Wholesaling Houses With Foundation Problems in Wisconsin

The short answer

Is wholesaling houses with foundation problems in Wisconsin legal?

Generally yes, as long as you deliver the written notices found in Wis. Stat. 710.13 and share what you know about the wall honestly. Check the statute’s present text, and think about talking to a lawyer before your first foundation contract.

Take a Racine duplex with a leaning basement wall: if you sign to buy it intending to pass the contract on for a fee, Wisconsin labels you a real property wholesaler. Two written notices follow, the first to the owner by the time the purchase agreement is signed and the second to your assignee by the time the assignment is signed. The assignment guide and equitable interest guide explain why your buyer hears that you hold no title.

Late notice generally lets the owner rescind before closing and possibly keep the deposit, while your buyer can rescind and recover the deposit. Structural questions deserve an engineer or a seasoned contractor to define the repair before you price anything. A budget template appears in our repair estimate guide.

The opportunity

Why foundation problems create wholesale deals in Wisconsin

Foundation trouble scares many buyers and lenders, and a home inspection report can sink a retail sale. Racine County has older homes where freeze and thaw cycles, drainage problems and aging masonry leave cracks and bowed walls. A cash offer without a repair demand can help. Your edge is separating minor hairline cracks from true structural trouble. Study the difference with our foundation guide and ask a pro early.

Lead sources

Where to find houses with foundation problems in Wisconsin

• Expired and withdrawn listings. Homes that failed inspections often relist. Track them with our expired listings guide.
• Driving for dollars. Watch for stair-step cracks, tilting chimneys and freshly patched walls while following our driving guide.
• Local inspectors. Home inspectors sometimes know owners who need a different exit. Be respectful about their clients.
• Code enforcement. Racine’s municipal records may list nuisance properties. Check what is public.
• Mail. A short, honest letter works. See our yellow letters guide.

Your exit

Who buys houses with foundation problems in Wisconsin

The typical purchaser is a renovator, builder or landlord who employs their own crew. Offer pictures, any engineer’s letter you hold, and straight information about moisture in the basement.

Your assignee should have the written wholesaler notice ahead of the assignment contract. To locate the best match, try the cash buyer guide and the buy box guide. Tell them what you observed, what remains unknown, when any contractor stopped by, and whether the basement stays dry through downpours and the spring thaw.

Step by step

How to start wholesaling houses with foundation problems in Wisconsin

1. Ask what is known. Find out whether an inspector, engineer or contractor has already looked.
2. Document the cracks. Photograph walls, floors and windows and note any water.
3. Get a scope. Ask a foundation contractor for a rough range before you set a price.
4. Run the numbers. Use the ARV calculator and the MAO calculator with a repair range that includes drainage.
5. Tell the owner. Put the wholesaler disclosure in the owner’s hands before he signs.
6. Tell the buyer. Deliver your buyer’s disclosure before the assignment goes out for signature.
7. Close at title. Pick an investor-friendly title company and verify that no liens remain.

Picture a bungalow in Racine near the lake. Its owner, already working in a new town, was desperate to end the burden of two mortgage payments.

A foundation contractor gave you a ballpark figure first, and then the owner accepted $84,000. At the table, the written wholesaler notice went into his hands along with an explanation that the contract would be assigned. Fixing the repaired value took the ARV guide.

The assignment sold for $8,500 to a renovator who first received his own written notice. A title company handled closing in roughly three weeks, and afterward he admitted the wall work looked pricier before his contractor had walked the basement.

Wisconsin rules to know

Notices, condition reports and fees for foundation problems

Both notices come from Wis. Stat. 710.13, one for the owner and one for your assignee, and tardiness gives either person grounds to cancel ahead of closing. Pull up the statute as it reads today and browse the legality guide. Separately, a run of sales can fall within the state’s broker definition, where five sales in a year or ten across five years is described as presumptive evidence.

Chapter 709 usually has an owner who occupied the home fill out a condition report roughly 10 days after acceptance, and its questions cover basement water and foundation trouble, so this matters for your deal. When the report comes late or discloses a defect, the buyer can cancel within two business days. Meanwhile the grantor covers the transfer fee of 30 cents per $100 unless an exemption fits. Learn more from the attorney guide and license guide.

Learn it with a mentor

Scope foundation deals before you commit

A wrong guess on wall repair costs real money. Mentorship students upload pictures and contractor comments, and together we judge whether a given deal makes sense.

FAQ

Houses With Foundation Problems in Wisconsin: common questions

Keep going

More Wisconsin wholesaling guides

Read the full Wisconsin wholesaling guide or pick another situation below.

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