Costs of Holding Onto An Inherited House in Blue Springs

So, you have inherited a house, while this may sound exciting, the reality is less than a pleasure. The truth, however, is that you have inherited expenses along with the house. Well-intentioned loved ones all too often leave their property in their will to beneficiaries that are already struggling to afford their monthly bills. Often, these homes are in a severe state of distress and require a great deal of upfront cash flow for rehabilitation to turn into a desirable property. 

Perhaps you already have your dream home and have no interest in residing in the property but feel a sentimental attachment. While it is understandable, the value of sentimentality won’t pay for the reality of carrying the cost of an inherited house. This harsh reality often leads to the ultimate decision to sell the property. Whatever you decide to do, don’t delay in caring for the property. An excellent place to begin managing your inheritance is locating the contact and payment details on existing expenses. 

We’ve gathered a list of typical monthly payments to help you with a starting point. Read on to learn about all of the costs of holding onto an inherited house in Blue Springs.

Taxes

Property taxes will still be due on the property when you hold onto an inherited house in Blue Springs. These tax payments may or may not be a part of your monthly mortgage payment. Even if the mortgage is free and clear, annual property taxes will always be due. They will likely rise significantly because tax collectors will reassess the rate at the current market value.

We have purchased several properties from heirs who inheirted a house that was free and clear, but after living there for a few years, they were faced with the home being foreclosed on by the county for unpaid real estate taxes. When faced with the house being sold at the tax sale, they opted to sell to us so that we could stop the tax sale and provide them with some money to move and establish a new place to live.

Home Owners Association Dues

While not all properties have homeowner associations, a large majority of them do. And if you don’t pay the monthly or annual fees, the homeowner association can and will foreclose to get their money. The last home we purchased because the heirs could not pay the real estate taxes, was also facing foreclosure for unpaid HOA dues.

Insurance

Depending on the amount remaining on any mortgage, you may be responsible for mortgage insurance and property insurance while holding onto an inherited house in Blue Springs. If you are an heir that lives in the home, then the existing property insurance will cover you as long as you keep the premiums paid.

Keep in mind that if the home is sitting vacant, the existing insurance, even if the premiums are paid may not work. Most homeowner insurance policies will not pay a claim if the home is vacant for more than 30 days. There are special policies that you can purchase if the home will remain vacant, but they are quite a bit higher cost than traditional homeowner policies.

Assumption of Mortgage

Often, you can assume the mortgage if you hold onto an inherited house in Blue Springs. The wording of the original contract may be the determining factor in your ability to assume the mortgage. Call the lender to see what you would need to do if anything to start making payments. If they had a reverse mortgage, you would need to pay the loan off to keep the property.

Utilities

While you are not necessarily obligated to pay the utility bills under the name of the deceased, if you’ll be residing in an inherited house in Blue Springs, you will want to keep the payments timely. Otherwise, they would become a lien on the property and taken out of the profits when sold.

Maintenance

Should you be considering maintaining ownership of the property, it would be advisable to have a professional inspection done to understand what you are getting into fully. Depending on the length of time that the house has been vacant and the state of repair the property is in, holding onto an inherited house in Blue Springs could become extremely expensive to maintain. Monthly expenses for repairs on older properties can easily equal or exceed mortgage payments.

Yard

It is often effortless to tell which homes are vacant because the yard has become tangled and unmanaged, adding to the distressed appearance. Unless you have spare time, you will need to ensure that the yard is appropriately maintained when holding onto an inherited house in Blue Springs.

Where we currently live is a home that while not inherited as the owner is still alive and well in a nursing home, has been sitting vacant for several years. We added up all of these costs last year and figured that this vacant house, just sitting there rotting away, was costing about $700 a month. And that has not taken into consideration, the 3 trees that have died, the shutters that are falling apart, or all the squirrels that seem to be coming and going at will.

Unless you have a plan for the property, holding onto an inherited house in Blue Springs is costing you money. kcmoHomeBuyer will pay you a great price and close when you are ready. If you don’t feel that you can handle the emotions of going through the possessions of your loved one to clean out the property, you can leave everything in place or take what you like, kcmoHomeBuyer will handle the rest for you. Call kcmoHomeBuyer at (816) 408-3600 or send us a message today!