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Rental House being sold Archived From: Finance

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   posted: May. 11, 2008 @ 6:29p
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Hey guys

My girlfriend's parents rent the house they live. It's crazy cheap rent. The owner I was told is old, and he probably is having a hard time paying for things, etc. Her dad does all the maintenance on the house, they never call him. They were contacted by I guess his real estate agent saying that they are coming by on Monday to take a look at the house.

Now, the house has only one entrance. I do believe fire code mandates two exits?? Am I wrong? Can they sell it like this? Also, do they have any priority in purchasing the home, should it actually be on the market? Also, how does showing the house work? They live in it, blah, blah, blah, and are uncomfortable in having people walk in and out of there home. Her parents are furious about it, since they have lived there for like 20+ years. Her mom is really worried so I am trying to get some information for them.

Lastly, this is in Pennsylvania - Pittsburgh area.

   posted: May. 11, 2008 @ 6:29p

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   posted: May. 11, 2008 @ 7:34p
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What did the owner say when you asked him? Maybe he'll agree to sell it to you and not list it on the MLS.

   posted: May. 11, 2008 @ 7:45p
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It would have been nice if they had been warned that the owner was considering selling.

You will have to call your local code enforcement department about the entrance.

They DO NOT have the first right to buy the house unless that has been agreed upon in writing. They can make an offer when it is listed. If there is a written lease, they cannot be told to leave until the lease term expires, but i would guess since so man y years there, that there is just a month to mon th agreement, so they should get 1 month when they get notice.

If they have been paying below market rent for many years, they should not be mad. The landlord has been getting cheated all these years. If they were wise they would have been saving the difference in what they were paying and fair market rent, so that they would be ready to buy it one day.

   posted: May. 11, 2008 @ 10:24p
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I don't see why the owner can't sell the house. If the buyer is ok with 1 entrance, he/she can add 2-3 entrances/exits or ask the owner to do it for them. But everything needs to be disclosed, including important stuff like mildew/fungus inside the house if any, etc.

   posted: May. 12, 2008 @ 11:19a
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LOL,

The GF of the OP or her Parents are mad that the owner is selling the property and that is why the OP is bringing up the Entrance thing to make that an issue.

Someone mentioned that the landlord was getting cheated but please read that the OP did mention that the people living in the house were doing all the maintenance. I think that sounds more like a barter situations then any one party getting cheated. If the landlord was getting "Cheated" then that again sounds like his/her own fault at not understanding the market properly and if he/she hasn't said anything then I am sure he/she was happy with what they got in terms of rent.

The situation here again is that the people renting the property have no other right then what’s in their lease agreement and if they haven’t signed anything in years then it’s assumed to be month to month unless it’s explicitly written in the lease agreement that it would renew on a yearly basis.

It would have been nice for the owner to inform the people living in the house about the potential sale of the property but other then that there is nothing the owner needs to do to his/her tenants then simply inform them of the sale.

Shahhere

   posted: May. 12, 2008 @ 11:29a
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Landlords hate renters for this exact reason. You received years of dirt cheap rent, likely because you were good renters (did maintenance, didn't complain much)

Now the landlord needs to sell for a reason unknown to you (possibly because renting for so little isn't making financial sense any more) and the first reaction is to report them to the city?

I've seen this before, I just cannot understand the mentality.

   posted: May. 12, 2008 @ 4:06p
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It's not that they want to report them to the city or anything like that. We were just working under the assumption, that since there is only one entrance, the owner may not be able to sell or something like that. A loophole if you may. Also, I'm pretty sure if they run to code enforcement department, they might get booted, since it may be illegal to live their.

The rent situation is true. My GF told me it was dirt cheap. Her parents aren't exactly the wisest of people, but they do work, and work hard for their money. She also tells me they have absolutely no debt. This is plausible, since they pay cash for everything when I'm out with them. So they might actually have something saved, that I do not know.

