on the highest level of customer care. We will take you through a personalized inspection to determine your needs and answer any questions you have about the process, no matter what time of day or night it is.
Unless you have a plan for the property, holding onto an inherited house in Colorado Springs is costing you money. HBR Colorado will pay you a great price and close when you are ready. If you don’t feel that you can handle the emotions of going through the possessions of your loved one to clean out the property, you can leave everything in place or take what you like, HBR Colorado will handle the rest for you. Call HBR Colorado at (719) 286-0053 or send us a message today!