Must the Seller Be Responsible for Repairs After Closing

Author: Luke

Must the Seller Be Responsible for Repairs After Closing

Is a Seller Liable for Repairs After the Home Sale Closes

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A furnace dies three weeks after the new owners move in. Then the phone rings, and it’s the buyer’s attorney. Does that bill land back on the person who just sold the place? Usually, no. In most sales, the seller isn’t liable for repairs after closing once the deed changes hands. The exceptions are narrow: … Continued
Do I Need a Termite Bond When Selling My House

Do You Need a Termite Bond to Sell Your House in Michigan?

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One buyer’s agent in Royal Oak asked me for a termite bond on a 1950s ranch. I had to explain that she’d borrowed the request from a relocation client out of Georgia. Michigan law doesn’t require one. The question still comes up every month, usually from sellers who moved to Michigan from the South, where … Continued
How to Sell a House That Has Flooded

How to Sell a Flood-Damaged House Fast

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An inch of water in a finished basement can cost more to fix than a new roof. Homeowners hit that arithmetic a week after the storm, once the adjuster has left and the repair quotes have landed. What you do next turns on numbers most sellers never run. Here’s how to sell a flood-damaged house … Continued
How to Find a Realtor in a Different State

How to Find a Trustworthy Realtor in Another State

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Picture a seller in Arizona listing a brick ranch in Warren this week with a real estate agent she’s never met in person. That’s ordinary now. A good share of the sellers who call me live somewhere else, and in my years buying houses, the same three reasons keep coming up. They inherited the house. … Continued
Can You Terminate a Listing Agreement With a Broker in Michigan

Can You Cancel a Real Estate Listing Agreement with a Broker in Michigan

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Paragraph 33 of the standard Michigan Realtors listing contract says the agreement can be CANCELLED or REVOKED only by mutual consent in writing. It’s one line, tucked just above the signature block. Most sellers skim right past it at the kitchen table while an agent waits with a pen. So, can you cancel a listing … Continued
Will Medicaid Know If I Sell My House

How Medicaid Finds Out When You Sell Your House

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A caseworker in Macomb County doesn’t have to drive past your property to learn you sold it. Deeds get recorded. Banks answer electronic asset checks. Closing agents file paperwork with the IRS on many sales, and federal law requires state eligibility systems to verify accounts at financial institutions. How will Medicaid know if I sell … Continued
How to Sell a House With a Child Support Lien in

Selling a House With a Child Support Lien

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Three days before closing, the title search turns up a past-due support balance that the seller forgot about years ago. The buyer’s lender freezes, and the seller figures it’s over. It isn’t. Selling a house with a child support lien almost never ends that way. Support liens get paid out of closing proceeds every week, … Continued
How To Take Your House Off The Market Michigan

How to Take Your House Off the Market in Michigan

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Three weeks without an offer feels like failure. It usually isn’t. Michigan sellers call me every spring, convinced the house is broken. Nine times out of ten, it’s fine. The photos were shot on a gray March afternoon. The price came from a neighbor’s guess about what her cousin got in Troy. Two good weekends … Continued
Replacing the roof before selling a house in Michigan

Should I Replace My Roof Before I Sell My House

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Last year, I watched a buyer walk away from a house over a roof that probably had eight good years left. Nothing had ever leaked. The shingles just looked tired from the driveway, and the inspector wrote three sentences that scared off a first-time buyer. Sellers ask me about this more than almost any other … Continued
Can I Sell My House While My Spouse Is Incarcerated in Michigan

Can I Sell My House if My Spouse is in Jail in Michigan

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A booking at the county jail doesn’t change whose name is on your deed. I get calls from kitchen tables in Warren, Southfield, and Sterling Heights. Somebody’s holding a mortgage statement, and there’s a court date circled on the calendar. The question is nearly always some version of “can I sell my house if my … Continued
Can an HOA Force a Home Foreclosure in Michigan

Can an HOA Foreclose on a House in Michigan? Know Your Rights

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The day your HOA dues come due and go unpaid, the lien may already exist. In a condominium, it does. The Michigan Condominium Act attaches it to your unit the moment the charge is assessed, with no grace period and no warning letter first. The association can record it with the county register of deeds … Continued
Property Lien Types In Michigan

Types of Property Liens Every Homeowner Should Understand

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Most homeowners find out what a lien does to their property on the day they try to sell. A closing date is set. A buyer is waiting. Then a title search turns up a debt they’d written off years ago, even decades ago. That surprise costs money, and it can cost the whole sale. Property … Continued
Is a Kitchen Remodel Worth It Before Selling My Home in Michigan

Should I Remodel My Kitchen Before Selling

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Most sellers I talk to spend ten minutes on price, then ten more on the kitchen. Should I remodel my kitchen before selling? That one comes up more than any other question. No other room carries this much feeling, and none carries more risk either, especially if you’re up against a deadline and you guess … Continued
Optimal time to stay in a home before selling in Michigan

How Long to Live in a House Before Selling It

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Nobody buys a place planning the exit. Life sometimes forces the question anyway, and how long to live in a house before selling turns into a money question the moment it comes up. I’ve bought houses from homeowners who held on for years too long. I’ve also bought from a homeowner who sold in month … Continued
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