4 things that can go wrong when selling your house
As a homeowner or investor looking to sell your house, there can be things that go wrong even after you have accepted an offer from a legitimate buyer.
1. Property Structural Problem
The buyer does a home/termite inspection or brings their general contractor and discovers a structural problem with your property. Such property related problem can be a leak that resulted in water damage, a termite or pest infestation, electrical not up to code, etc. As a result, the buyer wants to back out OR they ask you to fix the problem. If you cannot afford to pay $$$ in repairs, your best bet is to sell your house to a real estate investor. This is because — more often than not, traditional retail buyers do not want to take on the responsibility of buying a property with structural issues or with major needs for upgrades.
2. Cloudy Title of Ownership
The buyer orders a Title Report from the escrow/title company and discovers a lien on your property or a cloudy title of ownership. That can be a major challenge. Typically the buyer will want to back out unless you pay off the lien(s) or can solve the cloudy title issue. Either way, this will take time and money to fix.
3. Buyer’s Lender Backs Out
The Buyer’s Lender no longer wants to fund the purchase of your home. It may be because your buyer no longer meets the lender’s lending requirements. It could also be because the lender’s Appraiser appraised your home for less than your sale price… In that case, you may have to drop the sale price to under the appraisal value.
4. You Change Your Mind on The Terms
You as the homeowner may want or you may have to change the terms of the agreement signed with your buyer. You may want to change the closing date, or you may want to sell for more money, or sell to someone else. Your buyer is under no obligation to accept your requests. You will either have to comply with the terms of the signed contract, or you may have to offer a settlement to your buyer.
These are the 4 main situations in which you may not be able to sell your house to your prospective buyer.
Written by Diane Jaquet — Home Buying Specialist and Landlord
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