How to Sell a Fire Damaged Property

As well as the potential trauma of losing a lifetime of possessions and memories, a housefire can have a catastrophic effect on the value of your property, and your ability to sell it. Selling a fire damaged house may be a struggle when approaching end-users intending to live in the property, even if they are happy to undergo the repairs themselves, they will struggle to obtain a mortgage for the property and may find a repair of a fire damaged property to be overly complex and ambitious. 

Structural damage when selling a fire damaged house ​

Any severely fire damaged home will almost certainly have structural issues, making the repair far more complex and costly, an established and experienced builder and possibly architect will be needed to rectify the damage. As well as this, as the property owner you are responsible for ensuring your building does not pose a safety risk to surrounding residents, this means you are responsible for clearing hazards, such as debris and structures in danger of collapse, failing to do so will leave you liable to fines and possibly legal action from the council, leaving the property vacant and damaged long term may also incur fines, as well as leaving it open to further structural degeneration or even vandalism. Due to the costs and regulations of rectifying a fire damaged property with structural issues, a sale may be the right move in order to save both time and money.

Fire damaged property for sale – what are you options?​

When you’ve decided to sell a house after a fire, you have two options about what you do with it:

Repair before selling your fire damaged home​

You can restore your property to market condition and then sell it. If the damage is severe and affects the structural integrity of the property, then it is possible that the cost of works will be greater than the increase in its value after the works. Whether or not a property owner is likely to receive an insurance payout will often be a big contributor in this decision, however if the works are still too daunting or the insurance contribution is insufficient to cover the cost of repairs, many owners of fire damaged properties will reach a settlement with the insurer and sell the property as is. 

Sell a fire damaged house as-is​

When selling a fire damaged property, approaching your local estate agent may not be the right course of action, a fire damaged property purchase will only appeal to cash buyers with an understanding of the building works required. Your local estate agent will principally be marketing properties to end users looking to purchase properties with mortgages, who will most likely be unable or unwilling to raise the required funds to purchase a fire damaged property and subsequently repair it to make it habitable. Selling your home as-is to a professional property buyer will relieve you from the burden of restoration. You don’t need to hire contractors or worry about managing the repair process. You also dont have to worry about funding the restoration. A sale to a professional property buyer gives you the chance for a fresh start. The added advantage of using a cash buyer is they will not need to rely on raising finance in the form of a loan or mortgage, which will be a difficult task in the case of a fire damaged house as they are generally unmortgageable. 

What are the benefits of selling a fire damaged property to Gaffsy?​

At Gaffsy, we have decades of combined experience purchasing property across the country. We buy any house, in any condition, meaning fire damage properties are something we have dealt with before. Our expertise gives us the confidence to offer on, and purchase, property quickly and efficiently. We do not require endless surveys and additional valuations, but rather will make you a fair offer after an inspection that we will stand behind. Once our offer is accepted, we instruct solicitors and proceed with the purchase of your property quicker than any other property buyer, often completing a purchase within a week or receiving the legal documents. Instead of placing your fire damaged house on the open market and waiting for months on average for offers that have no guarantee of not being reduced or withdrawn, Gaffsy pledge to purchase your home for a fair price, as quickly as realistically possible.

Our process means you:

• Don’t have to worry about repairing your fire damaged property
• You don’t have to navigate a stressful sales process
• Gaffsy cover all your fees, including legal costs
• You can sell your house fast despite its damage
• We can guarantee you a sale at a fair price

Get a free cash offer online now to start the process or contact us via phone or email.