We buy houses in Florida. Selling an inherited house is never easy, and when you throw siblings into the mix, that further complicates things. Seeing eye to eye with family can be tricky, even deciding on a restaurant can be a big deal amongst siblings, let alone selling a parent’s home. A sister or brother could be living in the property and may not want to leave. If you reside in the home, you may want to buy it outright from your siblings. Or you could be wondering if the family can force the sale of the home if one wants to sell. On top of all of that selling, a parent’s home adds another element of stress to the whole situation. We are your local Florida home buyers and we offer cash for houses in Florida.
There are options available when sharing ownership of the property with family members: buy-out a sibling, sell it to the family, sell a share of the inherited property, or have the courts force the sale. Ideally, you want to find a solution that makes all the siblings happy. Let’s take a closer look at selling your inherited home with siblings in Florida.
Available Options When Owning a House with Siblings
Sell the House to a New Owner
Selling an inherited home outright to a new owner is the simplest approach to selling a house in Florida with siblings involved. The steps would include lining up a buyer, closing on the property, and dividing the heirs’ sale proceeds. Of course, challenges include determining if a will is in place, getting everyone on the same page, and determining the selling process. So though this option may sound easy it is a bit more complicated than it looks.
Keep the Property as a Rental
If the inherited property is in a hot neighborhood or could bring in strong rental cash flow and you have a good relationship with your siblings, you could always keep it and look into renting out the home. Real estate can be a good long-term investment but renting a property is not easy. Finding good tenants can be challenging, and if you don’t work with a property manager, you or your siblings will be on call to handle complaints and minor issues. Not to mention dealing with evictions, lease violations, vacancy, and tenant turnover is all part of being a landlord. Though your tenant will be paying rent, there are still ongoing fees like hiring a property manager, utilities, and maintenance. Living far away makes it even more challenging, but if you’re the sibling that lives close by, you could be on the hook for checking up on the place. Ultimately, if this is a family home, it can be hard to see someone else living in your parent’s property and not respecting and caring for it as your parents did.
If you do look into the rental option, make sure all siblings are on board, figure out a lease agreement, and decide who is responsible for handling day-to-day things.
Vacation Home
By the beach, in a beautiful Florida city, near theme parks or by a lake, perhaps your parents wanted to leave a home for all the family to enjoy for generations to come. A vacation home is a great place for families to stay in touch and hold annual get-togethers. If you are a close-knit family looking to further build your relationships, considering holding on to the place may not be a bad idea. Just keep in mind there is still ongoing maintenance and utilities, possible mortgage payments, taxes, HOA fees, and other monthly expenses that will need to be kept up with by a responsible family member and paid amongst the siblings.
Steps to Selling an Inherited Home
If you and your siblings still want to sell the family home after considering keeping it as a rental or vacation home, there are several steps involved selling an inherited home.
Set the Price
This will likely be the biggest problem you and your siblings will have to deal with when selling an inherited property together- that is how much to ask for and how to decide on the price. When it comes to picking the right price for any home, it can be a lengthy, complicated process and involve several factors to take into consideration: the size, the style, the location, the number of rooms and bathrooms, the outdoor area, and more.
However, what is even more important is making this decision with your siblings and everyone supporting it. If that doesn’t happen, someone usually feels they’ve been cheated by people close to them and who they are supposed to trust.
The best way to get an unbiased opinion is to hire a home appraiser. This will help avoid any siblings claiming that the home was sold below market value or that a sibling breached a fiduciary duty to another by selling below market value. Also, this would help to avoid any disputes between family members as to what a reasonable price is. Just leave it to professionals to determine the price and take any feelings between siblings and attachments to the property out of the equation.
Pick a Negotiator
Another tricky situation that no one wants to deal with is negotiating with potential buyers but simply can’t be avoided if you’re going to sell an inherited home. But on the other hand, maybe all your siblings want to be involved,which can cause issues as well. That is why choosing one person to lead negotiations is always a better idea, especially if siblings sell a childhood home together.
Once you have set the sale price, make sure the person you have delegated understands what to do and how low they can go on price. You and your siblings should all be happy with the negotiator you have selected, and once decided, you need to stay out of the selling process and let the sibling you have chosen take care of things on their own.
Divide Possessions
Selling a childhood home or a home full of personal possessions isn’t like selling a random property. This home is full of memories and will always have a special place in your heart, as well as your sibling’s hearts, which is why selling it will not be easy. You will need to pick things you would like to keep and figure out a way to divide them amongst each other so that everyone gets what they deserve. If something was only yours, these things should belong to you, but if you shared certain items, things should be divided fairly because it’s better to share a childhood memory than lose a sibling. This part of the selling process can be incredibly time-consuming, depending on how much stuff has accumulated. This is also when siblings discover a family member may have been hoarding items, requiring professionals to help get the house ready to sell.
