Over the course of the past 5 years ‘quick house sale’ companies have grown massively on the internet, and without any form of regulation this has brought with it a number of unscrupulous companies trying to take advantage of home sellers in desperate situations. However, are all quick sale firms bad? Or do they provide a service that is required in today’s property market? We have examined below the current state of play in the world of ‘sell house fast’ companies.
First and foremost it needs to be firmly understood that there is a key difference between a company that is offering to sell your house quickly and a company that is able to buy your home for cash. A genuine cash buying firm can complete on a sale in around 10 days, whereby a quick sale company could be either of the following:-
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An estate agent. A number of companies on the internet offering to sell your property quickly are in fact no more than estate agencies. If you type in the most popular search engine “sell my house fast” the chances are that the top few companies that appear are in fact just estate agents. They can’t do anything more than what a traditional estate agent could do. Therefore they can’t really provide or guarantee a quick sale! Unless they have buyers lined up ready to purchase property in your area, in your price range and not relying on mortgages; companies claiming to offer quick sales whom are in fact estate agents should be clearly stating this to potential customers.
A quick sale company relying on investors. If a ‘fast sale’ firm is heavily relying on investors purchasing property that they have, they again can’t really guarantee a quick sale. The simple fact is they first have to source an investor whom is looking for property in your particular postcode, secondly is looking for property within your price range and finally an investor who likes your property. These particulars are difficult to find at the best of times, with property investors being in short supply. To make matters worse, any investor that is interested in purchasing your home is probably relying on a mortgage, which will take time to approve – followed by at least 40 days waiting time for valuations, legals and all of the usual circumstances that follow with a traditional house sale.
An auction house. Some of the companies advertising online to offer a quick sale are in fact auctions houses. These types of sale are great for a 40 – 60 day sale, and if you can afford to wait that long it might be an avenue worth exploring. Vendors need to be aware that most auction houses will expect you to pay a large commission if they find you a buyer. Which brings us to the next point, ‘if’ they find a buyer. Auction houses can’t and shouldn’t promise vendors a quick sale. The simple fact is they don’t know who is going to turn up on the day, they don’t know if there will be interest in your home, and they can’t promise a sale.
The only sure-fire guaranteed way to sell your home quickly is to a cash buyer. Now you could go and source a cash buyer of your own on the open market, however, this is often easier said than done. Cash buyers in today’s market are few and far between and using a quick sale cash buying firm is probably your only option if you want a guaranteed quick sale. Not every company advertising online is a scam, and some firms actually do have the funds to purchase quickly for cash.
If you are seeking a genuine firm that can purchase your property for cash make sure of the following; they have the funds available to purchase and can send you proof of this, they don’t expect you to sign into lengthy estate agency contracts and that they don’t try to charge you any fees.