Thanks for the info guys, if you have any more, please share.

   posted: May. 12, 2008 @ 5:53p
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I've got to agree that your GF's parents should just be happy that they got 20+ years of low rent out of the deal. They should have realized that eventually, the old guy would run into health care costs, or just kick the bucket and the house would be sold.

They should definitely contact their landlord. It might be that he wants a RE agent to look at it just to get an idea of it's value, and whether or not to sell. Find out what his situation is. The GF's parents might be able to work something out with him.

Don't do anything about the one entrance issue. It's not going to prevent a house from selling, as long as the buyer is aware of it. It could perhaps prevent someone from living in it until another entrance is added--so reporting it might just get the parents booted.

   posted: May. 13, 2008 @ 5:55a
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Years of cheap rent to an old man and now let's report him in retalliation because he has the nerve to sell what's his! Another good reason I'll never have another rent house.

   posted: May. 13, 2008 @ 7:07a
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I had two thoughts about the single entrance that have not been mentioned.

1. I would not want anyone I cared about living in a place with only one entrance. What would they
do if there was a fire or a storm that blocked the only exit?

2. Could a buyer get financing on a house that wasn't up to code?

   posted: May. 13, 2008 @ 7:24a
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kenmoreland said:1. I would not want anyone I cared about living in a place with only one entrance. What would they
do if there was a fire or a storm that blocked the only exit?Most apartments/condos and some townhouses that I know of have only one entrance. I guess they are all death-traps.

I don't know about any of you but if I were living in a place with only one door and there was a reason I couldn't use that door then I would have no problem using a window as an exit.

   posted: May. 13, 2008 @ 7:56a
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A window may count as an exit if low in some cases. Also ifold house may be granfathered into current code.
Well what to do now.
1. find out what the real situation is talk to landlord.
2. get over being mad since it is a totally legal situation frustrated but have been paying next to nothing for years it is fine for him to sell. If unwilling to have house in showable condition show house may be forced to move earlier then if willing to live with waiting for house to sell and realtors and clients looking at the house
3. start looking at buying or renting another place

   posted: May. 13, 2008 @ 9:11a
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winter said:kenmoreland said:1. I would not want anyone I cared about living in a place with only one entrance. What would they
do if there was a fire or a storm that blocked the only exit?Most apartments/condos and some townhouses that I know of have only one entrance. I guess they are all death-traps.

I don't know about any of you but if I were living in a place with only one door and there was a reason I couldn't use that door then I would have no problem using a window as an exit.

I live in an apartment on the third floor with only one entrance to my unit, but there are two
stairways. If there were a fire or storm that blocked one, I could use the other.

My reply was about a single family dwelling. My Mom rents a house with a front door and a back door,
and I would be concerned if she lacked one or the other.

Note to OP: In case if fire or storm DEFENESTRATION.

   posted: May. 13, 2008 @ 9:36a
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I can say almost for certain that the LL can sell it.

Think about it, vacate building, burn out building, flooded out building are sold all the time. A house only needs to meet code if it's required to pass the building permit and this really only applies to new construction and only if the builder promise a house built to code. Heck, you can build a dog house, put it on a piece of land and sell it.

I would try to work out a deal with the LL or at least work out an arrangement for hours available for showing.

Oh ya, pics?

   posted: May. 13, 2008 @ 11:46a
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Even if only having one entrance was a code violation it wouldn't matter since the house is most likely old and would have been built when only having one entrance was not a code voilation. Duh. Just like my 1950 house doesn't meet current electrical code but it does meet or exceed 1950 electrical code.

   posted: May. 13, 2008 @ 2:43p
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Where in Pittsburgh is the house?

   posted: May. 13, 2008 @ 9:53p
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Neville Island

   posted: May. 13, 2008 @ 10:49p
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Have they offered to buy the house? It seems like that would probably be the best thing for everybody if they can afford it.

   posted: May. 14, 2008 @ 9:01a
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Ill give them all this info on Friday when I get back from my business trip. I can't imagine this house selling for more than 50k, even that is a stretch.

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