Selling a Vacant House
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About selling your house
A house can end up empty for lots of reasons: a move for work, a parent who went into assisted living, an estate that is still being settled, a rental between tenants, or a repair project that stalled. Whatever the reason, an empty house quietly costs money every month and picks up risks that an occupied house does not. If you are not going to live in it or rent it soon, it is worth thinking through what it is really costing you.
What an empty house costs
Property taxes, insurance, utilities, lawn care or snow removal, HOA dues and any mortgage payment all continue whether anyone lives there or not. Add in trips to check on the place, or paying someone to do it, and the monthly bill adds up. Write down the real number for your house. Seeing twelve months of carrying costs on paper often changes how people think about the price they are holding out for.
Insurance is the hidden problem
Risks that grow with time
Empty houses attract break-ins, copper theft, vandalism and, in some areas, squatters. Pipes can freeze in winter if the heat fails, and a small leak can run for weeks before anyone notices. Overgrown yards and piled-up mail invite complaints to code enforcement, and some cities require owners to register vacant properties or maintain them to specific standards. Keeping the heat on, shutting off the water at the main when appropriate, and having someone check the property regularly all help, but they add to the monthly cost.
Selling from out of town
Many owners of vacant houses live somewhere else. Listing from a distance means coordinating an agent, cleaners, contractors and showings you cannot attend. A direct sale is simpler: we can see the house without you being there if you arrange access, the paperwork is handled by a title company or attorney, and depending on the title company, signing can often be done where you live. You choose the closing date.
If someone is living there who should not be
Common questions
Related guides
Inherited house
Who has authority to sell, probate basics, multiple heirs, the mortgage that remains and inherited basis for taxes.
Read the guideTenants or rental property
Selling a rental with tenants in place: leases, deposits, showings, estoppel letters and non-paying tenants.
Read the guideCode violations
Open violations, fines that turn into liens, unpermitted work, point-of-sale inspections and selling anyway.
Read the guideSell as-is
What selling as-is really means, what you still have to disclose, and how to compare an as-is offer.
Read the guideRelated articles
- How to Sell a House With a Reverse Mortgage
Selling with a HECM while you are living, what heirs face after a death, the 95% rule and the extension deadlines.
Last reviewed: September 2026. General information only, not legal or tax advice. Rules vary by county and municipality and change over time; talk to a local real estate attorney or title company before you decide.
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