Flipping Fixer Upper Homes

Now that your commanding officer has decided to relocate you, you are left with the dilemma of selling your house on short notice. There are a couple of approaches you can take to this problem. First, find a real estate agent who typically handles military relocation home sales. Then choose to do one of the following.

Leave the Family in the House and Relocate Yourself

If you are married with kids, you probably want the kids to finish out the school year and you want your spouse to handle the sale of the home. When you have to be in another city and state in less than two weeks, this may be the best option. Relocate just yourself to the military base to which you have been reassigned and leave the family behind in the house.

It is very likely that you will be unable to sell the house in less than three months anyway, and definitely not in two weeks or less. Then you continue to serve as required, while your spouse handles the house, the packing and moving details, the kids and the sale of the house. Not always the best option, but it is certainly not the worst.

Sell the House on Short Sale

You could sell the house on short sale. A short sale means that you sell the house for slightly less than what is owed. The remainder may be "forgiven" under certain programs, or the buyer may be willing to take on the full debt when he/she knows that you serve your country and needed to move quickly. Unfortunately, if you have a second or third mortgage on the property, a short sale will require that you pay these extraneous mortgages.

Pre-Sign the Sale Papers and Completely Relocate

You could always pre-sign the sale papers on the home and completely relocate too. Your real estate agent will have you pre-sign documents that will have some fill-in-the-blank areas for the buyer's intentions and offering price, in case your home sells. A few other documents may require your signature, too, such as the transfer of deed/property in the event that you cannot fly back or take time off to come back and sit in at the closing on the house. Discuss with your real estate agent which documents can be signed in advance and which ones might require an exchange by mail or fax in order to complete the sale of your home (should you choose this approach).