If you’re selling a house with tenants in California, you’ll need to know a range of important laws, regulations, and requirements.
The process of selling a property that comes with a renter is much more complex however, and any misstep on your part can derail your plans for a smooth sale.
Knowing when to sell rental property and having a professional California real estate investment company with the resources, experience, and insight to help you put the hassles behind you, can greatly help you speed up and smooth out the selling process.
If you’re ready to sell property with tenants in California, there’s a lot to consider.
To begin, you’ll need to provide your renters with notice that is in accordance with California’s renter-friendly stance. Further, you’ll need to successfully navigate the legal process while protecting your rights and bottom line.
It’s a lot, but this guide can help.
If the question—Can I sell my rental property with tenants in it?—is on your mind, you’re likely interested in selling your property fairly quickly. While it’s possible to sell a rental property with tenants in tow, it requires considerable finesse.
California is considered a renter-friendly state, and the laws are exacting, which makes working with a well-established California real estate investment company an excellent way to remain within the confines of the law while getting the job done.
In California, you have the legal right to sell a house with tenants living in it, as long as you uphold the terms of the rental agreement that’s in place.
If you’re selling tenant occupied property and aren’t sure how to address the matter of your tenants, you have two primary options that include selling the occupied property or asking your renters to move out and waiting for them to do so before proceeding with the sale.
Both choices have pros and cons.
The upside of selling a house with tenants includes all the following advantages:
If you sell your rental property with tenants still living in it, you’ll need to consider the following obstacles:
You’re ready to sell your property with a tenant, but there’s a lot involved, and the potential that you’ll run into trouble along the way is all too real.
Selling an inherited house or investment property with tenants is a mixed bag that comes with a high margin of unpredictability and challenging legal guidelines.
Generally, the path forward is far more direct without tenants in residence, which makes reaching out to a professional real estate investment company a great place to start.
If you’re selling a home with tenants, you have options, and better understanding these options can help you make the right choice for you—given the unique circumstances involved.
The most straightforward, least complicated and expedited means of selling your home with tenants in it is turning to a professional California real estate investment company.
At SoCal Home Buyers, we help homeowners like you who’re trying to sell quickly—without all the hassle and stress, but with their rights and best interests intact.
We’re invested in the simple idea of “selling made simple”, and when it comes to selling your rental property with tenants, it doesn’t get much simpler than selling it for cash in just a few days to us.
The steps forward include:
When you sell to SoCal Home Buyers, you bypass the headaches generally associated with selling a home with tenants in place.
But don’t take our word for it.
Here’s what Bonnie and Charlie M. had to say about our process:
The tenants who’re already renting your place may be interested in buying it. In fact, if they make you a fair offer, it can save you both a considerable amount of time, energy and resources.
Once you make up your mind to sell property with tenants, letting your renters know and affording them the opportunity to make an offer emphasizes your good faith efforts, which can go a long way toward alleviating tensions and keeping things moving forward smoothly—regardless of the house-selling option you choose.
Another option is waiting until your tenants lease is up.
At that time, you’ll face no selling constraints, but waiting out the lease may not suit your plans if the goal is to sell my house fast in California.
Some landlords incentivize their renters to leave by sweetening the deal.
For example, offering to cover a month’s rent, paying for their moving costs or helping in another way may entice them to break the lease.
If you’re putting your home on the market and it has renters living in it, there is the obvious matter of wrapping the landlord-tenant relationship up as efficiently as possible.
The circumstances of your sale will be unique to your property and situation, and how long you’ll need to allow your tenants for moving out post-sale will hinge on several factors.
As mentioned, California has some of the most tenant-friendly laws in the nation, which means you need to keep the following in mind—What rights do tenants have when the house is being sold in California?
If you intend to sell investment property that tenants occupy, it’s important to recognize they have robust rights you’ll need to observe.
These include:
You have the absolute right to sell your property as quickly as you can in California, but remaining within the parameters of the law is paramount. By selling to a professional real estate investment company, you may be able to bypass the legal hassles while speeding up the process—a win-win from all perspectives.
