Did you know that nearly all home sellers work with a real estate agent when it’s time to sell their home? While this is standard practice, real estate agents can really cut into your profits from your home sale due to their commission rate. Additionally, selling your home on the open market can be a lengthy and complicated process.
If you’re interested in selling a house fast, one option you’ll want to look into is selling to an all-cash buyer.
The financing process is largely what makes it take so long to sell a house. When you sell to a buyer who is making the purchase in cash, the home selling timeline can be reduced significantly.
Just how fast can you sell a house for cash? Let’s take a look at everything you need to know.
What Is an All-Cash Offer?
Oftentimes, homebuyers will use financing to help pay for their new property. However, other times, they will have the cash to purchase the home outright without relying on a lender. This is known as an all-cash deal.
In order to close on the purchase of a home in an all-cash deal, the funds need to be transferred with a cashier’s check or electronically.
There are usually two different kinds of buyers that will make all-cash offers. The first is individual buyers who are planning on living in the home as their residence. The second is real estate investors.
(Check out the reasons why you might want to accept a cash offer on your home here.)
Selling a House Fast: How Long Does It Take to Sell a House For Cash?
Once your home is under contract, you could have the closing for your home in as little as two weeks. When a lender isn’t involved, the amount of time it takes to get to the closing is much shorter. You simply need enough time to get paperwork in order and let the escrow and title companies clear any liens and provide insurance.
On the other hand, if you are going to sell a house to a buyer who is using financing, the process is much longer. It will usually take at least 30 days, if not 45 or 60. Plus, that’s assuming that nothing goes wrong during the financing process and delays don’t occur.
As you can see, it’s a lot faster to sell a house for cash than to a buyer who is using financing. However, there are also additional benefits to selling your house for cash that make the sale process go a lot faster.
For one, cash buyers are often interested in buying your house “as-is.” That doesn’t just mean that you don’t have to do any repairs or upgrades before selling your home. It also means that you can save time and money on cleaning, decluttering, and staging.
Most people put quite a bit of time and money into getting their homes ready for the market. When you sell to a cash buyer, you can save all of that hassle.
On top of that, you can get a cash offer for your home nearly instantaneously. When you sell your home on the open market, however, you have no control over how long it takes to get an attractive offer. Maybe you will luck out and you will get several offers in the first week of listing, but on the other hand, your house could sit on the market for months or even years before getting an offer you are happy with.
Selling a House for Cash: The Process
What exactly does the process look like if you sell your house to a cash buyer? Let’s take a look at the different steps involved.
It’s worth understanding that how involved you need to be in many of these steps has to do with who your buyer is. If you are selling your home to a reputable “we buy houses” company, you will likely find the process hardly demands anything of you at all. If you’re selling to an individual or an individual investor, though, you might find the process is more hands-on.
Sign the Contract
When you have received an offer that you are happy with, the first step is to accept the offer and complete a document known as a Purchase and Sale Agreement. This is often referred to as “going under contract.”
Verify Proof of Funds
It’s important to make sure that your buyer actually has the money available in order to purchase your property in cash. It is common for sellers to ask for earnest money upfront which usually amounts to 1 or 2 percent of the sales price. The sellers will also request proof of funds in the form of investment statements or bank statements.
Hire Escrow and Title Companies
Depending on which state you live in, choosing the title and escrow companies can either be the responsibility of the buyer or the seller. Title companies ensure that there are no property liens and the property lines are drawn correctly. They also make sure that ownership of the property properly changes hands on closing day on top of issuing title insurance.
The escrow company helps to facilitate the transfer of funds, manages all closing documents, and completes all the necessary legal paperwork. Sometimes both the title and escrow tasks are handled by the same company.
Pass the Inspection
Inspection contingencies are common when buyers submit an offer. This is an addendum that says that they will have the option to renegotiate or request repairs after they have paid to get the home inspected.
