Do I sell house to tenants

[Movingon2024]

Asking here as no-one else to ask for advice really.

moved abroad 2024. Uk house rented to some lovely tenants. Is in a v desirable area and a v nice property.

trnants approached after Xmas and asked to buy the house. Tenancy ends November.
they made an offer of 420, I am out of touch w uk housing market so asked for EA valuations. Came back at 500-550.

called both EAs and asked for reasons for valuations. They both said local market has increased significantly in last year linked to changed schools admission criteria (local schools are outstanding). Both said 500 would be low offer for the property.

informed tenants who then increased offer to 485. Estate agent fees (I asked) are around 1 per cent.

am very torn. Have accepted that the house needs to be sold, it’s too big for me now that kids have moved on. The tenants are a lovely family and would be great owners of it.

But the price difference if it sold at 550 would make a massive difference to our lives - I could give the kids some cash to help them with a house deposit of their own for example.

Any advice? Said I would get back to them by end weekend. thankyou so much.

I think the question you need to ask yourself is, do you actually want to sell? It strikes me that the only reason you are considering a sale is because your tenants of 18mths have offered to buy the house. And they are pressuring you to make a decision because they want an answer. You don’t have to sell because someone has made an offer, you can just say no. There will be other tenants especially if the house is within catchment of a desirable school. You have said that the house is significant to you - you can keep it. Your tenants are in no position to either proceed with a sale either quickly or at all. They are not holding the cards here, you are.

Here’s what you might do -

1. slow down. You don’t owe your tenants a speedy answer. They seem to be railroading you.
2. take legal advice on the pitfalls of selling to an in situ tenant and giving the correct notice. Take note of new renters rights coming in April, how will this affect you?
3. do your sums - is it worth selling right now?
4. if you decide to sell, Consider what else you might do with the money - right now the money in a global tracker fund would probably get you a better ROI than a property let. if you decide to buy another property, make sure you factor in your costs such as SDLT.
5. Be certain that you don’t mug yourself off bending over backwards by reducing rent to accommodate viewings etc. your tenants might take the reduced rent and still be obstructive. If you want to sell, work out how long you can support an empty property for (or switch to a short term let such as Airbnb) making sure you give the proper notice so that the viewings can take place.

In short, take your time and do what is right for you and your family.

I agree @Movingon2024 also with what @Netaporter says - they are pressuring you. Do not offer rent reduction. We paid 1% on our house purchase. These people might buy it and immediately move on having made money, they might not, they might be lovely, or not, but they are (rightly) looking after themselves. Please take all the emotion out of this and look at the hard facts - you can still do this with kindness and professionalism but you don’t owe anyone anything.

Why on Earth would you offer rent reduction?

If they aren’t keeping the place nicely for viewers, and this certainly happens with tenants who want to buy at an undervalue, you tell them you aren’t happy with how it’s going and if it continues, you give them notice.

Tbh I’d do that now. You won’t regret it and Serious buyers will be most interested when it’s empty.

Have you got any other valuations done yet? 500-550 is a big stretch

This thread is exactly why renting out is a nightmare. If you want to sell, evict them. If you don’t need to sell, leave them there. If they need to sell, they are not great buyers. Review after they have sold. Getting sales through with tenants in situ is a no no. They don’t move out! It’s a huge hassle. Remove them and then sell if you must. Otherwise wait for them to go and then sell.

@Netaporter Thanks so much. That is very helpful and structured.

also thanks to you all for insights, clearly many are more experienced at this than me. It has been massively helpful to be reminded to take a business perspective particularly.

i have now messaged the tenants )had agreed to do so and didn’t want to renege on that). Have politely declined the offer and explained that the difference with the market price is just too great, and EA fees negated by management EA ones if I sell to them as tenants.

have said though that if best offer comes close to their own, then I would be happy to sell to them.

yes I may face voids etc and other costs, but this is unlikely to stack up to a 20-40k difference, or more if it sells for higher.

i am really really grateful to all who took time to respond and help me think it through, plus for the advice on costing it out/checking rental contract etc. thankyou.

I also looked at a properly with tenants in it

this is 26years ago when I bought my house

they obv didn’t wan to move

sure things have changed since then but

blood stained and with a used towel in them period knickers on the bedroom floor x 3 I think

skid marks in loo and a big poo

a dog / house smelt of wee

and he tried to shag my leg

poo all over the garden

I kid you not !!!

Sorry if I haven't understood but I don't understand why their chain to sell their house becomes your problem? They rented your house to get into a good catchment area and you now want them to leave. Where they go is their problem not yours. Did I miss something?

They have a house but rent yours ?

why don’t they live in their house ?

and if they have to sell theirs to make your
chain that could add extra months

equally if you give them notice , you could have 4/6mths of empty house meaning you need to find £2k a month for mortgage council tax and bills so that’s £12k down

I think they rented to be resident in a better school catchment area.

Cheeky

And if the school finds out they have a different owned home address they may not allow the rented address and refuse the child a place

I’ve heard of this happening

You can put what you like in a contract but the law always trumps it. Tenants do not have to allow viewings without something in it for them. They arnt employed as housekeepers/cleaners/ etc so why should they have to tidy up for a bunch of randoms and have their lives disrupted? One EA wanted me to allow viewings back when I was renting. After one rude viewer (whom I asked to leave) there were no more. I didnt actually refuse. Just made it very difficult for the EA to contact me and there were no mobiles back then, I have always been very hard with agents and kept them in their place as service providers and no more.

godmum56 · Yesterday 23:02
I think they rented to be resident in a better school catchment area.

yes this is it.
as above, i messaged to say I am sorry but cannot sell at price offered. But will put on
market in spring and if best offers come close to theirs, they can have it.
had a v nice message back saying they totally understand but will need to look at alternative options. Which is totally fair.

on viewings - yes: they are not at all required to accommodate them but they are lovely people and since I have absolutely assured them of no disruption to their tenancy until Nov, I hope they will be flexible. If not then I will just have to wait until Nov or before if they want to move out earlier.

Isn't this why any sensible landlord would evict the tenants before going to market.

Allows for a quick refurb and achieves a good price.

Sounds like you might be losing your tenants and your buyers.

Our council did this. The family tried to appeal and lost

We have rented DH’s flat out for 25 years. We have great tenants in there atm and if they wanted to buy we’d def consider it at a lower market value. It’s a lot less hassle and you save EA costs too. Work out the difference. You also may lose out on a few months rent etc.

. I assume you’ve looked at Zoopla to see what nearby houses have sold for in the past year.

OP wouldn't save on EA costs as she'd have to pay the letting agent anyway - check her posts, there's various differences with your situation that make it a less appealing prospect.