Straight from the Top!

The Tampa real estate market is dominated by short sales and foreclosed properties. The big question is, “How do the normal home buyers and sellers deal with that type competition?” There are quite a few ways, but one that in normally overlooked by many is the lease-purchase.

In today’s challenging market, a lease-purchase if done correctly, can work well for both the buyer and seller. It can open the door to a group of buyers that the traditional market cannot satisfy. If you have a quality buyer but with a minor glitch on their credit, you may have an ideal situation for a lease purchase. The buyer can make steps to get their credit repaired, and meanwhile be leasing the home. Many times, a credit repair company can tell you that you can have your credit in shape to purchase a home in six months to one year, in which case you would write a purchase contract to close after that period of time and a lease until the time of closing.

There are actually a large number of buyers who find themselves in this position. After completing a short sale, a buyer may be able to re-establish their credit in 24 months. This is a quality group of buyers who should not be overlooked by sellers, but sellers should make sure they take the proper precautions when entering into a lease purchase contracts and have all reasonable protections written into the contract to protect them and make sure the credit is adequately reviewed and reported on before completing the contact.