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This is something I'm a bit concerned about, and I'm interesting in hearing others' experiences.
For some context, we're in the midst of selling our home in the Chicago area after only living here for a little over two years.
Our house is pretty updated (white trim, newly painted in most rooms) and in good shape overall. Our realtor was pretty confident we would be able to sell it without too much trouble for a decent profit, given it's current shape, the work we've done and the current state of the market (low inventory, etc.).
It's coming up on two weeks now and we've only had 2 showings, which I feel is a bit lower than anticipated. We dropped the price a little (just today) and though I'm not concerned right now, I'm worried that if we have to drop the price significantly (and then have offers under asking, which wouldn't be uncommon) we might end up owing more at closing than we have the means to pay. This is sort of the 'worst case scenario' running through my head.
Wondering if others have been in similar scenarios and/or what they did.
Don't sell if upside down. My friend had a house that was purchased in the 2000's, but underwater in 2013. They decided to rent out until last year, and sold for a nice profit.
You control when to sell. Just don't sell at a loss if you don't need to, unless you're desperate for cash.
Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
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Why are you selling? If the reasons are compelling enough, you have to come up with the money at closing.
My friend sold and had to bring money to closing. To her, it was worth it. The house was aging and she knew expensive repairs were coming up. In her case, she borrowed the money from her parents.
If you really can't afford the house, a short sale might be an option.
Why are you selling? If the reasons are compelling enough, you have to come up with the money at closing.
My friend sold and had to bring money to closing. To her, it was worth it. The house was aging and she knew expensive repairs were coming up. In her case, she borrowed the money from her parents.
If you really can't afford the house, a short sale might be an option.
Selling because I took a new job in another city. Granted, everyone is WFH currently and (based on communication from the company) there's no rush for everyone to be back to the office anytime soon.
So, I'm more in the mindset that we would wait until we have the money to sell.
If it looks like you have to sell it at a loss, you may want to rent it at any price for three years or longer. That way, the property becomes a business loss and not a personal loss. You cannot deduct a personal real estate loss, but you can carry forward a loss on real estate as a business for a L O O O N G time.
BTW, this is different than being upside down. You can sell at a loss and still have equity in the house. If you have paid down/ off the mortgage, then you will get something at closing. And some borrowers who took out second and third mortgages are upside down even when selling their property at a paper gain.
Long story short, if you have to bring money to the closing, then you don't have positive equity in the house.
Don't sell if upside down. My friend had a house that was purchased in the 2000's, but underwater in 2013. They decided to rent out until last year, and sold for a nice profit.
You control when to sell. Just don't sell at a loss if you don't need to, unless you're desperate for cash.
Glad it worked out for them. It often doesn’t and in addition to deadbeat renters you then have to spend a lot to refurbish the house.
During a relocation a couple of years ago we did a short term rental in a nice area. The house was only 10 years old but was pretty beat up. Appliances dented, etc.
This is something I'm a bit concerned about, and I'm interesting in hearing others' experiences.
For some context, we're in the midst of selling our home in the Chicago area after only living here for a little over two years.
Our house is pretty updated (white trim, newly painted in most rooms) and in good shape overall. Our realtor was pretty confident we would be able to sell it without too much trouble for a decent profit, given it's current shape, the work we've done and the current state of the market (low inventory, etc.).
It's coming up on two weeks now and we've only had 2 showings, which I feel is a bit lower than anticipated. We dropped the price a little (just today) and though I'm not concerned right now, I'm worried that if we have to drop the price significantly (and then have offers under asking, which wouldn't be uncommon) we might end up owing more at closing than we have the means to pay. This is sort of the 'worst case scenario' running through my head.
Wondering if others have been in similar scenarios and/or what they did.
Drop the price after two weeks and less than 10 showings.
Drop the price after 15 showings and no second showings and no offers.
Is that advice in general or for today’s COVID situation? OP also was showing at the end of June, right before 4th of July.
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