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Rudy Flores · (619) 392-6714 · Real Estate Strategist, Realtor® · CalDRE #02257808 · Responsible Broker CalDRE #01481919
A plan for owners who have moved away: signing, keys, showings, slope and yard upkeep, and a checklist that fits your situation.
Moved out of state, across the county, or into a job that keeps you south of the border most days? Your Ocean View Hills home can still sell well while you live somewhere else. This page walks through how a long-distance sale runs, from the first video call to the signing, and builds a checklist around your own situation.
Still deciding between selling, renting it out or holding on? Start with the Home Strategy Quiz: four short questions, then Rudy sends a plan.
Answer four questions and the list below narrows to the steps that fit your move. The optional worksheet adds up what distance costs you, such as trips and hired help, and can carry that total into the side-by-side selling calculator.
Download the full checklist (PDF): all 36 steps, ready to print.
Rudy Flores, Realtor® · Coldwell Banker West · CalDRE #02257808 · Responsible Broker CalDRE #01481919 · (619) 392-6714 · Equal Housing Opportunity · oceanviewhillshomes.com
E-signatures carry the same legal effect as ink in California (Civil Code 1633.7), so most of the paperwork can be signed from your laptop or phone.
The deed is the exception. It has to be acknowledged before a notary before the county will record it (Government Code 27287). The table shows the usual routes.
| Where you are | How the deed signature usually works | What to ask escrow |
|---|---|---|
| In the U.S. | A mobile notary or a local notary. California accepts an acknowledgment taken under the law of the place where it is signed (Civil Code 1189(b)). | Whether they arrange the notary or you book one, and how the originals come back. |
| Outside the U.S. | A U.S. consul or consular agent, or a local notary plus an authentication step such as an apostille (Civil Code 1183). | Which ID they need, and how long shipping the originals takes. |
| On active duty | Commissioned officers with notary powers can take acknowledgments for service members and their spouses (Civil Code 1183.5). | Whether a military notary's acknowledgment works for their recording. |
| Online | As of October 2026, California notaries cannot notarize online yet. Whether another state's online notarization works for this deed is for escrow and the title company to say. | Before you book anything online, whether they will accept it. |
Thinking about having someone sign for you? An attorney can explain a power of attorney, and the title company should approve it before anyone signs with one.
Before you hand anything off, round up every key, garage remote, mailbox key and gate or pool fob, and note the alarm code and the water shut-off.
Then ask Rudy where they should go, and whether a tracked overnight package, a courier or a friend who is driving down makes the most sense.
Ocean View Hills homes often sit on terraced lots, and slopes and yards keep growing while you are away, so landscape upkeep usually goes on the list first.
Choose who does the work, and give each quote your written OK before anyone starts. A handyman visit is a good early task: the sale paperwork asks about smoke alarms, carbon monoxide alarms and water-heater bracing.
A live video walk-through can stand in for a trip back, whether you join from another state or from across the border.
If you cross for work, the border wait-times page shows the northbound waits CBP publishes before you plan a visit.
Who is in the house changes how showings, bills and closing day work.
| What changes | Empty | Rented | A relative or friend lives there |
|---|---|---|---|
| Showings | Simple to schedule, with nobody's routine to work around. | Written notice first: 24 hours is presumed reasonable, during normal business hours (Civil Code 1954). | Agree on showing windows and a quick tidy-up routine. |
| Utilities | Keep power, water and gas on through closing. | Check the lease for who pays which bill. | Decide whose name the bills stay in until closing. |
| Insurance | Tell your insurer it is empty and ask what changes. | Confirm the policy fits a rented home. | Tell your insurer who is living there. |
| Getting it ready | Stage, virtually stage (labeled) or show it clean. | Plan photos and repairs around the tenant. | Declutter together and box what is moving. |
| At closing | Gather keys, remotes and manuals for the buyer. | Ask escrow how the deposit and lease are handled. | Settle the move-out date well before closing. |
Weighing a property manager instead of a sale? Anyone who collects rent and manages the home for you needs a valid, active DRE license, and you can check a license in a minute. The keep or sell calculator and the rental yield table help with that comparison.
Leave SDG&E, water and trash running until closing. SDG&E lets you stop or move service online, even as a guest, and water and trash go through the provider named on your bill.
Call your insurer about the home sitting empty. If you claimed the homeowners' exemption, tell the San Diego County Assessor; December 10 is the last day to end it without a penalty.
Set up USPS mail forwarding, which runs 12 months; allow 7 to 10 business days for it to start.
Empty rooms photograph best with a little help. Virtual staging is allowed when the photo is labeled as altered and the original is available, a rule San Diego's MLS has enforced since January 1, 2026 under AB 723.
Book the signing a few days before closing, set utilities to stop on the closing date, and ask Rudy how the keys and remotes get to the buyer. Keep the closing statement with your tax papers.
On taxes: owning and living in the home for 2 of the 5 years before the sale can exclude up to $250,000 of gain, or $500,000 for a married couple filing jointly (IRS Publication 523). California may also ask escrow to withhold part of the price for state tax unless an exemption applies (FTB Form 593). A tax professional can tell you how your move-out date fits.
Not sure selling now beats renting it out? The worksheet in the planner hands its total to the side-by-side selling calculator, where it goes into the two preparation fields. That page's rent-then-sell column also uses Repairs and preparation, so lower it there if those costs would not repeat years from now. For more numbers, see the net proceeds estimator, a cash offer comparison and the home sale tax exclusion estimator.
Not sure yet whether to sell, rent it out or wait? The quiz takes four questions, and Rudy replies with a plan.
Take the Home Strategy QuizShare where you live now and how you like to be reached, and Rudy will follow up on your schedule, in your time zone.
Many owners do. Showings, the first busy days on the market, the inspection and the appraisal can all happen without you there. What needs you is signing, and escrow decides how each document is signed.
In the U.S., a mobile or local notary takes the signature, and California accepts that state's acknowledgment. Abroad, it is a U.S. consular officer or a local notary plus an authentication step such as an apostille. Escrow tells you which ID to bring.
Not with a California notary: California notaries cannot notarize online yet. Whether an online notarization from another state works for your deed is up to escrow and the title company, so ask before booking one.
Empty is the simplest to show and stage. Rented works too, with written notice before each showing; California presumes 24 hours is reasonable.
Usually a lockbox or a nearby key holder, so nobody waits on a trip from out of town; ask Rudy what fits your home.
Your insurer, the County Assessor if you had the homeowners' exemption, USPS for mail forwarding, and your HOA so notices reach you at the new address.
Talk to a lender. Rates, loan programs and approvals come from lenders, not from websites or real estate agents. Talk to your own mortgage broker, or use our preferred lender, Point Mortgage Corporation (NMLS #231073), at (619) 475-4095. You are always free to choose any lender you like, and you can verify any lender’s license at nmlsconsumeraccess.org.
General information for orientation, not legal, tax, financial or appraisal advice. Details change; confirm anything that matters with the official source, your lender and your agent.