Selling a Las Vegas House From Out of State
Maybe you moved for work and kept the old house as a rental. Maybe a parent left it to you and you live three states away. Either way, you are responsible for a property you cannot drive past, and every decision about it gets made through a phone.
We are a property solutions company based in Henderson. Buying the house is one thing we can do. We will also tell you plainly when keeping it or listing it is the better call — and we take no referral fee when we point you to an agent.
Selling from a distance, step by step
The order matters. Most of the expensive surprises come from deciding before you know what is actually at the property.
- 1
Get eyes on the property
Before deciding anything, find out what condition the house is actually in. A property manager, a trusted neighbor, or a buyer walking it on your behalf can send photos and video. From a distance, the gap between what you remember and what is there can be wide, and every option below depends on it.
- 2
Pin down who is living there and on what terms
Vacant, tenant-occupied, or occupied by someone without a lease are three different sales. If there is a tenant, find the lease, the deposit amount, and the rent ledger. Nevada gives a tenant specific protections that carry through a sale, covered below.
- 3
Choose a route: keep, list, or sell as-is
Keeping it and hiring better local help is a real option. Listing it with an agent will usually bring the highest price if the house shows well and you can fund the gap until closing. A cash sale trades some of that price for not having to manage repairs, showings, or a vacant house from another state.
- 4
Line up tax advice before you sign
Two federal rules decide how much of the sale reaches you: FIRPTA withholding if you are a foreign person, and the section 1031 exchange rules if you want to defer gain on a rental. Both need to be set up before closing, not after, so talk to a CPA or tax attorney early.
- 5
Sign from wherever you are
A Nevada closing does not have to mean a flight. Closing documents can be signed in front of a mobile notary where you live, and Nevada law allows a registered electronic notary to notarize by live audio-video for a signer outside the state. When we buy, we set the signing up for you: we arrange the notary and coordinate with the title company, so you sign where you are.
Why an empty desert house needs watching
A vacant house anywhere carries risk. Here the summer adds to it: the National Weather Service recorded 120 degrees at Harry Reid International Airport on July 7, 2024, the highest temperature on record for Las Vegas. An air conditioner that quits in a house nobody visits can go unnoticed for weeks.
Your insurance may not cover an empty house
The Insurance Information Institute notes that homeowners policies commonly include a vacancy clause that limits or excludes coverage once a home has been unoccupied for a set period, typically 30 to 60 consecutive days, and that standard policies exclude or limit theft and vandalism once a home counts as vacant. Read your own policy, and ask your insurer about a vacant-home policy if the house will sit.
An unattended pool becomes your problem fast
The Southern Nevada Health District puts responsibility for mosquito breeding sources on the property owner, and notes that chlorine will not always kill larvae in a pool. It no longer handles green pools itself; those are reported to city or county code enforcement, and the owner is the one expected to fix them.
Someone has to check on it
A property manager, a paid house-checker, or a reliable neighbor can walk the house on a schedule, run the water, and look at the thermostat. It costs money every month, which is part of the real cost of holding the property while you decide.
Selling with a tenant in place
A sale does not end a tenancy by itself, and Nevada’s landlord-tenant law (NRS Chapter 118A) sets out what both sides owe each other while the house changes hands.
- Showings. A tenant may not unreasonably withhold consent for you to show the unit to buyers, but you must give at least 24 hours notice, enter at reasonable times, and not use access to harass them (NRS 118A.330). A distant owner relies on a manager or agent to handle this correctly.
- The security deposit. When you sell, you must either notify the tenant in writing who the new owner is and transfer the remaining deposit, or return it to the tenant (NRS 118A.244). The new owner then has 30 days to tell the tenant the rental agreement continues and where to pay rent.
- No shortcuts. Locking a tenant out or cutting off essential services to clear a house for sale is unlawful in Nevada (NRS 118A.390). If the tenancy has broken down, read our guide to occupied rentals and difficult tenancies before doing anything.
The statutes are on the Nevada Legislature’s site. We are not attorneys, and a Nevada landlord-tenant attorney is the right person for questions about your lease.
Two tax rules to settle before closing
FIRPTA, if you are a foreign person
If the seller is a foreign person for US tax purposes, the Foreign Investment in Real Property Tax Act generally requires the buyer to withhold 15 percent of the amount realized and remit it to the IRS. The exceptions for lower-priced homes apply only when the buyer plans to live in the house, which a company buying it does not. An IRS withholding certificate (Form 8288-B) can reduce the amount in some cases. Living in another state does not make you a foreign person. Details are on the IRS FIRPTA page.
