If you, a loved one, or friend hoards, it can be a challenging subject to talk about. Hoarding is a particular psychological disorder that sadly has impactful effects on the hoarder and everyone around them. The media has raised awareness about the issue in recent years in tv-shows like “Hoarding: Buried Alive” on TLC. Bringing awareness to hoarding has helped the public understand the disorder better and seek help for those affected. But if you are involved in the process of preparing a hoarder’s house to put on the market to sell, the task of going through things can be very overwhelming- not to mention you will want to be sympathetic to their disorder. If you’re helping someone prepare their hoarder house in Boise, Idaho, to sell, we have come up with some great information to help you understand what to do in this type of situation.
Preparing A Hoarder’s House In Boise Idaho For Selling
The Psychological Behind Hoarding
Back in 2013, the American Psychiatric Association officially labeled hoarding as a mental disorder. Hoarding affects between 2 -6 percent of the population and is more common in men than women. Hoarding is seen to affect older age groups as well, usually between the ages of 55-94 years old. Since this is a mental disorder and could be going on for years, it is wise to get advice from a therapist on handling this touchy subject. Many emotions will come up when going through personal belongings to get the house ready to sell. You want the person to be prepared to handle that stressful situation. If you’re the one who has been hoarding, make sure to talk to someone about your situation so that you can get help and learn how to cope with things properly.
That being said, figuring out your next steps to help someone in this situation can be challenging. Generally, people with hoarding disorders collect insignificant items and have difficulty getting rid of them. The underlying reason for hoarding is usually because of a previous traumatic event they experienced and haven’t dealt with or because of the loss of a loved one.
Some people collect items like clothes, furniture, household items, or even pets. Other people collect things with no monetary value, such as newspapers, magazines, disposable cups, or receipts. All these things pile up throughout the house, creating cluttered, unsanitary conditions, and fire hazards. In animal hoarding situations, the pets end up taking over the place, destroying the property, and using it as their personal bathroom.
Hoarding can be something that people are embarrassed to share with others, even to the point that the problem is hidden for years before friends or family find out—even going as far as not being noticed at all until a family member inherits the home.
When the hoarding has gone on for that many years, it can critically affect the person and their home. If you find yourself in a situation where you need to sell a hoarder’s house, here are 4 steps you can take to prepare a hoarder house in Boise.
Steps to Prepare A Hoarder’s House in Boise, Idaho
Step 1: Clean it Out
Selling a hoarder’s house in Boise usually won’t sell on the market as-is. If you were to find a traditional buyer for it, they would need to take on the task of cleaning it out. Typically buyers are looking for a move-in ready property. So the only way you can hope to sell this home is to clean out all the items. This process can be extremely time-consuming because while working with the owner who was hoarding, you will likely need to go through everything to make sure it’s okay with them to get rid of. You will more than likely need to rent a dumpster and go through every item. You can also hire a crew to come in and take out all the hoarded items, but that will come at an increased cost and may distress the owner. Keep in mind, depending on the amount of stuff in the home and garage, this process could take weeks or months of hard work to get this house in a clean condition to sell.
Once you have removed all of the belongings, there will be lots of cleaning to do. Doing a deep cleaning will be necessary to remove any unsanitary conditions that have developed due to the hoarding. This is when people find pest problems and mold in the house, which will need to be treated professionally to ensure the mold or the critters don’t come back.
Is There A Way to Clean a Hoarder’s House Fast?
There is not an easy answer to how to clean a hoarder’s house fast. First, you will need to have the hoarder’s full support. If they are not on board, that can really hold up your progress. And remember, you’re cleaning something that took years to accumulate. That will take time to clean out properly. Again if the person that was hoarding is involved, that can slow down the process.
You might be tempted to take a shortcut and not do any cleaning and only take photos of the house’s exterior. Unfortunately, many prospective buyers see this as a red flag. When they see only outside images, they can sense something is wrong on the inside. Which usually discourages interested buyers from looking at the home.
Cleaning a hoarder house’s house will probably be the most challenging step out of this list.
Step 2: Make Repairs to the Property
Once cleaning is complete, you will probably discover that you need to do some repairs. A hoarder home can suffer from several damages from years of neglect, vermin, leftover food, and pet damage. This can cause issues with finishes, plumbing and electrical, even structural support. Walls and flooring may be damaged, and plumbing may be clogged or ruined.
Many of these problems can be missed because they are hard to see by only doing a simple scan of the house. The best thing you can do is hire a home inspector, that way, you know exactly what is going on with the property and what needs to be fixed. Buyers will request their own home inspection anyway, so getting one done before, will let you know what all you need to improve.
To hire a home inspector in Bosie, Idaho, costs between $200-$450.
Once you start making repairs, you will soon discover that it can lead to finding more issues. For example, if you remove the baseboard, you may see evidence of mold that a professional needs to address. When removing flooring, you might find there are structural issues. Potential buyers will be cautious about buying a house without these repairs done, so, unfortunately, they will be necessary to make.
Make sure to get several quotes from contractors who will be fixing the house. Don’t forget to check if any of the work will require permits to be completed. Some contractors may charge less because they aren’t getting permits on the work they are about to do, which is a savings for you initially but can cause legal issues in the long run. If you have unpermitted work done to your home and then sell it and the next owner finds out, they can sue you. Or if you have the unpermitted work done and during the home inspection something is noticed, you could be required to fix the issue again and pull permits to do it. Having unpermitted work done is not worth the headache down the road, no matter how much money it could save you.