Call Now to Learn More: 951-331-3844
The process of asking an existing tenant to leave prior to selling a rental house hinges on the kind of lease you have in place and the amount of time that’s left on the lease.
If you have a fixed-term lease in place and it doesn’t include an early termination clause, the matter is more complicated.
Your tenant has the right to continue living on the property without interruption until the end of the lease—as long as they uphold the lease agreement, including continuing to pay their rent.
While it’s your right to begin the process of selling your rental, you can’t trample on your tenants’ rights or expect them to move out early based on your convenience.
If, on the other hand, you have a month-to-month lease, things are more flexible. It’s important to note, however, that laws related to California rentals also protect the rights of month-to-month tenants—who are owed at least a 60-day notice for lease termination.
Typically, vacating a rental property is based on just cause, which refers to a legal reason for requiring a tenant to vacate a rental property, and can be either fault based or no fault.
Prime examples of fault-based just cause include:
Just because you have just cause in relation to a tenant, however, does not absolve you of responsibility. In some situations, landlords are required to allow renters the opportunity to remedy any errors prior to making them vacate.
There are situations in which property owners who want to sell have just cause to vacate a property, even if their tenants didn’t engage in any lease violations.
Examples of this no-fault just cause include:
If you do proceed vacating your rental property in accordance with no-fault just cause, you are not only required to notify your tenants, but are also required to either waive their final month’s rent or provide them with a one-time payment of relocation assistance that is equal to one month’s rent.
If, on the other hand, the just cause is based on fault, this payment is not a concern.
If you don’t have just cause for requiring your tenant to move in advance of sale and they have lived at your property for more than 12 months, it’s time to revisit your lease agreement.
Some leases include language that allows early termination. This generally comes at a price, but such clauses can prove invaluable.
If there’s no way around the lease agreement and you have no just cause, your best option may be waiting out the lease. You can re-frame this as an opportunity to prepare the property for sale. It’s also important to give your tenants notice of at least 60 days before they’ll be required to leave.
Letting your tenants know about your decision to sell the property they rent involves providing a notice of intent to sell property.
California laws protect renters from capricious landlords, and mandated notice requirements are central to these protections.
If you’re selling rental property in California, you must provide your tenants with written notice of your intent to sell. This notice allows you to schedule property showings with at least 24 hours of verbal notice, rather than written, over a 120-day period. This does not mean you must wait 120 days to sell; it specifically relates to the scheduling of showings.
Tenants are generally entitled to a notice period before they are required to vacate the property due to a sale. For tenants on a month-to-month lease, a 30-day notice is required if they have lived in the property for less than a year, and a 60-day notice is required if they have lived there for a year or more. This ensures tenants have adequate time to find alternative housing.
If you’re preparing to sell your property, being organized is key and a primary requirement is your letter to notify the tenant of the sale of property. Such letters need to be straightforward and clear, and there are a range of elements that need to be addressed. We offer a 30 and 60-day notice to sell California template as an example of what you’ll need to cover and how best to do so.
If your tenants are digging in their heels and refusing to leave with the sale of your house, it’s important to know that you have legal rights, but finding a peaceable solution will reduce stress, time, and expense.
Your options toward this end include all the following:
If you choose to sell to a professional real estate investment company, you can leave your challenging tenants in their capable hands.
Call Now to Learn How We May Be Able to Help: 951-331-3844
If you’re planning on selling an investment property with tenants, you’re bound by California’s strict laws, but you also want to proceed ethically.
Your tenants, after all, are facing considerable stress of their own.
Keeping your renters informed of your intention to sell is the right thing to do. To begin, it helps to bolster the trust you’ve built between you. In turn, this helps ensure your tenants continue taking excellent care of your property throughout the process.
If it’s time to tell your tenants that you plan on selling, keep all the following in mind:
Some additional helpful hints related to selling your rental property with tenants include:
If you’re interested in selling a rental property that comes with tenants, you have options and we’re well prepared to help you explore them.
Our Simple Process Includes:
