A Case Study S Burkett Ave Stockton: 3 Siblings Inherit Stockton House: Fix & Sell the House or Rent it Out?

Houses Don’t Fix Themselves and 90 Year old Houses need a lot of Work.

When 3 Siblings Inherit a house in Stockton it’s not always easy to get everyone to agree. That was the case of Burkett Ave Stockton CA.

Inheriting any house is fraught with pitfalls especially if the house has years of deferred maintenance and you have very little money to properly address the needs of the house to get it ready for sale or rent. There are so many things that can go wrong on a tight budget and when you add trying to manage the expectations of others into the mix, it becomes very difficult, especially when it comes to family, and no one is on the same page.

One of the biggest mistakes family member’s can make when inheriting a house is to make decisions while emotions are running high and no one has thought out the plan of action.

Often times when I am talking to families about selling an inherited house the conversation turns to what Mom and Dad would have wanted. More often than not the conversation centers on allowing a family member in need to live in the house, rent free and maintain and repair it, until the rest of the family decides what to do. In theory its a great idea, but in practice, 95% of the time it is disastrous for all family members involved.

As a result I have helped many families evict other family members because there was no other way to get them to leave.

Let me be clear… Mom and Dad worked hard to have a home that they were proud of. What Mom and Dad would have wanted is the house to remain an asset without becoming a burden on their children. It really is that simple.

Here is their Story:

2 Brothers, 1 Sister (all local)
Mom and Dad pass away
House is in a Trust
Probate
The house has NO Mortgage

We Buy Stockton Houses In Any Condition

“After Dad died, the three of us made the funeral arrangements together. It was a very difficult week for me. There was a lot going on and the family dynamic had never really worked very well, so when we found out that the house was to be divided three ways everyone had their own idea what to do. I wanted to sell it, but my older brothers had other ideas including putting thousands of dollars into the house to rent it out. I didn’t have that kind of money and the house needed a lot of work”.

The brothers ordered a home inspection just to find out what was wrong and when it came back the basic repairs totaled around $45,000.00. The inspection report detailed foundation and settling issues that appeared as large cracks in the walls and ceilings of most of the rooms. There was no estimate to make these repairs.

Without having a commitment from their sister the brothers divvied up the projects and either hired someone or did the work themselves. After spending about $5,000.00 they discovered that additional work would be needed for the plumbing and electrical that they had not anticipated. Overwhelmed they came up with a plan to let one of the nephews that was out of work, move in with his girl friend to watch the place and make other repairs in exchange for rent.

Tensions began to rise when within a few months it became clear that the nephew had other ideas about his new home. They adopted 2 pit bulls, rented out one of the bedrooms and stopped all efforts at repairing and maintaining the house.

Keep in mind that the house was built in 1925 and the plumbing had never been updated, the electrical panel was old and the one bathroom had dry rot issues from a leaky tub before he moved in. It didn’t take 6 months and the bathroom floor collapsed, the basement was flooded, a sewer pipe burst and the kitchen sink backed up. The house was in a shambles.

To make matters worse the yard was strewn with litter and debris, feces from the animals that no one picked up and a collection of automotive parts from bumpers to radiators and hubcaps that were left everywhere.

The neighbors complained, the City of Stockton issued code violations that were continually ignored until the City started to levy fines and placed a lien on the property.

Enough was enough. They called me.

Homeowner Concerns:

Maintaining a House to Avoid Code Violations Should be a Priority

From the first call I knew that at least two of the family members were ready… they were motivated to sell the property in its As-Is Condition. They knew that they had opened a can or worms and that spending anymore money on trying to fix the house was an exercise in futility. The holdout was the father of the son that had occupied the house. He did not want to evict his son and it was determined by the other two that the sale of the house would force the issue. I have a lot of experience with this and I can say for certain… The Sale of a House is the Best way to get someone out.

