July 2019 - Hometown Development

If you’re considering selling your home for cash, you might be wondering what to expect. While there are a lot of resources out there for hiring a realtor and selling a home traditionally, there doesn’t seem to be quite as much information about selling a home for cash.

It’s important to know that selling your home for cash is a legitimate option that makes a lot of sense for many homeowners. If you’ve recently inherited a home, are in danger of foreclosure, or are just looking for a hassle-free way to sell that can help you move on quickly, a cash sale is a great option.

But what exactly does a cash home sale look like, and what can you expect when you sell your house for cash?

We’ve put together this complete step-by-step guide to selling your home for cash to answer those questions for you. Here’s what you can expect from the cash sale process:

Step 1: Putting Your Home Up For Sale

Since you’re not using a realtor, you might wonder how you announce that your home is for sale. You’re probably also wondering what you have to do to get the home ready for buyers to look at.

First, know that most cash home sales are done “as-is”. That means that the buyer is agreeing to purchase the home exactly as it is, with no repairs, clean up, or maintenance done on your part.

Second, there are two ways you can put your home up for sale:

List it Yourself

If you’re looking to sell your home for cash, without a realtor, you can list your home yourself on popular real estate sites like Trulia and Zillow. You might also consider putting up for sale signs in your yard, around your community, and even taking ads out in Craigslist, local newspapers, etc. If you go this route, make sure that you’re taking high-quality photos of your home in plenty of natural light, and that you write a catchy description of your home. People love information, so the more you give them, and the better your photos, the more interest you’re likely to see.

Contact a Local Real Estate Investor

If you’re hoping to sell your home quickly, and for cash, it’s probably best to contact a local real estate investment company directly. There are a lot of companies out there making cash offers for homes, though, so it’s important to do a little research about those real estate investors before you reach out. More about choosing the right buyer next:

Step 2: Finding A Buyer You Trust

If you’ve listed your home online for an attractive price, you’re probably going to see a lot of interest from real estate investors and homeowners or “flippers” interested in your property. All of that interest is great, but you want to make sure you’re choosing a buyer you can trust to deliver on the cash offer they’re making.

This is why we typically advise homeowners to go with a local real estate investment company that has a history and a great reputation in your community.

There are plenty of people out there who aren’t doing legitimate business, and some of the bigger national real estate investment companies don’t have actual agents on the ground to offer a quality assessment of your home. By choosing a local real estate investment company, you’ll be working with a team who knows your area well, and who has both your interests and the interests of your community at heart.

Step 3: Home Visit

If you’ve had a lot of buyers interested in your home, you’ll likely have a number of home visits. This is an opportunity for the buyers to assess your home, but it’s also an opportunity for you to assess the buyers.

Pay close attention, because this home visit can tell you a lot about the company or the people you’re considering selling to. You want the representatives who visit your home to be respectful and professional. If they’re not, you might consider another prospective buyer.

It’s also good to know that you don’t need to do much in preparation for your home visit. You might consider tidying up a little if you’re living in the home, but you don’t need to make repairs or add on a fresh coat of paint. The benefit of making a cash sale is that it’s minimal hassle for you.

Step 4: Receive an Offer

Once your prospective buyers have had a chance to look at your home, they’ll make an offer. If you’re working with a quality home buyer, they’ll make an offer based on the fair market value of your home. If you’re not sure about the offer you’ve been given, ask the buyer about it.

Any buyer that you can trust will talk about the size of your house, its features (how many bedrooms and bathrooms, one vs. two-car garage, etc.) and its condition in comparison with other similar properties in your area. If you’re feeling uncomfortable with how your prospective buyer answers the question, don’t be afraid to do a little research yourself. Is their company legitimate? Do they have any reviews or testimonials online?

Step 5: Close

With an offer in hand, all you have to do is accept, and the closing process can begin. This is another key benefit of selling your home for cash — the closing process can be completed in as little as 5 days.

While your actual time to close is dependent on your unique situation, closing a cash sale is always faster than a sale where lenders are involved. And if you’re selling the home as-is, you don’t have to wait for inspections, inspection reports, or any repairs. You simply accept the best offer and close.

Step 6: Move On!

Now that your home cash sale has closed, you’re free to move on.

How quickly you move on is between you and your buyer, but typically cash buyers are very flexible. Here at Hometown Development, we often work with homeowners to help them move on as quickly as possible. That means we don’t require you to spend a lot of time cleaning or fixing anything up — simply take what you want, and leave the rest!

