This has been a problem for me . .specially when I'm doing a short sale. .there is no motivation at all. .

I'm getting ready to list a luxury home for lease in Rancho Palos Verdes and it is tenant occupied with pets!  Fingers crossed this experience will be the exception to the rule...

I hate selling houses with tenants in them; they have no skin in the game. I always tell my clients to wait till the property is vacant. But I don't love showing houses with tenants either... so much more complicated to get an appointment and then you never know what greets you once you are there.

Tenants make selling a home much more difficult. The notice you have to give, the mess you run into when showing and the altogether lack of cooperation makes the whole process and loser for the Seller and the agent.

Rarely have I shown a tenant occupied home that was in tip top shape or easy to schedule.  Once in a blue moon and I think the owners had bribed them into cooperation.  Years ago when we tried to sell my late mother-in-law's rental property we had to give the tenants notice to move out.  They put so many restrictions on showing and wouldn't leave.  The house sold within 30 days of them leaving.

And if only the renters would have saved the money, rather then buying everything in sight at Toys R Us, maybe they would be able to buy a castle of their own.  And in my day, we got a spinning top and called it FUN!

Great post Margaret.  I agree with you that home owners need to wait for their tenants to move out before selling the house so that they can have all the access to repair, clean, renovate the house and make it as presentable for buyers. 

Margaret, 

Interesting post.  While it is certainly true tenants can and are a challenge, I have had good success with many of ours.  We are fortunate to be in the luxury market with a lot of international expatriates.  First, we try to work with the tenants.  We get their buy in.  Many of these folks have their homes a contenent away leased out and they get that access is needed.  As well, they have an exit plan, know they are going to move and have been planning it for months, so our doing showings is not a surprise. 

We also have showings set up through us, so we call the tenants for showings.  Typically, they do leave and actually many of them live much cleaner than some of my other sale listings.  While you can wait til they are out we've been successful with getting them to work with us in a win-win situation.  

Having said that, getting the right tenants is a huge part of the equation.

All the best, Michelle

 

 

Margaret-This is a meaty subject. Waiting for the house is a good solution but in some cases the owner may not be able to forgo the revenue by having a non-performing asset. Of course if the really want to sell but the tenant is an obstacle, they are not getting to their objective. Tough position to be in.

Hi Margaret, 

I know of what you speak. I am always counseling my sellers to dispose of tenants prior to listing. It just means more money in their pocket. They don't always feel the same way but it is worth repeating - you will sell your home twice as fast and for more money if it is NOT tenant occuppied.

My favorite tenant story was - thankfully not my listing - one day while checking out some neighborhood properties for a seller I ran across the following agent note in a property listed for sale. "Do not go on property tenant may be dangerous"  ..........sounded like a tough sell. I dismissed it as serious competition for my listing!

Thanks for the posting.

Margaret:  Totally agree with you.  There is no motivation for the renter to make or keep the home for sale presentable or attractive.  But it struck me when you were talking about the home with all the toys ... perhaps the number of toys purchased could be the reason why the occupants are renters instead of home owners.  Obviously don't know the full story, but it did pop up in my mind ...

Gene

There's a house in our market that is piced well but won't sell because the tenants make it nearly impossible to show.  M W F only and only 3 showings per day.  No weekends either! 

Margaret:  There are so many renters who simply do NOT want to move, so they keep their home a mess on purpose to prevent any buyers looking at it from writing an offer.

If at all possible, I agree that the seller should wait until the home is vacant, then spruce it up, and put it on the market.  Any lost rent will most likely be made up by the home selling for thousands more than it otherwise would have.

Margaret:  You have to look at it from the tenant's perspective.  We might think "what a way to live..." but THEY are thinking... "I NEED a place to live, and if this place sells, I won't have one."  So, they keep it messy to keep it from selling.  To them... it makes sense.