A 1031 exchange, if it was a rental
If the house was held as an investment, section 1031 can defer the tax on your gain when you reinvest in other real property. The IRS is clear that it defers tax rather than removing it, and a home you lived in or used as a second home does not qualify. You get 45 days after the sale to identify a replacement in writing, and 180 days (or your tax return due date, if that comes first) to complete the exchange. A qualified intermediary has to hold the proceeds, because taking the cash yourself can disqualify the whole exchange. See the IRS like-kind exchange guidance and talk to a tax adviser before you sign a purchase agreement.
Where we come in
If selling as-is is the right answer, we can walk the property for you, send you what we see, and make a no-obligation cash offer on the house as it stands, tenants included. The sale runs through a licensed Nevada title company, and signing can be arranged where you live, subject to the signed agreement and the usual title work. If the house would do better listed, we will say so; our cash-versus-listing comparison shows the arithmetic. If you inherited it and probate is still open, start with how Nevada probate affects a sale.
An out-of-state owner we bought from
An out-of-state landlord selling tenant-occupied rentals
Las Vegas Valley
A past client referred us to a friend who owned rental properties here but lived out of state. The properties were tenant-occupied — some good tenants, some long-standing ones, and some that were not working out.
We coordinated with the client’s local property manager and walked each property, then laid out a straightforward plan for the sale. By closing, some tenancies had continued and others had ended. The client never had to travel here — everything ran through our title company and mobile notaries — and every property closed inside the timeline they needed.
As told by Alex Wentland, CEO — July 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Questions from owners who live elsewhere
Do I have to come to Las Vegas to sell?
Not necessarily. Closing documents can be signed with a mobile notary where you are, and Nevada allows registered electronic notaries to notarize by live audio-video for people outside the state. The title company decides which methods it will accept for a given closing, so ask them early. The landlord in our case study above never travelled here.
Can I sell while the tenant is still living there?
Yes. In Nevada a tenant must not unreasonably refuse entry to show the home to prospective or actual purchasers, but you must give at least 24 hours notice and enter at reasonable times unless the tenant agrees otherwise (NRS 118A.330). When the property sells, the deposit has to be transferred to the buyer with written notice to the tenant, or returned (NRS 118A.244), and the new owner must tell the tenant within 30 days that the rental agreement continues.
Will you buy a rental with tenants in it?
Yes. We buy occupied rentals and take on the lease as it stands. We do not remove tenants and nobody should promise you that; if the tenancy has gone badly, our page on selling with problem tenants explains what Nevada law separates.
I live in another state. Does FIRPTA apply to me?
Not because of where you live. FIRPTA applies when the seller is a foreign person for US tax purposes. A US citizen or resident who happens to live in Texas or California is not affected. If you are a foreign person, the buyer generally has to withhold 15 percent of the amount realized and send it to the IRS, unless an exception or an IRS withholding certificate applies.
Can I still do a 1031 exchange if I sell for cash?
A 1031 exchange depends on how you handle the proceeds, not on how the buyer pays. The IRS rules require the property to have been held for business or investment, a written identification of replacement property within 45 days, and completion within 180 days. Taking control of the cash yourself before the exchange is complete can disqualify it, which is why a qualified intermediary holds the funds. Set that up with your tax adviser before closing.
What does it cost to find out what you would do?
Nothing. Looking at the property and giving you a no-obligation cash offer is free, and when we buy we cover the standard closing costs. If listing it would serve you better, we will say so and tell you which agents we have had good experiences with. We take no referral fee for that.
About this guide
Written by the team at Alex Buys Vegas Houses, a Henderson-based property solutions company that buys houses across the Las Vegas Valley and Boulder City. We buy houses across the Las Vegas Valley for owners who live elsewhere, including rentals with tenants in place, and we tell those owners when keeping or listing the property is the better route.
Last reviewed September 2026. This is general information about Nevada's process, not legal advice — for advice about your specific situation, talk to a Nevada attorney or a HUD-approved housing counselor.
When we do buy, here is what that means
As-is, any condition
No repairs, no cleaning, no staging. Leave behind what you do not want.
No agent fees or commissions
You are selling directly to us, so there is no listing side to pay for.
We cover standard closing costs
The usual closing costs come out of our side of the table, not yours.
Close on your timeline
Days or months — you pick the date that actually works for you.
A local buyer, based in Henderson
We work across the Las Vegas Valley and Boulder City, and we come to the house. Not a national iBuyer, not an out-of-state fund.
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Tell us about the property
The address, who is living there, and where you are. We can do the looking for you and report back. If you would rather talk it through first, call (702) 793-2582. You can also read how a purchase with us runs.