Selling a Vacant House in Texas — Stop the Carrying-Cost Bleed
A vacant Texas home costs you money every single month while losing value to vandalism, weather, and neglect. We buy vacant properties for cash, as-is, and close in 7 to 14 days statewide.
A vacant house in Texas is not a passive asset — it's an active liability. Property taxes assessed by the county appraisal district continue to accrue. Homeowner's insurance, if you can keep it, converts to a vacant-home policy that costs 50–200% more and covers less. If insurance lapses, the mortgage servicer force-places coverage at 2–4x normal rates and adds the premium to your escrow. Utilities, lawn care, HOA dues, and minimum maintenance all keep billing. For most Texas homeowners, an empty house costs $1,500 to $4,000 per month just to hold.
And that's just the cash bleed. The asset itself is deteriorating. Vacant Texas homes attract vandalism — copper theft is the most common, AC condensers are #2. Squatters identify them quickly and Texas law makes removal slow and expensive. Hurricanes and tropical storms hit vacant coastal homes harder because nobody's there to mitigate. In the RGV and along the Coastal Bend, salt air and humidity accelerate decay. In Hill Country and Central Texas, freeze damage from unmonitored plumbing during winter events causes catastrophic interior losses.
Most vacant homes end up vacant for understandable reasons: inheritance, job relocation, separation or divorce, a failed rental experience, or just life circumstances that made selling fast impossible at the time. By the time the owner is ready to act, the home often needs work that retail buyers won't accept. Listing on the MLS adds 60–120 more days of carrying costs while the property accumulates more problems. Even a successful retail sale typically nets less than a fast cash sale once carrying costs, agent commissions, and concessions are tallied.
South Texas Home Investors buys vacant homes statewide on a fast, certain basis. We issue a written cash offer based on the property's actual condition (not what it would be if you spent 90 days fixing it), pay all back taxes, mortgage, and HOA arrears at closing from the title company, and close in 7 to 14 days. We accept the home exactly as it sits — no walk-through cleanup required.
Why This Situation Is Different
What Texas Homeowners In This Situation Are Up Against
Carrying Costs Are Real Money
Taxes, insurance, mortgage, utilities, lawn care — a vacant Texas home easily costs $1,500–$4,000/mo to hold. Six months of inaction is real money.
Force-Placed Insurance Is Brutal
If your standard policy lapses, the mortgage servicer's force-placed coverage costs 2–4x normal rates and excludes most of what you'd want covered.
Vacant Homes Get Vandalized
Copper pipe theft, AC condenser theft, broken windows, graffiti. Vacant Texas homes are targets. Insurance often won't cover losses on vacant policies.
Squatters Are Hard to Remove
Texas squatter removal requires forcible-entry-and-detainer proceedings and can take 30–90 days. A vacant home announces itself to squatters quickly.
Code Enforcement Fines Compound
Cities issue accumulating fines for overgrowth, broken windows, and unsafe conditions. Texas Property Code allows liens to attach to the property.
Weather Damages Unmonitored Homes
Freeze damage in winter, hurricane and hail damage statewide, mold from undetected leaks — vacant Texas homes accumulate damage no one catches in time.
By City
City-Specific Guides
Local laws, courts, and market conditions matter. Pick your city for the version of this guide tailored to your county.
San Antonio
Bexar County
Vacant Bexar County homes — North, South, East, and West side properties bought as-is.
Corpus Christi
Nueces County
Coastal Bend vacant homes — TWIA windstorm and salt-air condition issues handled.
McAllen
Hidalgo County
RGV vacant homes — McAllen, Edinburg, Mission, Pharr properties bought remotely.
Brownsville
Cameron County
Cameron County vacant properties — Brownsville and Harlingen homes bought as-is.
The Hard Parts
Common Obstacles We Solve
Out-of-State Owner
Common situation: inherited or relocated owner who can't easily get to Texas. We handle remote signings and don't require you to come back to the property.
Lapsed Insurance
We buy with lapsed insurance. We obtain our own coverage at closing. You don't need to scramble to restore a policy first.
Damage from Squatters or Vandalism
Broken windows, missing copper, drywall damage, theft. All priced into our offer. Don't repair before selling.
Open Code Violations
City notices for overgrowth, unsafe conditions, or unsanitary conditions are handled through our title work and paid at closing.
Back Taxes and HOA Arrears
Multi-year tax delinquencies and HOA dues are paid from the title company at closing, not out of your pocket.
Stale Personal Property
Furniture, appliances, possessions left behind — we handle disposal after closing at our cost.
How We Help
What We Actually Do
We've bought vacant Texas homes from owners who hadn't seen the property in 5+ years. Our process accommodates remote sellers: we walk the property ourselves, issue a written cash offer, send contracts electronically, and arrange notary services wherever you are. We pay back taxes, mortgage payoff, HOA arrears, and code-enforcement liens at the title company. We don't ask you to fix, clean, or restore anything beforehand.
Many of the vacant homes we buy involve an inherited estate, an active probate, a divorce-related move-out, a tired landlord exit, or pre-foreclosure pressure. We coordinate with whatever's going on alongside the vacancy and close in 7 to 14 days.
- Written cash offer in 24 hours
- Remote signings for out-of-state owners
- Lapsed insurance is fine — we obtain coverage
- Back taxes, HOA arrears, mortgage paid at closing
- Code-enforcement notices resolved through title
- Cleanout and contents disposal handled after closing
As-Is, Cash, Closed
Benefits of a Direct Cash Sale
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
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