One of the most important things you can do in a real estate transaction is to anticipate potential issues that could cause your deal to go south. We’ll go over 5 typical reasons home sales fall through in Lancaster and what you can do about it so it doesn’t happen to you.
Financing
This is a huge one. Traditional financing has specific requirements for borrowers in order for them to secure a mortgage and purchase the property. If anything about the borrower changes during the time that your home is under contract, the bank can pull the rug out on the whole transaction. These types of changes happen to borrowers, and there isn’t much that you can do about it. Even if your Lancaster house buyer is preapproved, that approval is almost always conditional. The only ones that don’t need to meet this type of bank criteria are cash buyers. However, it’s important to remember that when dealing with cash buyers, you should typically expect to get a lower offer as they’re often value buyers as well.
Clear the Title
Before any real estate transaction can be finalized (at least with a bank involved), the title to the property must be found to be clear by a title company or title attorney. This proves the chain of ownership and that you’re the legal owner. It also shows if there are any liens or encumbrances on the title which will need to be cleared before the home sells. If you decide to get this before the house is on the market, it can avoid delays and allow a buyer to feel secure that the transaction will make it to the finish line. Keep in mind, however, that often times the bank will run their own title search regardless of whether you’ve had one done already or not.
Appraisals
Depending on the market conditions at the particular time you sell your Lancaster house, appraisals can become a huge issue. This is especially true if you’re trying to get top dollar to sell your home. Depending on the type of loan being used, there are different types of appraisers, you’ll want to keep this in mind. With VA loans, there will be a VA certified appraiser. If the loan is through the FHA program, the appraiser will be FHA certified, this appraisal will be valid for your home for a period of 6 months. And finally, conventional loans will use a conventional appraiser. If for some reason your appraisal comes in lower than the purchase price, typically the buyer and the bank will have an issue with it. The two choices are typically that either the buyer will bring more money to the table to cover the difference (often not an option due to minimal liquid assets) or you’ll need to drop the price. Regardless of which option comes up, this can be a serious issue that will need to be worked through and can sometimes delay or ruin a home sale in Lancaster.
Inspections
Things that come up in a home inspection is another reason that many home sales in Pennsylvania end up falling through. Some sellers will chose to have the property inspected before they list it so that any issues that come up, especially big issues, can be handled beforehand. If you don’t want to make any more investment into the property, it’s important that you disclose the findings of the inspection. This can help avoid longer time on market where a buyer who is unaware of the issues might spend considerable time being under contract on your home just to back out at the last minute. It’s also good to set your expectations that if you do have issues with the house, the selling price will need to be adjusted accordingly.
Contingencies
A big thing to consider as you get offers on your property is if the buyer has listed any contingencies. One of the most common is needing to sell their current property to enable the purchase of yours. If they don’t, you can waste a ton of time and have the sale of your Lancaster House fall through at the last minute. Sometimes there are situations where you may want to consider allowing for certain contingencies, but make sure that they’re clearly spelled out and that the timelines are very clear!
If you think you’d rather make SURE that your home sells, that’s our specialty! Just send us a message or give us a call at (717) 715-0010 today and sell your house directly to We Buy Lancaster Houses!