Why vacant homes have plenty of value

There are approximately 19 MILLION vacant homes in our country, and to those who are paying attention they truly represent the opportunity of a lifetime.

Too many investors are told that vacant houses represent a black hole in the real estate investment arena, but the fact is that – if carried out properly – the acquisition of vacant homes is likely to result in many happy returns.

The inherent truths…

There are inherent truths that affect a home owners’ ability to sell a vacant house – and these truths could, if you are smart, also lead to your ability to acquire homes with value at low prices. Perhaps the most important truth has to do with the perception of buyers toward a house that is vacant. Buyers, whether they are right or not, are entitled to believe what they believe, and – as a majority of buyers are simply following some type of personal whim – what they believe is either wrong, or misinformed. But right or wrong, most buyers believe (before even looking at a brochure or talking to an owner) that if a house is vacant, there must be something wrong with it.

And there probably is something wrong with the house; or perhaps the owner is desperate to get out, maybe even paying two mortgages. Whatever the truth is, the fact is that vacant houses are automatically opened up to negotiations that favor the buyer; you are probably going to be able to get quite a deal when it comes to vacant home or buy a home ny.

Why? Quite simply, because an owner of a vacant house knows he or she is going to have a hard time showing the house in such a way that impresses buyers and gives them incentive to offer high. Empty rooms appear smaller than they really are. Empty rooms offer no vision in terms of space usage, and only serve to highlight bad wall coloring/papering and other imperfections…Vacant homes are, simply put, HARD TO SELL.

That’s why many owners of vacant homes will agree to sell at a cost well below the actual value of their home…

The misconceptions…

Let’s be fair. Some of the vacant houses you see every day likely do have major flaws. Some might even have structural failures and more serious issues playing into the owners’ inability to sell. But this idea that every house with the windows boarded up is akin to some Chernobyl-like disaster area is simply untrue.

Overwhelmingly, though, most vacant houses (even those with the windows boarded up and even most with ‘fire damage’) are structurally sound. In most cases, a vacant home has simply fallen into disrepair and the owner cannot afford the cost to refurbish. In this case, it is actually very sound of an investor to try to ascertain the owners of such a house – they are more than likely eager to get some kind of value by buy a home ny.

Cosmetic issues (which comprise most of the flaws within most of the homes on the market – vacant or otherwise) can be shored up surprisingly quickly and cost-efficiently. A thorough cleaning, a fresh coat of paint or two (and new windows, if needed) are going to completely transform a sad-looking, vacant house into a property that is attractive and viable.

Tips for vacant houses

Take some time for a drive-through of a local neighborhood, and try to pinpoint vacant houses that have been damaged by fire, are abandoned or even just run down. Try to find out who the owners are by talking to the neighbors; try to determine the circumstances regarding the vacancy of the home and leave your card on the door, with a note asking the owner to call you back.

The end result

By acquiring vacant homes at low prices, refurbishing them as much as needed, and putting them back on the market, you can almost guarantee that you will see substantial net gain. Even if it seems like a gamble right now, the fact is that the housing market is cyclical – as is everything else.

Once you have in your possession a stable of structurally-sound, move-in ready houses, you will be in position to sell towards pure profit once this fickle market gets back on its feet. buying a vacant home can be a great investment!