Feb. 02, 2007: A home seller who doesn't move out on time can create a legal tangle
Here's some happy news: I'm not the only Realtor in the Valley who has had to deal with a truly unmotivated seller.
I wrote two weeks ago about a house that had not closed because one of the sellers was still in the home -- along with all of his personal property. So here's some unhappy news: As I write this, we still have not closed.
Gary Edick of U PayLess Realty wrote to say that he has faced similar situations, the consolation of a shared adversity.
Justin Schlegel of Re/Max Preferred Choice phoned to warn me that recording the sale with one seller still in the home could be construed as creating a "tenancy at sufferance," legally the same situation that would obtain if a tenant failed to move out at the end of a lease. The only recourse for my buyer might be a "forcible detainer action," an eviction, which can take anywhere from 30 days to three months.
This is a fate to be avoided, even if a judge were to rule that a seller is not a holdover tenant. Even then, we would inherit all the risks of a post-possession, which we've talked about before.
Roger Gordon wrote to me, wondering about the specific details surrounding this transaction. Here is the short version:
The sellers are divorcing. Their legal wrangling over the disbursement of the funds is the motivating cause of the delays in closing.
Cross your fingers, but everything may have worked out at last. The seller is to move out Tuesday. My buyer is to move in Wednesday. By Thursday, the universe should be restored to its proper order.
What happens if something goes wrong? That would be the most unhappy news of all. My buyer is moving out of a rental home. She has to be out by Wednesday.
If her new home doesn't close on time, I suppose I could offer her the master bedroom at our house.
Where will I sleep? There is a real bloodhound behind Bloodhound Realty, so I guess I'd be stuck in the doghouse.
Greg Swann is the designated broker for BloodhoundRealty.com, a full-service Metropolitan Phoenix real estate brokerage. This article originally appeared in the West Valley regional sections of the Arizona Republic.
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