People usually own a rental to earn a regular passive income as well as a solid real investment. But what, if you want to sell your rental! There are several instances when you decide to sell your rental such as you may wish to buy some other prosperous property, or you may have inherited a rental and wish to dispose of it, or you may be planning some other investment or any other urgent cause.
Now, the first question that arises in your mind is that can you sell your property with tenants? Well, it is legal to sell a rental with tenants as long as you take the right steps and do not force them to leave the property before the end of their lease period. Read the lease agreement properly as well as keep in mind your rights, the tenant’s rights, and state or local laws. Today’s real estate market is very competitive and selling a property with a tenant can be as big a headache as finding a suitable tenant.
Here are some effective tips on selling a house with tenants that will help you to navigate this process easily without any stress.
When you decide to sell your rental, you have two alternatives either to sell it without a tenant or sell it with tenants occupying your property. San Antonio realtor will help you in listing your house for sale in San Antonio, tx.
Selling the property without tenants:
- Wait for the lease period to get over:
Determine your goal to sell your rental. If you are not in urgency and you have just decided to sell your rental to move on. Then waiting for the lease period to get over is the right option. Selling a property without a tenant will increase your pool of buyers. On the other hand, when you have tenants occupying your property then only landlords and investors will be willing to buy your property. This will limit your pool of buyers. A vacant property also allows you to make renovations and repairs to get a higher price.
It also becomes easy to stage your property or organize an open house as potential clients can freely walk through your property without any tenant’s interference. Moreover, when you wait for the lease period to expire there are chances that the property value. Or may increase over that period and you may get a better deal for your property than expected.
- Offer different perks to the tenant to motivate them to vacate the property:
If the expiry period of the lease is a bit longer and you are not in a position to wait then you can offer different perks to the tenant to vacate the property.
- Pay the tenants:
If you are in urgency to sell the house and you want the tenant to vacate the property. Before the expiry of the lease period then the easy option is to pay the tenants to leave. Discuss your situation with the tenants and offer them some incentives. If the tenants are cooperative, they will leave willingly. But if they are not willing you can offer to pay for their moving cost, or offer a sum equal to one month’s rent,
- Help the tenant to find a new place:
Another good option to make the tenant vacate the property is to help them to find an appropriate residence. Ask your friends or relatives if they know of any available property. You can also inform the tenant about different sources of listings and connect them with a good San Antonio realtor. If you are an investor having few properties then you can help them by settling them in a home that is vacant till the time. They find a good house by themselves.
- Review your lease:
Once you have decided to sell your rental. The first thing you should do is review the terms of the lease. Find out if the lease includes a sale termination clause. This clause will alert the tenants that they will be asked to move out any time. Before the expiry of the lease period if you consider selling. Also, double-check the lease period. If the lease period is for 1 year, you can either wait for a year or else find a buyer who is ready to wait for a year before moving in. if t is a month-to-month lease then you can easily vacate the tenant by giving them a standard lease notice of either 60 or 120 days depending on the state’s law. Long-term lease tenants cannot be forced to move out of a property.
- Eviction:
As a landlord, you wish to have perfect and quality tenants. But if you have tenants who create a headache and have broken the lease with their actions or have defaulted in rent payment then you can file for an eviction. The eviction process is costly and time-consuming. You also need to have proper knowledge about the eviction process and its rules and guidelines.
Following the above options can help you in vacating your property and thus you can easily and effectively plan to sell your vacant property.
Selling the property with tenants:
If you have tenants with long term lease then you can try selling your property with tenants.
- Sell your property to investors:
You can sell your house directly to investors or landlords who are looking to expand their portfolios. Buying a rental property with tenants will make their expansion straightforward. It will save all the stress and headache of finding a tenant and get an instant income. Also, it will benefit you as well as you will not need to clean and stage your house with tenants living in it.
- Sell to the tenant:
As a tenant has been living in your house for quite some time, he is likely to develop an emotional attachment with the house. So, before you start marketing your property the best option is to ask the tenant if they are interested in buying the house themselves.
- Notify the tenants:
Before you start marketing your rental the first step is to notify the tenants about your intention of selling the property. Your tenant’s co-operation will help you to sell the house easily while they live there. You will need to access the house at different times. Inform the tenants about the repairs and renovation that you will need to make for selling the house. Talk to them politely. Pick a convenient time for showing and notify the tenant’s 24 hours in advance about showings.
Also, request them to clean the house for viewing as well as leave the house during showings. A good and cooperative tenant will help you willingly in selling your house. Well at some point you can help them in cleaning the house or offer some financial incentive for their co-operation.
Conclusion:
Existing tenants cannot stop you from selling your property if done in the right way. Maintain a proper rapport with your tenants and give them proper notice. Follow the state’s law and keep in mind the tenant’s rights. Also, services of an experienced and qualified top real estate agent San Antonio will help you in selling a rental property with tenants.
