Selling a family home after a death
Brothers Larry, 30, left, and Joseph Laimo, 32, have a many good memories of growing up in this home on Indian Well Court in Huntington. Their mother passed away this past October, so the two brothers and their younger sister, Danielle, have put the house up for sale. (April 18, 2012) Credit: Newsday / John Paraskevas
When Joseph Laimo's mother died and left her house to him and his two siblings, he knew the situation was emotionally charged. All three had fond memories of growing up in the sprawling Huntington residence. But none wanted to return, since they were grown and leading their own lives. They considered selling to distant relatives or renting, but in the end they agreed the house should go to a new family.
"We want to sell it to a family whose children can have as happy a childhood growing up there as we did," says Joseph, 32, an underwriting director for Travelers Insurance who is selling the property with his brother, Larry, 30, and sister, Danielle, 20, for $679,000.
Families across Long Island are facing difficult decisions about whether to sell a home they inherited -- such a transaction is called an estate sale -- as aging baby boomers begin to fade away and leave their homes to relatives.
"I've gotten more of these types of sales in the last four years than I've had in the twenty years I've been in this business," says Barbara Tomko, a broker with Shawn Elliott Luxury Homes & Estates. "It's the natural progression of things. We're an aging Island."
Estate sales can be a challenge for several reasons, not the least of which is emotional.
Tomko says she has seen sons and daughters appear to be stoic, then break down while cleaning out the home, signing papers at the closing or when handing over the keys to new owners.
"There are different triggers for different people," she says.
Occasionally, this element can affect a sale. Tomko says she once represented family members who became upset upon learning that a buyer wanted to purchase their property only to tear it down. They were actually glad when the deal fell through. "In the end, they sold to someone who just wanted to remodel it," she says. "They were much happier with that sale."
Steve Rosmarin, an agent with Prudential Douglas Elliman Real Estate, has also seen the opposite -- relatives for whom the residence has little emotional attachment, such as a second home, where the parents moved later in life, that held no childhood memories.
"In those cases, it's more of a commodity as well as a nice legacy for the next generation," he says. "They're looking at it as something to liquidate, since it's costing them money in taxes and insurance and heating costs. That's a great equation for a buyer to get a bargain on a house."
One potential difficulty with estate sales is that relatives -- because of their bond with the home -- can have an inflated estimation of its market value. Palmer Gaget, with Prudential Douglas Elliman, says the best way to counter this is to get an appraisal from a professional firm to determine a more objective sale price.
"We'll all be sad to see it go," Laimo says of the Huntington home, adding that the sale will bring some closure. "We're glad Mom maintained such a beautiful property and glad that we can use that asset in our own lives."
Westhampton Beach, $899,000
Huntington,$679,000
Roslyn Heights, $529,000
Tips for participants in an estate sale
Also, if family members inheriting an estate don't get along, it might be a good idea for each to hire an attorney individually. This can avoid contentious issues, Cohen says.
"There's no particular advantage to it unless there's a lack of trust," he says. "But this way, each person can have their own attorney review everything and make sure the terms of the will are being followed closely."
