Whether a seller has owned a home for a long time or just for a little while, when it comes to selling, sellers are concerned about achieving the best price possible and their bottom line result of the sale. This is of particular concern when the property is in need of repairs, and especially in tough economic markets like today.
It has been the experience of this writer that owners are responsible and must be accountable for the maintenance of their property and will pay to have it maintained one way or another. There are three specific situations that bring this to focus.
When the owner is selling, it may be obvious to the owner that there is deferred maintenance that needs attention. This means, there are repairs needed that have not been made. So the first scenario is that the seller will pay to make repairs in preparation for sale.
The second possibility where the owner will be required to pay for repairs, is if repairs are needed and have been ignored, and the buyer makes an offer with stipulations that the purchase is contingent on the seller making the repairs. Obviously, the seller has to decide what the cost will be to either make the repairs or to lose the sale due to rejection of the offer by refusing to make the repairs.
The third case where the seller might have to evaluate the cost of dealing with needed repairs is when the buyer makes an offer that is well below market value and the buyer in effect tells the seller with the low offer, "I'll take the property in its need for repairs but my price reflects the expense that is calculated to be necessary to bring it up to a repaired condition."
It is may be argued that it is all about money, but it has to be remembered that motivation for action may be influenced by emotion and the consideration of whether or not it makes good business sense to proceed or not given the present condition of the property and the economic impact inherent in the transaction.
St. George REALTOR® Jim Coleman is Associate Broker and Partner/Owner of ERA Brokers Consolidated. He Specializes in Residential, Investment and Commercial Real Estate, holding National Designations of Accredited Buyers Representative (ABR), Certified Residential Specialist (CRS), Resort and Second Home Property Specialist (RSPS), Seniors Real Estate Specialist (SRES), Certified International Property Specialist (CIPS), GREEN Property Specialist, and Certified Short Sale and Foreclosure Resource Specialist (SFR). You can contact him by e-mail at Jim@JimColeman4Homes.com. Call: (435) 627-5411; or write: Jim Coleman, 201 East St. George Boulevard, St. George, Utah 84770. This and other columns are available at www.WinningTalk.com/articles.