Deaths in a house I want to purchase

Deaths in a house I want to purchase

Wholesaler · Charlotte, NC · Member since 2012 · 57 posts · 1 vote

I am looking at buying a house being foreclosed. It is in a desirable neighborhood, the worst street in the neighborhood, and definately the worst house.
The asking is $300k, but they are dreaming. Nice, rehabbed houses on the same street are selling for $340ish. I am thinking going in $200K, maybe less.
I went by and spoke with a neighbor. The father shot himself 3 years ago in the back yard, and the son hung himself in the basement a year ago. That explains a lot of the chaos on the house. Dirty dishes on the counter, food in the fridge, kitty litter everywhere. Pretty gross, but in my mind, the grosser the better.

My questions: How are houses with deaths like this marketed/sold/disclosed? What kind of discount should I expect to get on the purchase price? As a purchaser, what advantages can I take advantage of, 1)because it is a foreclosure and 2) because of the suicides? How can I benefit from this situation at this point?

It is being sold by a finance company. I know for a fact that there is $31,800 outstanding on the mortgage.

Any thoughts? Many thanks in advance.

0Reply
12 views

Most Popular Reply

Real Estate Professional · West Palm Beach, FL · Member since 2012 · 23k+ posts · 13k+ votes
7y

@Monica Litster Agree with @Account Closed on the death issue.

Bit, you say “it is being sold by a finance company”... that means it has already been foreclosed on and if the debt were only $39k it would have sold at auction to a third party....you have something confused here.

See this reply in the discussion

4 Replies

Jump to latestLatest
  • Real Estate Agent · Las Vegas, NV · Member since 2015 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    7y

    Some states you must disclose a death in the home others you do not  In your case you do not have to disclose the deaths . It is then a non-issue in the purchase of your potential investment .Good luck

    https://abc11.com/realestate/7-things-that-do-and-dont-have-to-be-disclosed-in-nc-home-sales/2600631/

  • Real Estate Professional · West Palm Beach, FL · Member since 2012 · 23k+ posts · 13k+ votes
    7y

    @Monica Litster Agree with @Account Closed on the death issue.

    Bit, you say “it is being sold by a finance company”... that means it has already been foreclosed on and if the debt were only $39k it would have sold at auction to a third party....you have something confused here.

  • Rental Property Investor · TN · Member since 2018 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    7y

    If your state does not require a disclosure, don't.  As far as loss of value, when I sold property in CA that had hospice deaths of elderly people who choose to die at home the realtor said that any Asian purchasers, due to religious beliefs, would not be interested in buying the house.  If your area does not have many Asian purchasers then you might not loose value.  And the Asian purchasers will search on web pages about news articles about the property too, so if the deaths were in the news, they may find out even if you do not disclose.

  • Rental Property Investor · Orlando, FL · Member since 2017 · 10 posts · 4 votes
    7y

    Hi @Monica Litster are you sure it isn't an REO? That would explain the listing price.

    As far as disclosing the deaths I understand the legality of it, but as a consumer I would want to know upfront, even if I'd risk losing a potential buyer. Just reading the post gave me the heebie jeebies, but thats just me.

    Good luck either way!

Join the conversationCreate a free account to reply, vote on answers and follow this thread.