Is It Better To Sell A House Occupied Or Vacant?

If you are hoping to sell your house in the near future and are trying to decide if you should move out or stay living there, you should know that selling a house is usually easier to do when the house is occupied. This does not mean that you cannot sell a vacant home, but you might find that it is more challenging to sell a house if it is not currently occupied.

Vacant homes often have issues

The first thing to understand is that it is not uncommon for vacant homes to have some issues. Whenever a house is left unlived in, the house is left on its own and cannot defend itself against pests getting in, water problems, and storm damage. The longer it is left vacant, the more issues it may have. Now, if the house has power on and someone checking on it regularly, it may not have any issues at all.

A vacant home can lack character

One of the problems with selling a vacant home is that it can lack character. There is something about the way a house looks when a person lives there and adds his or her own details to the house. Because of this, homes often look plain or even lonely when they are not being lived in, unless the homeowner keeps the home furnished.

Buyers find it hard to visualize occupying a vacant home

The other challenge you can face when selling a vacant home is the way buyers find it difficult to visualize themselves actually living in the house. Space inside a house is harder to evaluate when there is no furniture to compare it with, and many buyers will face huge challenges with this. Because of this, buyers might pass up the house simply because they cannot understand if the house offers what they want and need in a house. If you want to sell your house faster, it might be a better idea to stay living in it or furnish it before offering showings.

There are times when people have to move out of their homes and leave them vacant while they are for sale. If you have to do this, you could always rent furniture or buy used items to place in the house to stage it, as this could help you sell it faster. You can learn more tips about this by talking to a real estate agent. When you need to sell your house, contact a realtor.