Selling a house is complicated enough. But when the house is being rented and occupied by a tenant, the degree of difficulty is compounded exponentially.

Because tenants are protected by various state and local laws that prevent landlords from kicking out occupants for no good reason, they are in the driver’s seat, at least until their leases expire. But there are several ways to get them to move before then, or at least to cooperate in the sale.

(Note: This column does not constitute legal advice. Before taking any action, check with an attorney who specializes in real estate matters.)

First, check your lease to see what it has to say on the matter. Generally, the lease precedes the sale of the house, meaning the tenant is entitled to stay until the end of the lease. But it might also spell out what is required of both parties should the property be put up for sale.

For example, as long as the landlord gives the tenant proper notice, the lease might call for the tenant to keep the house in good condition for showing and make it available to would-be buyers during certain times. If she doesn’t, that in itself could be grounds for eviction.

Eviction, of course, is the last thing you want when selling your property. So it is imperative that you communicate with your tenant and answer any questions he or she may have.

Although the tenant is entitled to stay, some will pick up and move on their own because of the uncertainty surrounding the new owner and landlord. In that case, the tenant could be breaking the lease, in which case he would not be entitled to the return of his security deposit. Still, agreeing to return his deposit may be just the incentive he needs to leave early.

But moving out early cuts both ways. An empty house is easier to sell than one occupied by an uncooperative tenant. However, while losing a tenant makes things easier logistically, it also means a loss of rental income until the house is sold. If you need that money to make your mortgage payment, you could be in a world of hurt, especially if it takes more time than expected to fix up and sell the house.

So keep the communication lines open and try to work with your tenant as much as possible.

If the house hasn’t been kept up as well as it should and you really have to fix it up, you have a couple of options. One, offer the tenant a cash incentive to move out early; or two, simply wait until the lease expires before listing the house.

If you choose option one, how much to offer depends on how important it is to you to sell right now: that is, when the market is tight, inventory is low and houses are selling at warp-speed. Offering to pay the tenant’s moving expenses up to a certain limit might just do the trick.

But the incentive doesn’t have to be in cash. For example, you might offer to cut the rent by a certain percentage if he cooperates in the selling process. If he straightens up the place every morning in case of visits from potential buyers, you might offer a steep discount on the rent. Here, it is important to set some ground rules. For example, in what condition must the property be kept? How much advance notice will be required for showings? When will open houses be held?

If the tenant doesn’t want to cooperate, your other option is to wait. And it may be the best choice. After all, why bring interested buyers to the house when you don’t know whether or not the door will be deadbolted, or what shape the place will be in if you do get inside? Nothing turns prospects off like a kitchen sink piled high with dishes, or clothes tossed all over the place. Or opening the front door and finding the tenant and a bunch of buddies noisily sitting around, drinking beer.

Ideally, you’d sell the house while it’s occupied, but still clean and tidy. But an empty house is preferable to one in embarrassing disarray. Plus, there’s a huge upside to the 24/7 ease of access for showings without having to go through a third party.

If you decide to wait to sell until the tenant has vacated, you’ll want to follow the exact procedure described by the lease. If it requires that the tenant be given 60 days notice, than make sure you provide a written notice of your intent exactly 60 days before the lease comes to an end. If you wait until the lease ends before sending the notice, than the tenant can remain two more months before leaving.

You can send the notice by registered mail with a signed receipt required, but sending it by regular mail should be enough to satisfy a judge that you met your obligation. Remember, though, to keep a copy of the notice, and perhaps a stamped receipt from the post office.

Millennials, the population cohort whose members were practically born with electronic devices in their hands, are generally considered the most likely to finance a house through a totally automated process. But even they want some hand-holding, according to a recent survey.

Millennials -- generally, folks born in 1982 or later -- are the most likely to start the mortgage process online. But many of them still want to talk to a real, live person to seal the deal, according to a study by Ellie Mae, a loan origination system used by numerous lenders.

Three out of 10 millennials used a high-tech/personal combination to obtain their mortgages. That surpassed Gen Xers, at 28 percent, and baby boomers, at 20 percent.

Ellie Mae polled more than 3,000 borrowers between the ages of 18 and 70 last December, hoping to pass along some useful information to the lenders that use its mortgage software and solutions.

Some of the findings caught CEO Jonathan Corr off-guard.

Corr said he was surprised by the high percentage of electronic-savvy millennials who are obtaining their first mortgages through the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), the stodgy old government agency still using outdated software. (Does the computer language FORTRAN ring a bell?)

FHA-insured mortgages have been a traditional first conduit into homeownership for generations of Americans. And according to the Ellie Mae study, 35 percent of millennials surveyed took their initial step onto the housing ladder with a government-backed loan.

The study suggested that the FHA holds the same appeal to this latest generation of first-time buyers as it has for those who went before them. That is, it is attractive to buyers carrying high amounts of student debt -- which millennials have more of than any previous generation -- and those who haven’t been able to accumulate enough cash for a sizeable down payment.

Others in the mortgage lending business are seeing similar patterns. For example, in credit unions, which have increased their mortgage originations steadily over recent years, FHA lending now accounts for a full 50 percent of their lending portfolios.

Credit unions, like other banking institutions, have to be up to snuff technologically when a millennial wants to open an account. But more and more of their new members, after starting accounts online, want to come into the branch and talk to someone face-to-face about getting more connected to the world of finance.