Step 3: Update the House to Modern Standards
Hoarder houses usually get to the point where the number of belongings prevents anyone from entering the home. The property has probably been owned for a while, maybe even decades. Besides neglecting home repairs, upgrades are probably an afterthought. The air conditioning or water heater may not even work anymore. The exterior of the house may be in bad shape too. The owner may not have painted the house in years or replaced any rotting wood. More than likely, you will need to check for signs of a leaky roof. All things a home inspector should point out, but it will be your job to fix and replace. When it comes to selling a house, you will have to make several upgrades to modernize the home and make it marketable.
Here is a list of standard updates and fees to give you an idea of what some of the renovations may cost.
Roof Repair – $650 for parietal to $10,000 for full replacement
Repair or Replace a Water Heater- $525 to repair, up to $1,000 to replace
Foundation Repair- $450 to $11,000 can even reach up to $40,000
Electric Issues- $320 for basic repairs, up to $15,000 for rewiring the entire house
Water Damage- average cost $2,300
Repair Pipes or Instal New Piping- anywhere from $560 for a drainpipe to $2,500 for a sewer line repair
Septic System Repair- $1,500 to repair $5,500 for a new septic system
Heating or Air Conditioning Repair or Installation- $375 for A/C repair and $290 for furnace fix, to $8,000 for a professional furnace installation or for a new HVAC $2,200 to $9,800 with an average cost of $5,500 in Boise, Idaho.
Mold Removal- costs on average $2,100
Termite Damage- $540 for treatment, but termite damage to a house can cost an average of $8,000.
When updating your home, make sure to hire professionals familiar with building codes, most of these renovations require permits. Check out this Homeowner’s Guide to Residential Construction for more information about the necessary permits in Boise, Idaho.
Step 4: Figure Out How You’re Going to Sell the House
Once you’ve removed all the items, made repairs and updates, it will be time to figure out what selling strategy you’re going to use to sell the hoarder house. There are a few ways you can go about selling the property.
- Sell with a real estate agent
- Sell by owner
Each has its pros and cons to consider. Both scenarios don’t guarantee a quick home sale. Also, the time of year and the current real estate market can play a role in how fast the house will sell.
If you were to sell with a real estate agent, make sure to do some research and make a list of agents you feel comfortable working with that have top agent qualities. Be aware that you will more than likely need to sign a listing agreement locking you in for 3-6 months to work with that realtor. You will also agree to pay them a 5-6% commission upon the sale of your home. So if you sell the hoarder house for $350,000, your agent stands to make $21,000 (6% commission), which is a big deal when you’ve put a lot of money into this house already to get it to a salable condition. That being said, an agent does handle all aspects of the selling process, which is really nice, but for some people, they don’t see that being worth it- instead, they choose to sell by owner.
Selling by owner isn’t easy, definitely, do your research and learn how to sell a house by owner in Boise if you’ve never done it before. What you will find out is it requires a lot of work on your part. Everything an agent does will be your responsibility. Figuring out a listing price, marketing strategy, talking to interested buyers and their agents, negotiating, answering questions, and hosting open houses will all fall to you to handle. And don’t forget if a buyer uses an agent, you will likely have to pay towards their agent’s commission, which is 2.5-3%. So using the same sale price above $350,000, you would be looking at contributing $10,500 towards their commission. But you would be doing all the work!
You can still use these options to sell your Boise, Idaho home, it’s just things to keep in mind. If you’d like to find another solution to sell your home, consider getting a cash offer instead.
Get a Cash Offer For Your Boise House Instead
If you’re feeling overwhelmed with all the work involved and the cost of doing all these fixes, you are not alone! To sell a hoarder’s house in Boise, Idaho, you will need to remove all the amassed stuff, clean it, make necessary repairs, and update it to be more liveable. There is really no way around that.
If you try to sell the house as-is, you probably find that not many prospective buyers are willing to take on a challenge like this. Hoarder houses in Boise can cost tens of thousands of dollars to repair. It is not uncommon for the total bill to exceed $100,000 to make the property liveable and desirable.
Furthermore, preparing the home will take a long time. Would you have time to wait until it’s ready to sell, or would you get more behind on mortgage payments? It could take months for the house to get to the point where even improvements can be made, making this an uphill battle.
Realistically, it may not make financial sense to spend the time, money, or energy to clean up a hoarder house. It will take hundreds of hours of hard work in a place you don’t even plan on keeping.
Instead, it makes sense to find a company that specializes in these types of property restorations. You could sell the hoarder property and get a cash offer. You wouldn’t need to spend thousands of dollars or, worse, take out a home equity line of credit to cover the repairs. Instead, you could walk away with money and find a cash investor to take care of the rest. You will also get your cash in hand much faster than if you took the time to finish all necessary renovations and then list the house on the market.
Cash investors like Gem State Cash Offer are equipped to handle clean up, restoring, and even unforeseen issues a hoarder house in Boise, Idaho could have. At Gem State Cash Offer, we can also offer you a private and quick solution to sell your hoarder house.
We purchase properties in any condition with any challenge. In addition to that, we do not charge realtor commissions, transaction fees, or closing costs. We can present you with an offer within 24 hours of you contacting us and can close in as little as 7-14 days, or when you’re ready to sell.
Even after you go through everything, feel free to leave it dirty, and with all your unwanted items, we’ll take care of the rest. There is no other way to sell your hoarder home in Boise so quickly and effectively than with Gem State Cash Offer. Save yourself the hassle and expense by getting a cash offer with Gem State Cash Offer today!
Want to learn more about how we can help and how we buy hoarder houses in Boise, Idaho? Give us a call or visit our website at www.gemstatecashoffer.com for more information.