Start with the situation, not the house
Most people who call us do not have a house problem. They have a situation that happens to
involve a house. A foreclosure date. A parent who died. A rental that has quietly turned into a
second job. The property is just where the problem is sitting.
So this page is organised the way you would actually describe it to a friend, not the way a
real estate company would file it. Find the one that sounds like you and go straight there.
There is a deadline coming
<a href="Facing foreclosure“>Facing foreclosure
If a sale date has been set, the timeline is the whole problem and everything else is detail.
Maryland has required steps and each one takes time you can sometimes use. That page walks the
process, every option including the ones that are not us, and the point at which selling stops
being possible.
Related: <a href="the Maryland foreclosure timeline“>the Maryland foreclosure timeline,
<a href="whether you can still sell mid foreclosure“>whether you can still sell mid foreclosure,
and <a href="whether a sale actually stops it“>whether a sale actually stops it.
<a href="Behind on payments, but not yet in foreclosure“>Behind on payments, but not yet in foreclosure
Thirty, sixty, ninety days late. This is the window where you have the most options and the
fewest people telling you about them. Free HUD approved counselling exists and costs nothing.
<a href="Facing a Baltimore tax sale“>Facing a Baltimore tax sale
A different clock from mortgage foreclosure and one most sellers do not learn about until a
notice arrives. A tax sale does not transfer ownership on its own, which means there is usually
more room than people assume.
You inherited it
<a href="Selling an inherited Baltimore house“>Selling an inherited Baltimore house
The hub for heirs. Securing an empty rowhome, what the personal representative can and cannot
do, stepped up basis, and the Maryland inheritance tax rules that decide whether you owe anything
at all.
Related: <a href="how Maryland probate actually works“>how Maryland probate actually works,
<a href="handling it from another state“>handling it from another state,
and <a href="when siblings inherit together“>when siblings inherit together.
<a href="Your siblings will not agree to sell“>Your siblings will not agree to sell
Buyouts, mediation, and partition as the genuine last resort. Written to be fair to every
sibling’s position rather than to whoever called us first.
The house needs work you cannot pay for
<a href="Selling a house that needs repairs“>Selling a house that needs repairs
What condition really does to a Baltimore rowhome’s value, the expensive problems this housing
stock actually has, and the three honest routes out.
<a href="The renovation partnership“>The renovation partnership
The one nobody else offers. We fund the repairs, our contractors do the work, and the price is
agreed in writing before anything starts. You pay nothing up front and nothing at closing.
<a href="Little or no equity“>Little or no equity
Cannot list because commission and repairs would eat what is left. Cannot fix because there is
no budget. Cannot hold because the payments keep coming. There are more routes out of this than
people are usually told.
Related: <a href="owing more than the house is worth“>owing more than the house is worth.
The property has become a burden
<a href="A vacant Baltimore property“>A vacant Baltimore property
Vacant Building Notices, insurance that quietly stops covering you, winter water damage, and
the carrying costs that accumulate while nothing happens.
<a href="Open code violations“>Open code violations
Citations, unpaid fines, and how they surface in title when you try to sell.
<a href="There are tenants in it“>There are tenants in it
The lease survives the sale. What that means in practice, and how selling occupied compares to
waiting for vacancy.
Baltimore specific problems
Three things that catch Baltimore sellers and almost never appear in national advice:
- <a href="Ground rent“>Ground rent, which barely exists outside this city and can stall a settlement.
- <a href="Water bill liens“>Water bill liens, which attach to the property rather than the person who ran up the bill.
- <a href="Liens generally“>Liens generally, and how each type clears from the proceeds at closing.
None of these quite fit
Divorce, job relocation, a hoarding situation, a house you simply do not want any more. We have
not written a page for every circumstance and we are not going to pretend otherwise. The
<a href="valuation“>valuation costs nothing and does not require you to
explain yourself to anyone. If your situation needs a conversation instead, the number is
(855) 554-8114 and someone answers at any hour.
If you would rather understand the mechanics first, <a href="how this works“>how this works
walks the whole process, and <a href="cash offer versus listing with an agent“>cash offer versus listing with an agent
is honest about when you should go the other way.
Questions people ask
What if my situation is not listed here?
Call or run a valuation anyway. These pages cover the situations we see most often, not the only ones we buy in. Divorce, relocation, hoarding, and simply not wanting the house any more are all normal reasons to sell and none of them need a page to be valid.
Do I have to explain my situation to get a number?
No. The valuation runs on the address. You never have to tell anyone why you are selling to find out what the house is worth, and nobody calls you unless you ask them to.
Can more than one of these apply at once?
Frequently, and that is normal. An inherited house that is vacant, needs work, and has a water bill attached is a single common case rather than three rare ones. Start with whichever page is closest and the links will take you across.
Is selling always the right answer in these situations?
No, and several of these pages say so directly. Foreclosure has routes that keep you in the home, and listing with an agent nets more when the house is in good shape and you have time. We would rather tell you that than take a deal you regret.