Can't sell US house before visa expires
 

Hi

Does anyone have experience of sellinga US house after they left the country we've had the house listed for 3 months now but are still not under contract. I leave with the boys on the 3rd and hubby flys out on the 13th so its unlikely we'll have sold before we go unless we sell to a property speculator at significantly less than the house is worth.
Just wondering what the implications are if we are no longer resident but still have US mortgage.
It will mean we are stuck at my parents in the UK as we can't afford to buy or rent without selling here, less than ideal as hubby will need to work US hours from home and they have a nice set up for 2 people of 1 generation rather than 6 people & 3 generations.
Will it cause tax problems anywhere? Will it take longer to sell empty? Should we get a garden maintenance contract? Anything else I should think of or advice from others who've experienced something similar would be great. Thanks

Re: Can't sell US house before visa expires
 

I don't think the tax consequences are any different - but don't take my word for it.

It should be easier to sell empty, because the house looks bigger and you are very flexible on closing dates.

Yes, get yard maintenance. Many buyers can not see past a disheveled, dusty, dirty house/garden. The yard is their first impression of the house - if the yard is overgrown, it spells "neglect".

Re: Can't sell US house before visa expires
 

What is your realtor doing to help you sell your house? Have they told you why it hasn't sold yet....what is the market like in your area?

I guess you know all about 'staging' a house to sell....?
Also here are some tips here on how to present your home to appeal to buyers:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/homes/property/selling_index.shtml


One thing which I read in the New York Times property pages a few days ago (and you can find it online) is that one person trying to unsuccessfully sell his apartment told his agent that he would increase his commission by a further 1% if he sold it quickly...the agent actually did it by increasing the asking price of the property!!! Maybe your agent will work harder for you if you up the commission to 7% if he/she can find a buyer within say, three or four weeks? Are you locked into a contract with your agent? Who are the 'biggest' ones in your area....there are two realty companies in our town which seem to have the local market 'sewn up', maybe you a with one of the less successful realty companies?.

Also I think you need to have a realtor who works full-time....there are many in our local area whom just work part-time only (almost as if it's for 'pin money'). You need one who is going to pull out all the stops for you and get their arse into gear. Get on the phone and explain your situation.....ask about power of attorney if you've left the country before selling/closing on the property ....you might to get a notary public to witness your signatures etc. before you leave the US.

If I can think of anything more I'll post back.

One of my v.good English friends is leaving New Jersey this week to move to another expat post in Abu Dhabi. They've only been in the States for two years, sold the house in one week and got $90,000 over the asking price (despite the original 1940s kitchen units in the house). They close on Friday morning and fly off on Friday night. They had a particularly aggressive realtor.....

PS> Watch out for unscrupulous realtors who 'flip' a property...ie. buy it or get a friend to buy it and 'flip it over' for another sale quickly at a higher price than they paid for it. I hope your realtor isn't planning to do this, knowing that you are imminently leaving the country.

Re: Can't sell US house before visa expires
 

We are not at all impressed with the realtor and there is some debate about whether we are contracted until today or the 24th September. I think we'll try another realtor. Biggest minuses on the house are dated feeling (wood panelling, couple of 70s carpets & 70s kitchen ) but in the time available there wasn't much we could change. The annoying thing is friends who bought a similar house at the same time as us have just got 2 contracts at an asking price of 50k more and ours appraised for the same as theirs 2 years ago so I'm depressed just now.

Re: Can't sell US house before visa expires
 

Have you thought about having a neighbour take care of the garden? We had some really good neighbours who lived across the road and were only too happy to mow our lawn and keep things tidy until we sold the house. We had a very limited budget as we had two mortgages at the time and the neighbour was willing to do this for us for much cheaper than a garden maintainance firm.

Also, although we weren't moving back to the UK, we did have to give our realtor power of attorney since we were over a thousand miles away and couldn't be present for the closing.

Sending you lots of luck and hope your house sells soon.

Re: Can't sell US house before visa expires
 

Do you have extra money to spruce it up a bit? I know you're short of time, but perhaps hire a painter (panelling is bad!) and maybe some cheap carpeting, etc. Might help things. Also, if that can't be done, perhaps your a bit overpriced. Don't know the market you're in, or comparable houses, but if yours is a bit drab in comparison, that may be a problem....

Re: Can't sell US house before visa expires
 

That's what I thought (I've seen too many House Doctor programmes LOL!).

What is the floor like underneath the 70s carpet? Is it wood and in good condition? It might be a good idea to get rid of the carpet and either replace it with cheap carpet in a neutral colour (beige/taupe) from the Home Depot or just have nicely polished wooden floors - again you could buy some cheap rugs from the Home Depot or Home Goods/T J Maxx/Marshalls.

Re: Can't sell US house before visa expires
 

We found that when we sold our house in the UK, it really paid off for it to look its very best. It was a lot of hard work, but we had immediate results..... ;)

Re: Can't sell US house before visa expires
 

Have to agree - even if your short of time and/or money, sprucing up a 'tired' house is a must if you want to sell quickly. Chances are you'd lose more in the long run (mortgage payments, possible price reduction) than if you spend some $$$ now.

If memory serves me right, the House Doctor recommends (1) declutter, declutter + declutter some more, (2) complete any unfinished 'little jobs'/repairs, (3) clean, clean, clean, (4) neutral colours that do not offend anyone for walls and carpets (agree with Lisa on the panelling...), (5) some carefully chosen accents (mirrors, cushions, vases etc).

Oh, not forgetting kerb appeal: tidy front-yard, new lick of paint for the front-door, plus some plants in a nice pot by the door.

I know that this is probably the last thing you want to get involved in if you're about to leave the country, but if it results in a sale... :)

Good luck!