I met with all three of them to make an all cash offer based on the vacancy of the house. I outlined my plan which included starting an Unlawful Detainer (Eviction) against the son. In my plan I offered to pay for and execute the eviction as part of the purchase but delayed the closing until the eviction was complete or the house was vacant whatever came first. I also offered the son cash for keys which was the equivalent of the cost of eviction. He accepted the offer and he moved out within a 10 day period. Problem solved.

The ability to go in as a third party with no emotional ties allowed the family to separate themselves from the Eviction Process and avoid a huge family dispute. I was the bad guy.

ONGOING CHALLENGE:

With the San Joaquin County Code Enforcement already demanding a massive cleanup and a plan for securing the property as well as the required repairs we immediately called for a meeting to negotiate our options. The first objective was to negotiate a time table in which the city would satisfied without levying any new fines and penalties.

Our strategy was simple we committed to having plans for a clean up and remodel submitted within one week of the purchase. We also committed to completing the project with in 45 days of building plan approval.

OUR SOLUTION:

We buy Houses in Stockton in Any Condition and We handle All of the Paperwork

In talking to our customers it is clear to me that becoming a landlord is less a decision based on an opportunity than it is of one of with considerable planning. Older homes present many challenges as it is very difficult to determine the source of many house problems unless you can first gut the house. As a result, the hidden problems are revealed and unless you are prepared to deal with cost of fixing the entire house, fixing one or two things on a long list is just going to kick the problem down the road.

Our plan allowed the family to get fair market value for the home in Stockton minus the cost of repairs and wash their hands of the ongoing liability with the City of Stockton’s Code Enforcement department and more code violations.

While the thought of renting out the house and pocketing a few hundred dollars each a month may have looked attractive at first, the family soon realized that the rent would never cover the cost of the ongoing and overall repairs, combined with the cost of homeowners insurance and property taxes. They saw that they were better selling their Stockton home for cash and splitting the equity they received from the house to individually do with what they pleased.

We made an all cash offer for the house and took care of all of the paperwork.

It was a win-win for everyone.

My name is Peter Westbrook and I am a local real estate investor in Stockton, Sacramento, Manteca and Modesto, CA. We Buy houses that are ugly in Stockton, Sacramento and Modesto. We love the challenge of houses in any condition and we pay cash. If you own a house that has had years of deferred maintenance and you’re tired of the ongoing cost of ownership call me at (209)481-7780 or visit my website at http://www.IBuyHousesStockton.com and let me make you an all cash offer.

We Buy Houses in Stockton, Sacramento & Modesto

I Buy Houses Stockton Introduction (209) 481-7780 We buy Houses Stockton

My name is Peter Westbrook and I am a local real estate investor and the owner of We Buy Houses Sacramento and Westbrook Real Estate Investments. I am NOT a Real Estate Agent or Broker and for good reason. I purchase real estate and I am NOT going to ask you to pay a commission or a fee.…I pay CASH and because I do, I can close on the day that I tell you.

For those of you that already know me or have already called me you can attest that I answer my own phone and I return all phone calls. When you call me at 209-481-7780 you are calling me on the same number that my mother and my closest friends call me at.

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Hear What Others Have To Say…

The City of Stockton was getting ready to tear down my old house. I was no longer able to maintain the Stockton House and after years of trying to keep up with code violations, needed repairs and vandalism, I finally called Peter

Westbrook. He came right out and told me what he could do. He contacted the city and county and even cleaned up the property before he bought it. He paid the back taxes for me and gave me an advance on the purchase of the house. Without his help I would have lost everything. I called real estate agents and other investors but no one wanted to help and no one offered to pay as much as Peter Westbrook. He completely remodeled the house and I smile every time I go by. Thank you Peter.