Upgrade the Home
Speaking of material things, this is an idea you or your family may not be fond of, especially if extra money is not in the budget for anyone. Still, you and your siblings will need to remember that investing some money now will help to make more money in the future. Upgrading an inherited home before selling it may sound like the worst idea in the world but can help you to sell it at a higher price.
Some of the things to look into would include renovating bathrooms, painting, and updating appliances in the kitchen. This may not sound like much at first but imagine how impressed prospective buyers will be once they see a new bathroom vanity or neutral paint colors, as well as stainless steel appliances that they will be able to use daily for years to come.
Dealing with Paperwork
Selling an inherited property requires a lot of paperwork because you will be dealing with taxes and regulations, making it not easy nor cheap. You will need to invest time and money into these things, and it can get more complicated when more than one person is involved.
This is where assigning one sibling to take of the paperwork comes in handy. This way, you will always know who is responsible for getting things done and trust that it will be done right. Not only will this minimize your stress level, but also ensure the paperwork is handled responsibly.
Taxes
Taxes usually aren’t something people pay enough attention to- not because they don’t want to, but because they don’t know how important it is. But the truth is that taxes are very important when selling an inherited property in Florida, and you should look into them as soon as possible. This includes the taxes your family will need to pay before selling the home, as well as those that need to be paid afterward.
Make sure to figure out a solution before the entire process begins instead of fighting over who will pay the taxes, which can easily be done by calculating the total amount that needs to be paid and cover it together. That way, you all will spend an equal amount of money, and everyone will be happy.
Consider Hiring a Real Estate Agent
Selling an inherited property on your own is quite all right as long as you know what you’re doing and ideally have some experience with the real estate market. If that is not the case, though, you may be in over your head, which could cause you to deal with things you’re not familiar with. A real estate agent will handle many aspects of the home sale but will come at a price. Typically agents commissions cost about 6% of the sale price, which would eat into a lot of everyone’s profits. Just make sure if you’re considering going with an agent that your siblings agree on who you decide to work with. When siblings inherit a house and one wants to sell with an agent, and the others don’t, this can be an issue if you aren’t all on the same page.
Pick the Best Buyer
Another hard decision and issue that can cause problems between siblings and yourself are agreeing on who your property’s best buyers may be. You could meet several of them, and all may seem like decent people, but there can be only one choice that everyone will need to make together.
Again talking to your brothers and sisters and getting their opinions can go a long way. Though it may sound like an easy solution that won’t work in reality, it is still the only thing you can do. Make sure to ask for their input, hear them out, make a list of each buyer’s advantages and disadvantages, and hopefully, in the end; you will solve it as a family.
Consider Other Options to Sell an Inherited Property
Another option when selling an inherited property would include selling to a real estate investor. Different from traditional buyers, a real estate investor purchases houses as-is and pays in cash. Another benefit of working with a homebuyer is that they can work in your family’s time frame.
The steps are pretty easy to get started:
- Contact a local home buyer like Florida Cash Home Buyers.
- Go over details of the property; once they have a better understanding of your inherited home, they present you with a no-obligation cash offer.
- Once you decide to accept the offer, your family can choose the closing date at a reputable attorney’s office or in the comfort of your home.
The process also doesn’t require hiring a real estate agent, which means no commissions or fees; they can even help pay closing costs. And since Florida Cash Home Buyers purchase homes in as-is condition, you and your siblings won’t have to deal with costly repairs and upgrades.
Make sure to do some research with whomever homebuyer you decide to work with because there are some scam artists out there. Here are a few ways your family can protect yourselves from falling for a scam.
- Ask for proof of funds
- Review the contract terms and conditions
- Ask how long they have been in business, ideally at least 4-5 years.
- Make sure they buy and sell properties
- Check their online reviews and testimonials
- Check to see if they are a BBB accredited business
Sell My House in Florida
To make it easier for you and your siblings Florida Cash Home Buyers passes all the scam test questions. They are a local home buying company that has been a BBB accredited business since 2015 with an A+ rating. To learn more about our team and company, visit our website, or if you’re ready to take the next step, contact us today to get a cash offer! We look forward to helping you sell your inherited home.
If you think you need to sell your house in Florida fast, then you may need us. We at Florida Cash Home Buyers are local homebuyers in Florida, and we’re helping local homeowners have a quick and hassle-free sale. If your Florida house qualifies, we can make you a quick and fair cash offer. For more information or if you have any questions feel free to give us a call at (954) 519-7040 or fill out the online form and we will get in touch with you.