Special challenges of selling an inherited home

Blog Post Image
Home Improvement

Q: Why do you think that Funeral Homes and Crematories 
would be recommending Steve Martin Homes Group to their customers?

A: Family members who inherit homes, need very specialized assistance in preparing their property for sale.

Working with probate attorneys, multiple family members and complicated title issues is not for the faint of heart.

Families need to know that the unique details involved with emptying and preparing a home for market is not something that most Realtors are properly equipped to handle. Most of the estate sales we’ve encounter have been neglected for several ( if not many ) years. The easy way out for a Real Estate agent is to do nothing to help you improve your profit margin and price it low enough to attract a flipper. If you don’t mind that flipper getting the equity out of your home, then that’s certainly an option. However, if you’d like to get the full value of your inheritance, with very little effort on your part, you should be talking to Steve Martin Homes Group.

This neglected estate was restored in six weeks and then sold in 9 days for top market value. The net profit was $40,000 to $50,000 more than the family could have reasonably hoped for previously. The family remained out of state and all details were handled by Little Black Dress and Steve Martin Homes Group. When a family member did visit the restored home, this was their email to the rest of the family..."Visited the house in Venice yesterday. It was fabulous!  Just like a Mike Holmes reno!  New paint, floors, appliances, AC, roof, and staged beautifully by the Realtor. They had guys in Hazmat suits to remove the carpets and furniture and to get rid of rodents etc...  You would never know what a mess it was!"

This home would have had a hard time selling for even $200,000 in the condition we found it.

·      Rat infested

·      Highly damaged roof

·      Broken air conditioner

·      Disgusting carpet through out

·      Old and broken appliances

·      Just plain filthy

·      Torn screens

·      Rusty door hardware

·      Wall paper

·      Original kitchen and baths

·      Etc…

Most of the potential buyers for a worn out home only want to flip it. The investors I speak with locally look to make 20% to 30% profit for their overall investment.

Renovated - this home could sell for $255,000 to $265,000 in its current market. It took about $40,000 to renovate it without updating the kitchen and baths. That means that an investor would have most likely been willing to pay $150,000 to $175,000, depending on how much of the work they could do themselves.

It took 6 weeks and $40,000 to get this property ready to sell. At the end of the day, we were able to get this home under contract for $265,000 in only 9 days on the market. Do we earn our money? Yes we do! Do our customers appreciate getting more profit at the end of the sale? You can bet they do!

On behalf of Steve Martin Homes Group,

-Steve

Steve Martin Smith has sold more Sarasota County homes than 99% of the area’s REALTORS from January 2015 through August 2020. Selling $1,000,000+ estates from Panther Ridge in Manatee County to condos in Punta Gorda, he is truly a tri-county REALTOR. Originally from the Detroit area, Steve discovered Sarasota County in 1983 and then moved his young family here in 1998. In his life before real estate, Steve worked corporate business management positions for 25 years while simultaneously volunteering in youth and family ministry roles with his wife Katrina. Today, along with their adult children, they enjoy helping families to realize their goals and dreams. Steve also fancies himself a song writer and plays guitar whenever he gets the chance.

*as recorded by Stellar MLS for the period of 1/1/2015 through 8/19/2020