Leonard S

We inherited our parents house with one of our brothers living there . The property taxes had not been paid and it was in Tax default. We called Peter Westbrook and he found that the title was still in our parents name, so the Stockton House never went through probate. Peter also found that there was an old auto loan that had a lien on the

title and an old bankruptcy ruling to take care of that lien had never been filed with the courts. Peter handled everything including paying the back taxes, paying for the hiring a Probate Attorney and filing the probate and paying for and hiring a Bankruptcy Attorney to finalize the removal of the lien. He was patient, understanding and he took care of everything including evicting the tenants that were living in the house. We talked to real estate agents and other I buy house people. None of them had the answers for our situation. Without peter we would have lost everything. We got paid cash.

Steve H

We inherited my parents Stockton house with a mortgage. We decided to rent it out. The tenants destroyed the house. I didn’t know what to do, I didn’t have the money to fix it and the city had already issued code violations.. I called an “I Buy Houses Stockton Sign” on a telephone pole and Peter Westbrook answered. In 4 days he paid the bank and bought my house. We would have lost everything if it weren’t for Peter Westbrook.

Mike B

I inherited my mothers house with a mortgage. When my husband and I lost our jobs, we got behind in payments. Then the Bank posted a default with a auction date we didn’t know what to do.

We didn’t have the $15,000.00 and we only had two weeks to do something. We called Peter Westbrook and form the beginning he was confident he could stop the bank. Within 4 days he bought the house with cash, paid off the bank and stopped the Foreclosure. Without Peter we would have lost everything.

Brenda T

I saw a sign on a telephone pole and against my better judgement I called. The last thing I expected was a person answering the phone. I was surprised, Peter Westbrook answered the phone. I had a lot of questions and Peter had the right answers. My mother needed to get as much as possible out of the house and we had talked to several real estate agents and they all wanted to sell it cheap and wanted a 6% commission. They all told us unless we put thousands of dollars into it could not be sold for what we wanted. Not Peter. He made a fair cash offer and since then we have sold him another house. Peter and the title company handled everything. I couldn’t be happier and I would recommend Peter Westbrook to anyone.

Cathy W

I needed to sell my Stockton House. I called a phone number I saw on a sign and talked to Peter Westbrook. The City of Stockton said that they were going to take away my vacant Stockton house, knock it down and send me the

bill to do it. I did everything that I could to try to make them happy. A neighbor offered to buy the house and then Peter offered me twice as much. He did everything he said he would do and I just had to go to the Title Company and sign the papers. He did all of the work and now the City of Stockton is his problem. Thank you Peter.

Ann C

I inherited my Fathers Stockton house. The front porch was falling in, the walls had holes from being vacant and vandalized. The City of Stockton fined us, red tagged the property and forced us to put on a new roof so we had to get loans and we still couldn’t rent it out.

I called one of those “I Buy Houses” signs and Peter Westbrook came out and made a cash offer. The House closed escrow and we got our money for a house we though was worthless. Thanks Peter!”

Broderick R.

“Our Grandfather passed away and my brother, sister and I inherited his Stockton house. He was a junkman and hoarder. He was also 90 years old and had not made a repair to the house in years. He had garage sales almost every day. The house and the yard were full of junk. We tried to get everything out so we could just see the house. We had family and friends come over on the weekends but the cost and effort was consuming all of our time.The house was a mess.

I called Peter Westbrook and he made us a cash offer for the house and he said he would take care of all of the clean up. Thank God I called. The City had issued code violations and fines on the property and even before we closed escrow Peter and his crew had the house and yard cleaned (4 large Dumpsters later) . I recommend Peter Westbrook to anyone that has a problem house. They were fast and professional”

Connie J.

“I had tried to sell my Mothers Stockton house for two years. Realtor’s told me to tear it down. I didn’t have the money for that and my Brother and his family were living there. Peter Westbrook made me a cash offer and closed escrow with my brother still in the house. Peter Westbrook is my savior. I don’t have to worry about the house any more. If you have a Stockton house that has become a burden and you don’t have the money to fix it to sell it, call Peter Westbrook.”

Rosemary R.