How to Prepare for a Lower Home Valuation Due to a Sex Offender Living Nearby

March 11, 2021

If you’re working for someone who’s trying to sell their home, there are a number of things you’re going to need to do for them. One element of selling a home is getting an official home valuation. Home values can change all the time for many reasons, but one element has to do with sex offenders living nearby. If there’s a sex offender near a home you’re trying to sell, it can be more difficult and bring with it a lower price tag. Here’s how to prepare yourself for the impact a sex offender can have on home value.

How Much Is Real Estate Value Affected by Sex Offenders?
How Much Is Real Estate Value Affected by Sex Offenders? Created By: PeopleFinders

1. Do Your Own Research Before You Get the Home Valuation

First and foremost, you need to know that you’re going to be facing that lower home valuation in the first place. That means doing your research. You can use a public records search engine to find out if there are any sex offenders in the area when you first take on a client who’s trying to sell their home. Knowing that there is a sex offender nearby will help you understand the impacts.

2. Know the Facts About Sex Offenders’ Impact on Home Valuation

In general, people living within a 0.1-mile radius of a sex offender will see an impact on their home’s value. If you’re living within that radius, you can see a real estate value drop of around 4%. If you’re living right next door, that can jump to about 12%. Either way, 0.1 miles is actually not that much space, although around one in 50 people may live next to a sex offender.

3. Talk to the Homeowners About Their Options

When you know there’s a sex offender living nearby or right next to a home you’re helping to sell, you should then talk to the homeowners about their options. Real estate values typically bounce back as soon as the sex offender moves out, so if the homeowners aren’t in any hurry, they may want to hang onto the house until the value returns. However, it is also possible to sell a home next to a sex offender, even if you have to list it a bit lower.

4. See What You Can Do to Boost Home Value in Other Ways

As stated before, there are other elements that go into home valuations. You may want to consider getting the house painted, fixing any concrete or wall cracks in and around the house, and doing other small fixes that make the house more livable. Boosting the home’s value in these small ways can help make up for the value decrease that you’ll see due to living next to or near a sex offender.

Conclusion

At the end of the day, the greatest tool you have in your toolbox is information. If you know you’re facing a lower home valuation because of a nearby sex offender, you can work with the homeowners to increase the home value in other ways so they can get a great return on their investment. Make sure you use a public record search engine to find that information early on in the process for the best results.

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