REMOTE & MILITARY SELLERS
Selling From Where You Are
You do not need to set foot in Florida for any part of this.
The short version
You do not need to set foot in Florida for any part of this. I hold the Military Relocation Professional designation, and our RE/MAX Collective office at 11200 Seminole Blvd puts me minutes from most of the homes I list on this side of the bay.
Below is exactly how the three things remote sellers always ask about actually work.
1. Signing from overseas
There are two routes. Which one fits depends on where you are and what your connectivity looks like.
Special Power of Attorney, the reliable route
A base legal assistance office can usually draft one at no cost. It should be specific to this sale and name someone stateside you trust. Florida requires two witnesses plus a notary, and a military notary is valid overseas without a state commission, so fellow servicemembers can witness.
Remote online notarization, the convenient route
Florida permits signing by live video. It is genuinely easier when it works. It can also fail for people who have been overseas a while, because the identity check pulls from US credit and public records, and some platforms block foreign IP addresses outright. I would rather have a power of attorney in hand as the backup than discover that three days before closing.
Handle it in one visit
If you go to legal assistance, get everything notarized at the same appointment: the power of attorney, and a short name affidavit. If the county still shows title under a former name, your title company will likely want that affidavit. One trip instead of three scrambles across a time difference.
The listing agreement and the purchase contract are both e-signed. Nothing gets printed, mailed, or scanned.
2. The clean-out, repairs, and vendors
This starts the day the tenants hand over the keys, and it runs on a simple rule: I get quotes, you approve by email, you see photos before and after. You never wonder what is happening inside that house.
- 1
Documented walkthrough
I walk the property and photograph and video everything before anything is touched or thrown away.
- 2
Secure the property
Locks changed, keys accounted for, lockbox installed. Utilities stay on, because there are no photos, inspections, or appraisal without power and water.
- 3
Written quote before any spending
Clean-out, haul-off, and repairs quoted in writing with photos of what the quote covers. You approve it before a dollar is spent.
- 4
Anything you want kept
Tell me what matters and I will set it aside, photograph it, and arrange shipping or storage rather than guessing.
- 5
Make-ready and photography
Work completed, after photos sent, then professional listing photos once it shows well.
I schedule and supervise the vendors. If something goes sideways, that is my problem to solve, not a phone call you have to make from another time zone.
3. Communication
Email is primary
Whoever you want copied is copied on everything, every time.
A written update every Friday
Whether or not anything dramatic happened, plus anything urgent immediately.
Video calls whenever your schedule allows
Tell me your window and I work around it. Odd hours are fine.
Every document lives in one place
So you are never hunting through an inbox for the version we are actually working from.
Slow replies are expected
You are deployed, or you are three time zones away. I will never read a delay as a lack of interest, and I will keep moving on the things that do not need you.
One item with a deadline
Security deposit, 30 days from move-out
Florida gives you 30 days after the tenants vacate to send written notice by certified mail if you intend to claim any of their deposit. Miss that window and the full deposit goes back regardless. If you are mid-rotation when the keys come back, this is the one date I will chase you about.
Selling from a distance?
Tell me where you are and what the timeline looks like. I will tell you exactly what you would need to sign and when.
Or call (813) 733-7907. See also my seller process and relocation guide.