Buying an unwanted tenant occupied single family home

[Chris Lee]

Hello everyone! this is my first time here and also my first time getting into the real estate investing game. A very rocky start tbh. I thought I was getting an amazing deal but what I'm ending up with is; essentially locked into closing on house where everyone expected the current tenant to leave cooperatively however, he is now planning to stay indefinitely without paying rent until getting evicted. I'm unaware of the current lease agreement with him and the seller. When I close on the house will I end up having to pay for his utilities too while I wait for the eviction process to go through? Thank you for any help/ insight you can give!

[Charles Carillo]

@Chris Lee

What utilities is the current owner paying? Usually, in a single-family long-term rental situation, the tenant is paying for all of their own utilities. I would find this out now. I would also like to inquire about the current lease agreement. I imagine it is now a verbal lease.

Once you have this information, I would contact a real estate attorney (who handles evictions) and get their opinion on the situation. I would also request a seller credit if you truly were unaware that the tenant was not current on rent. The credit is not mandatory, but covering some of your legal expenses would be nice. Either way, have the attorney lined up to proceed with the eviction immediately upon closing on the property.

All of this advice is state-dependent. Eviction laws and rules can vary from state to state or city to city. This is why it is important to enlist the services of an attorney sooner rather than later and have a reserve fund to cover all expenses until you are able to take possession of the property.