How to Sell Your Sinkhole House
No matter how well you take care of your property, there are some catastrophic occurrences you simply cannot protect your home from. A sinkhole is one of those disasters, and when you own a home in Florida, you’re always at risk.
Sinkholes can happen suddenly, at any time and in any location. If your property becomes the victim of one, that gaping hole can swallow part of your yard, damage your foundation, or even threaten the structure of your home.
Once a sinkhole develops, it might seem as though you’re stuck with a severely damaged, dangerous, and virtually useless piece of property that no one will ever want to buy. But that’s not true at all. You can still sell a sinkhole house, but securing a buyer may require a little more work and negotiation on your part.
Continue reading to learn about several ways you can go about selling your sinkhole house.
Disclose the Sinkhole
First and foremost, you cannot legally sell a sinkhole house without disclosing the sinkhole to prospective buyers. You must include the damage in your disclosure report because any sinkhole materially affects the value of the property it’s on. If you fail to disclose the sinkhole, and you end up selling the home, the buyer can file a lawsuit against you.
Repair the Damage and List the House
If you want to sell your sinkhole home with a realtor or FSBO on the open market, the first thing you’ll need to do is handle any necessary repairs.
Be sure to keep all documentation of the work that was done on your home and property, as well as the engineer’s report and inspection reports because those documents will help boost your home’s resale value. You’ll also want to keep any insurance payout information on file.
When you’re ready to list, you should be prepared for the appraised value of your home to be approximately 10% less than its value prior to suffering the sinkhole. And, yes, even if you’ve fully repaired the sinkhole and any damage to your house, that drop in value will still hold true.
If you sell on the open market, be prepared to wait as well. Lots of folks steer clear of sinkhole homes out of fear even though those homes are more affordable. Generally speaking, you’ll be working with a small pool of buyers, so completing the sale could take quite a bit of time.
For more information on sinkholes in Florida and making repairs to or selling a sinkhole house, check out Sinkhole Frequently Asked Questions from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
Sell Your Sinkhole House As Is
Although this option may not be ideal, it may be in your best interest if you cannot afford the repairs or don’t want to deal with them. However, if you take this route, you’ll likely have a difficult, if not impossible, time selling on the open market.
Traditional buyers are almost never interested in buying a home with an existing sinkhole, let alone any form of serious structural damage. But luckily, traditional buyers aren’t the only people buying homes.
Sell Your House to a Cash Buyer
Cash home buyers, who are generally real estate investors, are always looking to pick up new properties. They buy houses in any condition, even those that have suffered serious damage, because these buyers have the resources to fix up houses and put them on the market or rent them out.
At Real Options & Investments, we buy houses in any condition — even those that have sinkholes — and we pay cash at closing. We can offer you fair market value for your house and provide you with a fair cash offer within as few as 24 hours after you contact us. If you agree to our offer and choose to sell, we can close within a matter of days.
If you’re looking to sell your house fast and move on from a sinkhole catastrophe, selling to a real estate investor may be the best option for your needs and circumstances.
Own a Sinkhole Property in Fort Myers? Need to Sell Your House Fast?
If you need to sell a sinkhole house quickly so you can move on and start over, don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team at Real Options & Investments. We buy houses throughout Fort Myers and all surrounding areas, and our buying process requires only a few days of your time. To get an offer for your home or learn more about how we work, feel free to give us a call today at (239) 309-7474 or contact us online, and we’ll reach out with additional information.