We hope this step-by-step guide helps take some of the anxiety out of selling your home for cash. While it’s not talked about as often as a traditional sale with a realtor, selling your home for cash has a lot of benefits for homeowners, and is a legitimate way to move on from a home, especially if you don’t have the time, money, or interest in making a lot of repairs or going through the traditional open house and showing process.

If selling your home for cash is the best option for you, Hometown Development can help. We offer a quick closing process — as little as five days — and we offer cash for West Michigan homes in any condition. Give us a call at 616-379-3090 or contact us online today.

Selling a home can be a long, stressful process. From hiring a realtor and finding a buyer to making sure that the sale is going to close properly, many components go into a traditional home sale, and most of them take time.

What many people don’t know, or tend to forget, is that there is an alternative to selling a home on the traditional market. You also have the option to sell your house as-is. Though it’s not the right move for everyone, an as-is sale can offer several benefits for homeowners. Here are a few reasons you might consider selling your home as-is:

Your Home Needs Serious Repairs

If your home needs significant repairs and is facing troublesome issues like a cracked foundation, faulty plumbing or electrical wiring, or more, an as-is sale could be in your best interest. In most cases, before putting your home on the traditional market, you’d be required to make some (if not all) of the necessary repairs, before you could see interest from a traditional home buyer. That’s a lot of money out of your pocket before you see any return, and it’s not guaranteed.

An as-is sale means that you’re selling your home in the exact condition it’s already in. While you will have to disclose the current issues with your home and you’ll have a lower asking price, you won’t pay any money out of pocket to make the sale.

Your Home Is At Risk of Foreclosure

Foreclosure can be frightening. It may feel like the state and ownership of your home is out of your hands. It’s good to know that you do own your home until the county officially forecloses on the property, which means you have options until then. An as-is sale can help you get out from under that home quickly, and without much additional expense to you.

Since you’re selling as-is, where many buyers make cash offers, you’re also often able to close more quickly. In a cash sale, you don’t need to wait for lender approval, or for much legal documentation to process through. That can shorten the home selling process to just days, instead of months.

You’re Working Through a Difficult Divorce

When you’re going through a divorce, it’s often difficult to stay on top of major expenses. Both parties have legal fees and attorney retainers to worry about, and it can be hard to determine who is responsible for the mortgage payments while your lawyers are sorting out your assets.

Whether one party owns the home or it is jointly owned, an as-is sale is a great way to help move some of your concerns and responsibilities off of your plate while you focus on yourself and the divorce process. Since you don’t need to do repairs or clean, an as-is sale is much less hassle, and since it can be done quickly through a cash offer, it doesn’t take much work on your end.

You Don’t Have the Time or Money to Hire a Realtor

Realtors are an expensive and time-consuming part of the home sale process. While they certainly offer benefits, if you’re trying to sell a home quickly, or you’re on a tight budget, a realtor may not make sense for you.

What’s more, when you list a home traditionally, with a realtor, they’ll want you to clear out your space, hire cleaners, and possibly even do cosmetic touch-ups like painting or staging the home. While these efforts can go a long way to get you the best price, if you’re already on a tight budget, a realtor may cost more than they’re worth for you.

When you opt for an as-is sale, your buyers are looking at the home with the understanding that what they see is what they’ll get. There’s no need to make repairs, and many as-is buyers will even offer to clean out whatever you don’t want from the home, helping you save both time and money.

You Need to Move On Quickly

If you’ve inherited a home you’re not sure you can afford, you’re moving away for a new job, or you just need to move quickly, an as-is sale is likely your best bet. Like we mentioned above, as-is sales are often completed in cash. They also typically don’t require inspections, because the buyer isn’t going through a lender to purchase the home.

All of these benefits can add up to more money in your pocket in a short period of time. You don’t need to make repairs, clean up, wait for a lender’s approval, or wait for the inspector’s report to come back. You simply list your home, accept an offer, and move on to wherever you’re headed next.
As-is sales aren’t talked about as often as traditional sales, but they are a beneficial, cost-effective way to sell a home for many homeowners. If you think an as-is home sale might be right for you, Hometown Development would love to help. We purchase properties in any condition, for cash. Give us a call at 616-379-3090 or contact us online today for your free, no-obligation offer.

Month: July 2019

Step-By-Step Guide to Selling Your Home for Cash