[Carol]

I’ve been getting a lot of postcards and letters lately from companies saying things like, “We’ll buy your house for cash!” or “Sell your home as-is — no fees, no agents.” They make it sound quick and easy, but I’m not sure how legit any of these offers are.

I’m curious if anyone here has actually worked with one of these companies — either selling your house to them, or at least going through the process far enough to get an offer.

Did they give you a fair price? Were there any hidden fees or unexpected issues? Did they really close quickly and pay in cash like they claimed? Or was it more of a bait-and-switch?

I’m not necessarily looking to sell, but I’m trying to understand if these companies are worth considering if the time comes — or if I should just toss those postcards straight in the trash.

Any insight or personal experiences would be appreciated!

[Linda]

They are mostly likely legit but just know that you are going to get a low offer so it depends on what your goal is. If you want no hassle and a quick turn around, it can be an option.

If you want top dollar, it might not be the way to go. No matter what you do, interview at least 3 local realtors to get a market analysis on potential home prices so you have more information.

It also depends on what is happening in your local area.

Is it a hot market or slow?

[Chris]

If you go with one of these investors, obviously they want to turn a profit that is meaningful enough to buy the house, fix it up, and usually sell it.

Two types of clients that work well with investors are 1) those who want to sell quickly and easily, and 2) those who are selling a house with significant problems and needs major repairs.

In both cases, getting a great price cannot be the primary motivating factor to sell the house since the investor needs a reasonable return on the investment.

You asked where you can find some of these investors. I have found them through local investor groups that meet regularly.

Some real estate agents also have a network of investors they work with.

[Gran]

I am a realtor and I sometimes send those postcards for investor clients. So yes, they are legit.

I would deal directly with a local realtor or investor versus a company, and ask for comps to see what your home is worth compared to others.

[Rob]

I’ve done about 350 of these transactions. 9 out of 10 are “whoesalers”.
So, they offer you 100k, they sell it for 105,110,120k and make the difference.

They never take ownership.

It’s a fee at closing that gets wired to them.

I have no problem with it done ethically. They spend money on marketing, time, effort, and provide the home owner a solution not offered traditionally. They make a “middle man fee”.

Usually, an investor is the end buyer, and you never meet them. The investor is too busy doing rehabs etc to go make 100 offers to get one deal.

Honestly, I’d say more than 9/10 are wholesalers.

Yes, it’s legit, but don’t trust them until you have POST INSPECTION HARD EARNEST MONEY AT TITLE. Until that, they are probably operating unethically and tying up your property looking for an end buyer.

If they are legit they should just tell you. “I’m not sure I can get that price, give me a couple days.”

They eliminate tons of headaches, showings, appraisals, the whole gamut.

And you get less than full price.

[Bacon]

I wasn’t impressed.
I got a bunch of solicitations for people wanting to buy my father’s house when I was appointed as his estate executor.

It sounded and felt very hustle-ish and used car sales-y.

With language like, “we know how hard it is to get a house ready for the market after someone dies”, “no closing”, “top offers paid”, “no broker commission “, etc.

I thought they were trying to buy at way, way below market value. Trying to pretend that I didn’t know that one can do an “as is” sale with a real estate agent.

In PA, it’s a public thing when someone is appointed to executor of an estate. So, the vultures come out of the woodwork.

No thanks.. go steal someone else’s family’s house.

[Liz]

After my father died and I opened probate in order to dispose of his home, the investors came out of the woodwork.

They were all offering about 40% less than the appraised value of the home.

So, unless you’re in a hurry or really strapped for some quick cash, it’s just not worth it, in my opinion.

[Nick]

Since I’m in that space, I’ll tell you that yes, they’re legit. Now, thing is, if I’m in your shoes, knowing what I know, personally, I’d go with someone who is a local investor.

You might run into those who will say I’m an investor in your area looking to buy houses, but they may or may not be in the same city per se.

But if you get a note or paper plate on your door, I’d go with that one. Why?

That deal that they get with you will be a hell of a lot more meaningful to them than you selling to a bigger company which may still be an LLC or could be a hedge fund who buys houses in packages of say 10.

The biggest suggestion I would give you is if you do get with a local investor, understand that based on the condition of the property and what other houses are selling for in your specific sub division will determine the price that the investor will make an offer for.

The upside with the investor is speed and convenience. Close in 30 days and be done.

Avoids realtor commissions and some investors will pay closing costs as well. Couple this with the idea that 70% of realtors nationwide from NAR themselves didn’t sell a single house last year.

That means that if you sign a listing agreement with a realtor, you’re signing up for 70% of the time -WASTING YOUR TIME – of course it’s local market dependent AND agent dependent but you’re signing up to have your house held hostage by a realtor or 2 or how many ever for 6 months.

With this option, if your house is market ready, you’re likely to get the most money as an investor buys properties on a discount cash offer as a trade off for convenience.

Just because a realtor has a license and lipstick or a suit doesn’t always mean they know what they’re doing or that they’re the best option.

They’re typically just the go to option as that’s the only option that many people know. Lastly, if you still owe money on your property, you can still work with an investor.

An investor can take over the payments for you, they should use a servicing company to do the monthly transactions, but the mortgage will still stay in your name.

Yes, it’s perfectly legal, and many agents do not understand how subject to works or they have some idea from their broker that its supposedly illegal from their broker, so they don’t tell their clients about it.

If you want more info, feel free to reach out and I’d be glad to help.

[Author]

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