Sell a house with tenants in Virginia during COVID

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Sell a house with tenants in Virginia during COVID

Valerie V.
Long Island, NY · Member since 2020 · 2 posts · 0 votes

Hello everyone,

My mom needs to sell a rental house in VA that is being occupied by the tenants relative. Supposedly the tenant moved to another state and now his relative is struggling to pay my mom for the past 10 months. The lease is under the original tenants name. I don't know if the relative or the tenant has applied for covid financial assistance but I know in VA the landlord can apply for the
Landlord Rental Assistance for Tenants program.
That is what my mom is going to do in order to collect rent from March. My mom has been struggling to pay the mortgage on that house and has found herself in a financial mess and also is in dire need of retiring since she is 74 yrs old and not doing well health wise. My mom's supposed "debt consultant  friend of over 10 years, has been handling her financial affairs and quite frankly he hasn't been doing a good job (that is a story for another day!)  I would like to know if its possible to sell a house with tenants during covid. Any advice I can pass along to my mom would be greatly appreciated.

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  • Dan Maciejewski
    Realtor · PInellas County Largo, FL · Member since 2016 · 902 posts · 810 votes
    5y

    It is possible -- I don't know how VA is handling things. In Florida tenanted houses are flying off the market.

    In general, a tenanted house will be either:

    1. A good / great investment with great tenants that pay on time, or

    2. Sold at a discount for the new investor to take on the added risk of having to evict. This seems to be the situation for her. A non-tenant with no lease is not a great situation for someone to take on at full FMV.

    I'm very sorry to hear about your mother's situation -- She may have to sell at a discount just to get out from under this.  The good news is that you are in the perfect place to network and find some help.  Remember that, unless you own or have ownership interest the house, the law most likely states that you cannot market or sell it for her, although asking for help is generally fine.

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  • Valerie V.
    OP
    Long Island, NY · Member since 2020 · 2 posts · 0 votes
    5y

    @Dan Maciejewski Thanks for the advice Dan!! My mom wants to collect back pay before she sells the house. She did mention that if they do not pay her she will just place the house on the Market. Hopefully it goes smoothly.

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  • Ika Sargeant
    Real Estate Agent · Reston, VA · Member since 2017 · 296 posts · 163 votes
    5y

    @Valerie V. sorry to hear your mom has to deal with all that. Yes houses sell all the time with tenants. This does not sound like there is a lease but even if you have a lease I would start by giving notice that within 30 days we plan to put the home on the market. So start that conversation and see where it goes. I would also tell your relative the house has to be sold and they is no other options. The next question is if there is a lease that means she will be there till the end of their lease. You have to work with them to show the home because some tenants do not like people coming through the home while they live there. Many buyers take homes with tenants but in this situation if it means they will have to evict, then let them know.  

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