“Younger members may come in for financial advice,” says Jason Schwabline, senior vice president of product development and strategy for Alogent, a Georgia-based financial software firm with 1,400 credit union clients. “They want a real person to tell them how to plan a savings strategy, how to finance a car, how to pay down their student debt. And the branch officer who counsels them may become not only a trusted adviser, but an influencer of that millennial’s financial decisions for a long time to come.”

Overall, the Ellie Mae survey found that 57 percent of all borrowers filled out their mortgage applications the old-fashioned way, completely in person, while 28 percent used the hybrid online/in person method. Just 11 percent applied for mortgages totally online. So much for paperless mortgages!

Thirty-five percent of millennials said security was the most important factor in their application process, significantly higher than the 23 percent who sited speed as their primary reason. Twenty percent wanted simplicity, while 12 percent rated transparency the biggest factor.

“I was surprised to see that security, rather than speed, was the most important factor for millennials in applying for a loan,” says Ellie Mae’s Corr.

Meanwhile, speed was ranked most important to both Gen Xers (34 percent) and baby boomers (36 percent). And in the battle of the sexes, security topped the women’s list (32 percent), while speed was most important for men (30 percent).

Speaking of the sexes, Ellie Mae, which also keeps an eye on millennial trends on a monthly basis, says male millennials are twice as likely to take out mortgages as females (65 percent vs. 32 percent). Just over half of millennial borrowers are married, and their average age is 29.6 years.

Their average credit score? A good, but not excellent, 722. Average mortgage amount? A relatively modest $183,907.

-- Freelance writer Mark Fogarty contributed to this report.

Write a love letter about the house. Add favorable clauses to the contract. Forego any contingencies. These are often cited as tactics that can help you triumph in a bidding war. But there are other ways to seal the deal.

Admittedly, some of these maneuvers are long shots. But nothing ventured, nothing gained. So consider these steps:

-- Have your agent contact the seller’s agent to determine what points might help your offer rise to the top of the pile. The seller might want a quick close, for example, or maybe he’ll want to delay closing until his new place is ready. The idea is to find out what’s most important to the seller and give it to him.

-- In places where houses are selling fast, appraisals often lag behind the market, meaning there’s a good chance the valuation won’t be as high as your offer. So consider adding a stipulation that you’ll make up the difference if the appraisal falls short. That way, the seller knows that you won’t expect him to lower his selling price.

-- A good agent will insist on presenting her client’s offer to the seller in person. That way, she can plead your case and ask questions. She should then call you on the spot, work out any details, and not leave the property without a deal.

-- To impress upon the sellers that this is an urgent matter to you, require them to respond to your offer within a set time period: maybe 12 hours, but no longer than 24. If you get no answer, this clause says your offer becomes null and void. Calling for urgency shows your ability to move forward with the sale as quickly as the sellers want.

-- Cash is always king. A deal where there is no financing involved is far less likely to fall through than one in which the buyer needs a loan. So consider paying for the house out of your own pocket at settlement and then arranging for financing afterwards. Fannie Mae has a program for cash buyers who want to finance their purchases within six months after closing.

-- If you insist on a home inspection -- as you should -- offer a “due diligence” fee. This is essentially a fee paid to the seller to reserve the right to have the house examined for major defects. If you decide not to proceed after the inspection, you forfeit the fee; if you close, it’s credited to your side of the ledger.

-- An independent home inspection keeps you from essentially buying a pig in a poke. But if you are desperate, you can make the inspection for informational purposes only. That way, you’ll know what you are getting into -- the house needs a new roof, for example, or the air conditioning is on its last legs -- and the seller knows you won’t demand fixes for those problems.

-- Offer to pay some, or even all, of the seller’s closing costs. Pay for the appraisal, for example, or the homeowners’ association’s transfer charges. If you offer to take some or all of the settlement fees off their shoulders, it might seal the deal.

-- Attach an estimated HUD-1 closing cost statement so the sellers can see what their net will be if they accept your offer. Most sellers tend to expect to see a higher figure on the bottom line; if you show them what’s being paid and how the money is being allocated, there shouldn’t be any surprises.

-- Have your agent research the seller’s agent to ascertain if they have a friend or colleague in common. If so, perhaps that friend can reach out to the seller’s agent and vouch that your agent is a professional who’s easy to work with.

-- Submit a clean, understandable offer with all the blanks filled in. All of them. If something is missing, or if the seller doesn’t know what you mean by “leave some of the furniture,” your offer will go right to the bottom of the pile. This is your agent’s job, but you should double-check.

-- Your agent should cover your offer with a one-page letter spelling out, one by one, the salient points of your bid. That way, the seller won’t have to scroll through all 18 pages of your contract looking for all the key points.

-- If you really, really like the place, don’t give up, even if your offer is not the winning bid. Ask that your offer be accepted as a backup. That way, if the winning offer should fall through -- it happens more than you’d think -- instead of going back on the market, the property falls to you. No guarantee, but it sometimes works.

-- Another long-shot tactic: If you are having no luck at winning the bidding wars, ask your agent to research expired listings: houses that haven’t sold and have been taken off the market. If he finds one that fits your requirements, and you like it, he can approach the owner to see if she is still interested in selling. If so, maybe you can strike a deal without having to compete with other wannabe buyers.