Question for Investor-Friendly Agents

[Bryce Henson]

Hey there, I'm in the process of analyzing a fix-and-flip home in my area. I live in a resort town, with a lot of second homes, so the market price for an average home is already pretty high. The home needs pretty major renovations, but in my opinion would be worth it *if* the seller is willing to come down significantly on their asking price. The other thing to consider is the original owner has died, leaving the estate to his sister and nephew to sell. Also worth noting that he took out a reverse mortgage on the home before he passed away. 

Based on these circumstances, and also just in general, I'm wondering how investor-friendly agents out there approach sellers that have a home that is too overpriced for a fix-and-flip situation? Not asking for any super secret strategies, just generally what your approach might be? Thank you in advance! 

[Lynn McGeein]

@Bryce Henson my understanding after dealing with reverse mortgages is that the reason it’s listed too high is likely there are rules in place for selling them, there’s a determination of list price from the lender,must be listed at that level for a certain time, then they’ll re-analyze and potentially drop it if it doesn’t sell in that time frame. I think family could have purchased for a small percentage under appraisal, even if balance owed was higher, if they wanted to keep it then sell it themselves. Either way, may not be much wiggle room, or may take a while to get down to reasonable price.

[Bryce Henson]

@Lynn McGeein I never even considered that, but it makes sense! Okay, that gives me additional things to think about, and it makes more sense as to why it hasn't sold yet. It's really one of those quintessential properties that needs a lot of work, but has a lot of potential to be worth a lot more once it's completed. 

I appreciate your input! 

[Russell Brazil]

Make an offer. They take it, deny it, or counter it.

It really is that simple.

[Jonathan Greene]

The reverse mortgage will make it very tricky. If you know there is a reverse mortgage, it would help to ask about the parameters right away so you don't waste time beating a dead horse. There are requirements in the middle here that have nothing to do with the estate and are controlled by the lender as @Lynn McGeein said.