What You Should Know About Selling Your Marital Home During a Divorce

 Posted on September 30, 2019 in DuPage County Real Estate Attorney

For a dedicated real estate broker, there are few things that as satisfying as helping a client buy a new home or to sell a home at a substantial profit. In many situations, the same broker can help a client with both deals at the same time—selling their current home while buying a bigger and better home for the future. At some point, however, most real estate professionals will eventually find themselves caught in the middle of a contentious divorce—one where the couple is being forced by the circumstances to sell their marital home. To manage such a situation, many real estate agents have developed strategies to help them thrive in what has become known as the “divorce niche” of real estate.

Be Very Patient

If you are going through a divorce, you want the proceedings to move as fast as possible without compromising your best interests. The same holds true for a real estate broker who is trying to help you sell your family home. Selling a house is difficult under the best of circumstances, and the added complications of the divorce can slow things down even more. Your agent might need to get approvals from both you and your soon-to-be ex-spouse, which is often very challenging if the divorce has turned bitter. Therefore, you and your broker will need to be extremely patient as you work on selling your home.

Keeping the Divorce Talk to a Minimum

While your divorce may be the only reason that you are selling your home, your potential buyers do not need to know that. In fact, many agents say that it is a good idea to avoid mentioning your divorce to prospective buyers altogether. If you tell a buyer that you are only selling because of a divorce, it may create the impression that you are desperate to make a deal. In turn, this could lead to lower bids and increased demands from buyers looking to capitalize on a perceived opportunity.

Your agent might also do some things around the house to address evidence of a pending divorce. For example, he or she may rearrange your bedroom furniture or the contents of your closets to make it less obvious that your spouse moved out recently.

Creating Loyalty

A real estate broker who can adeptly handle the sale of a home during a divorce will usually be well-positioned to help you and your spouses as you move forward. There is a good chance that both of you will soon be looking for a new place to live. If your agent was honest, communicative, and easy to work with, you might be inclined to work with him or her again in the future. Your broker could also benefit from you sharing your positive experiences with your friends and family.

A Wheaton Real Estate Lawyer Can Help Too

There is little question that a qualified real estate broker can be a tremendous source of guidance when you are looking to sell your home during your divorce. However, there are many legal concerns that must be dealt with, as well. A real estate agent is not trained or permitted to offer legal advice, which means that you should contact an experienced DuPage County real estate attorney. By adding a legal professional to your sales team, you can ensure that all important aspects of the deal have been addressed. Call Stock, Carlson & Asso. LLC at 630-665-2500 to schedule a confidential consultation.

Sources:

https://realestate.usnews.com/real-estate/articles/real-estate-mistakes-you-dont-want-to-make-in-a-divorce

https://www.npr.org/2011/01/20/133026583/for-sale-by-divorce-a-real-estate-niche