# 8 . What Can I Say When the Family is Embarrassed about the Condition of the House ?
# 4 . Why Can ’ t I Just Call the Family Instead of Sending Direct Mail ?
My initial contact is never by phone . I always send a letter to the executor / administrator . If you think about this for a minute , how would you feel if someone called you out of the blue when your loved one passed away ? You wouldn ’ t like the intrusion .
These folks will call when they are ready . Some families will dive right in and open the estate . Other people may wait a year or longer . Generally speaking , when they open the estate they are ready to move forward with the sale of the property .
# 5 . Can You Wholesale Probate Deals ?
Absolutely !
Any real property must be sold before the estate can be closed . In most states you just put the property under contract and move forward . Be aware that some states like California have a very different procedure . You will need to learn how the probate process works in your state . ( Remember that detective work ?)
# 6 . Don ’ t Most Probates Want Retail for the House ?
Some sellers will want retail and some won ’ t . When you think about probate investing , these sellers are no different than any others . Houses that are in great shape will generally be listed on the MLS . Properties that need repairs and updates are the likely candidates to be sold to an investor .
7 #. Can You Use the Multiple Offer Strategy for Probates ?
You can , however you need to remember that these sellers almost always want to “ cash out ”. That ’ s the main reason they are so motivated . They just want the cash . There may be rare occasions where they will be willing to do owner financing or some other type of creative deal but that isn ’ t typical .
Truthfully , this happens all the time . As a member of the family walks through the house with me , they are apologizing because there is so much “ stuff ”. If you are sincere , it ’ s pretty easy to put the seller at ease just by telling them this is typical especially when the deceased is elderly .
It ’ s not unusual to see a stack of butter tubs , receipts from decades past and just a lot of junk . You may also run into some hoarders . Remember to always offer to clean out the house for them . That ’ s often the one thing that will seal the deal .
# 9 . What If the Deceased ’ s Relatives Won ’ t Move Out of the House ?
The short answer is let an attorney handle this problem . Just get the house under contract . Your real estate attorney will know how to take care of this .
# 10 . What Can I Do When the Heirs Don ’ t Agree ?
When you are talking about probate investing , things usually go smoothly and the closing is typically uneventful .
However … there are times when you feel like the peacemaker / counselor / teacher . People will need to be educated about the process . So in many cases , you will be there to initiate problemsolving conversations with the family and to help soothe hurt feelings . After years of working in this niche , I have found that you usually just need to be a good listener .
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