The seller inherited the property from her father, who had spent years building a portfolio in Union City. After his passing, which came in the months following a catastrophic fire in the house, she completed the probate process and became the legal owner. In the same moment she gained an asset, she inherited every liability attached to it.
The front unit had been condemned following the fire. The city had tagged the building as uninhabitable and issued a formal notice requiring the owner to renovate the entire building and allow the existing tenants to return at their current discounted rent. The seller lived an hour and a half away, had no background in real estate, and had no workable path forward.
Union City's tenant protections are among the strongest in New Jersey. The back-unit tenants held a city-issued letter guaranteeing their right to return to renovated housing at their existing rate, around $1,100-$1,200 per month. Any buyer who renovated or redeveloped the property without first resolving that obligation would be permanently locked into below-market rents on a lot with significant development potential.
Without the right buyer and coordination, the seller faced two equally bad outcomes: spend money she didn't have to renovate a condemned building, or walk away and remain legally liable for an uninhabitable property with active occupants.
We structured the entire transaction around what the seller actually needed: a clean exit, fast, with every open issue resolved before we handed her the check.
We purchased the property in its condemned state, without requiring a certificate of occupancy or any repairs. No inspections that could kill the deal. No conditions the seller couldn't meet.
We took the tenants entirely off the seller's plate. Our team worked directly with the occupants to negotiate a move-out amount and a confirmed departure date — removing the legal exposure completely.
We worked directly with Union City's municipal leasing department, the seller's attorney, and the tenants simultaneously, keeping everyone aligned toward a single close date.
From the first conversation to cash in her account: two and a half weeks. Every moving piece coordinated in parallel so nothing caused a delay.
The seller was able to:
Close the sale without making a single repair on a fire-damaged, condemned property
Walk away with zero tenant liability — occupancy fully resolved by the Leverage Homes team
Avoid the city's renovation-and-return requirement that would have followed her through any other sale
Receive proceeds from a property every conventional buyer had passed on — in under three weeks
"Whatever your situation is, we will adapt and adjust to it. There's no problem we can't overcome. As long as the price makes sense for both sides, we will get to the closing table no matter what the problem."
Joey Szal
VP, Acquisitions
Fire damage, condemned status, active rent-controlled tenants, city-issued letters, probate — this deal had every obstacle that stops a conventional transaction in its tracks. The seller had nowhere left to turn and a growing list of people telling her what she was legally required to do.
At Leverage Homes, the focus is simple: adapt to the situation and follow it through to resolution. The price has to work for everyone. Everything else is a problem to be solved.
Fire damage, tenant rights, probate, condemned status - if other buyers have walked away, we want to hear about it.
Office Location
50 Park Place, Suite 301
Newark, NJ 07102
Office Location
50 Park Place, Suite 301
Newark, NJ 07102