Things to consider before buying or selling a vacant home
A vacant home has a character all its own in the real estate market. Stripped of the furnishings that awaken its personality, a house sits an empty shell of a living space. Vulnerable in its emptiness, the house tells its deepest and best secrets to the observant eye. Marks on the wall or carpeting stand out. The condition of windows and ceilings, as well as appliances, is easily determined.
In short, the general physical health of a home can be evaluated easily at a glance.
Advice for Home Sellers
Property Insurance on a vacant home is important. Be sure to inform your home insurance carrier when the house becomes vacant, as rates may vary once a home is no longer occupied. Be sure to run the dishwasher and other plumbing fixtures at least once a month so the seals remain tight and sewer gas smells do not invade the house. If you have moved outside the area, make sure this is done regularly to protect the house’s plumbing health.
Fresh paint makes a good first impression and helps a house look clean and fresh. If you can afford it, have the carpets professionally cleaned. If they are badly worn, consider replacing them.
Maintain the inside and outside of the home. Dust and vacuum regularly to prevent a “musty” smell. Mow the lawn and keep the landscape in good shape to keep first impressions positive.
Keep the utilities on. Consider investing in exterior sensor lights that automatically turn on at sundown to prevent break-ins. Have someone check on the house regularly. An open window or sliding glass door can invite unwanted insects or rodents into the house. If the house is in a wooded area, or in a location where insects may be a problem, consider professional treatment by an exterminator as a good preventive measure from future problems.
Price your house competitively. Also, if possible, stay in the house until it sells; houses that are occupied sell more quickly than those that are vacant.
Advice for Home Buyers
Be sure to have a house inspection to ensure that the plumbing and other elements of the home have been properly maintained, especially during vacancy.
Find out why the owner is selling the house. Is it a foreclosure and subject to a short sale? In this case, you should ask questions of a qualified real estate agent or attorney regarding the purchase of such a property. The price of your offer may vary upon knowing this information.
When in doubt, ask questions.
Our First Newsletter
Welcome to the most powerful tool for locating preferred home repair and service companies in the greater metro Omaha area: MatchingHomeResources.com.
We designed this Web site knowing that the Internet has rapidly grown into the most accepted resource for information today. As a result of this increased use, finding the best Web site with the most accurate information has become increasingly more difficult. Companies with sterling reputations are lost when a Google search brings potential customers to the Web site of a company that paid for the best placement but that may not have the best reputation within the community.
So we decided to counteract this situation by developing an all-in-one resource guide for homeowners. We ensure quality by requiring our members to submit references, which we check, and by conducting a Better Business Bureau background check on each member.
We took it a step further, though, and we have provided hyperlink access to our members’ Web sites, and we provide members with a dynamic and ever-changing portal to the future in Web site development and use for the home repair and service industry. We are proud of MatchingHomeResources.com's motto: Matching Choice With Excellence, and we hope you enjoy using the companies on our Web site as much as we have enjoyed selecting them for membership.
A vacant home has a character all its own in the real estate market. Stripped of the furnishings that awaken its personality, a house sits an empty shell of a living space. Vulnerable in its emptiness, the house tells its deepest and best secrets to the observant eye. Marks on the wall or carpeting stand out. The condition of windows and ceilings, as well as appliances, is easily determined. In short, the general physical health of a home can be evaluated easily at a glance.
Advice for Home Sellers
Property Insurance on a vacant home is important. Be sure to inform your home insurance carrier when the house becomes vacant, as rates may vary once a home is no longer occupied. Be sure to run the dishwasher and other plumbing fixtures at least once a month so the seals remain tight and sewer gas smells do not invade the house. If you have moved outside the area, make sure this is done regularly to protect the house’s plumbing health.
Fresh paint makes a good first impression and helps a house look clean and fresh. If you can afford it, have the carpets professionally cleaned. If they are badly worn, consider replacing them.
Maintain the inside and outside of the home. Dust and vacuum regularly to prevent a “musty” smell. Mow the lawn and keep the landscape in good shape to keep first impressions positive.
Keep the utilities on. Consider investing in exterior sensor lights that automatically turn on at sundown to prevent break-ins. Have someone check on the house regularly. An open window or sliding glass door can invite unwanted insects or rodents into the house. If the house is in a wooded area, or in a location where insects may be a problem, consider professional treatment by an exterminator as a good preventive measure from future problems.
Price your house competitively. Also, if possible, stay in the house until it sells; houses that are occupied sell more quickly than those that are vacant.
Advice for Home Buyers
Be sure to have a house inspection to ensure that the plumbing and other elements of the home have been properly maintained, especially during vacancy.
Find out why the owner is selling the house. Is it a foreclosure and subject to a short sale? In this case, you should ask questions of a qualified real estate agent or attorney regarding the purchase of such a property. The price of your offer may vary upon knowing this information.
When in doubt, ask questions.
Our First Newsletter
Welcome to the most powerful tool for locating preferred home repair and service companies in the greater metro Omaha area: MatchingHomeResources.com.We designed this Web site knowing that the Internet has rapidly grown into the most accepted resource for information today. As a result of this increased use, finding the best Web site with the most accurate information has become increasingly more difficult. Companies with sterling reputations are lost when a Google search brings potential customers to the Web site of a company that paid for the best placement but that may not have the best reputation within the community.
So we decided to counteract this situation by developing an all-in-one resource guide for homeowners. We ensure quality by requiring our members to submit references, which we check, and by conducting a Better Business Bureau background check on each member.
We took it a step further, though, and we have provided hyperlink access to our members’ Web sites, and we provide members with a dynamic and ever-changing portal to the future in Web site development and use for the home repair and service industry. We are proud of MatchingHomeResources.com's motto: Matching Choice With Excellence, and we hope you enjoy using the companies on our Web site as much as we have enjoyed selecting them for membership.