Review and Sign Closing Documents
Even when you are dealing entirely in cash, there are a lot of documents that need to be signed when you’re closing on a house. Some of the documents you can expect to review and sign include:
- Final closing instructions
- HUD-1 settlement statement
- Certificate of title
- Loan payoff statement
- Title deed
- Mechanics liens
- Statement of closing costs
- Bill of sale
- Statement of information
Dealing with all of this paperwork might seem like a lot, but it’s essential for ensuring that the property transfer is complete and above board.
Tips About Selling a House Fast
If you are set on listing your house on the traditional market, there are a few things you can do to help ensure that your house sells as fast as possible. Let’s take a look at some advice about fast house sales to make sure your home doesn’t linger on the market for too long.
Clean and Declutter
If you’re going to be listing your home on the open market, you’re definitely going to want to clean and declutter before taking your real estate photos. On top of that, you’ll need to keep your home clean and decluttered during the showing process.
If you only have a short amount of time to get your home ready for listing, cleaning and decluttering are the tasks you won’t want to skip.
If you have a lot of belongings and your home is cluttered, it’s likely a good idea to get a storage unit so that you can pack away any large furnishings or extra stuff that is making your home look small and messy.
It’s also a good idea to organize the closets. When you’re cleaning your home for listing, you might be tempted to throw all of your extra stuff in the closets. However, homebuyers are often looking to see how much storage is in the home, and it will make your house seem like it doesn’t have enough storage if they are crammed full of your belongings.
Real estate experts also recommend that you pack away personal belongings such as religious items, keepsakes, and family photos. These can be a distraction to buyers. Buyers are trying to picture themselves living in your home, and this can be difficult if your home is filled with personal objects.
Pick the Right Price
Another important tip if you’re trying to sell your house fast is to make sure you price it right. Pricing a home can be a difficult task indeed. You don’t want to price it too high so that it scares away potential buyers, but you also don’t want to price it too low and leave money on the table.
In some areas, it can be an effective strategy to price your home a little low to help drum up interest. This could even result in a bidding war. However, this doesn’t work in all markets so it’s worth doing the research before settling on this tactic.
(Are you wondering if you should sell your home without a realtor? If so, check out this article.)
Take Care of Quick Repairs
If you’re going to be listing your home on the market, it’s a good idea to take care of quick repairs. You might not have time to deal with major renovations, but there are likely a number of quick fixes that could help remove obstacles for potential buyers.
This might include fixing loose tiles, tightening leaky faucets, patching up the paint job, or repairing loose door handles.
You might also find it’s worth investing in a few minor upgrades. Things like applying a fresh coat of interior paint or purchasing newer appliances can make your home show better. Other common upgrades of this level include updating old light fixtures and installing new hardware on your home’s cabinets.
Stage Your Home
It is absolutely essential to make a good first impression when you are selling your house on the traditional market. If you opt to sell to a cash buyer, though, you won’t have to worry about this tedious step.
Some sellers choose to hire a professional stager to help highlight their home’s best features.
Boost Your Curb Appeal
The curb appeal of your home has to do with how welcoming, inviting, and appealing your home is from the street. By focusing on boosting your curb appeal, you can make sure that potential buyers get a good first impression of your home as soon as they pull into the driveway.
Invest in Professional Photography
Nearly everyone looks at real estate listings online first when they are thinking about buying a home. Since humans are visual creatures, the pictures are incredibly important in terms of whether or not someone decides to schedule a showing. This means that it’s worth hiring a professional who can take pro photos of your home to drum up the most interest.
Write an Inticing Listing Description
A well-written listing description can also help your house sell faster. This is a great way to tell buyers why your home and location are desirable.
Be Flexible With Showings
When you choose to list your home on the open market, you are signing up to potentially show your home a lot. Between open houses and private showings, you might find that this seriously disrupts your daily life. However, if you choose to go this route and you’re motivated to sell your home fast then you’re going to want to be as accommodating as possible when it comes to showing requests.
Keeping your house in perfect order in case of last-minute showings can be incredibly stressful. When you sell your home to a cash buyer, you don’t have to deal with this disruption to your life.
How Much Cash Can You Get for Your Home?
Selling a house fast is possible, but it’s not easy to do when the buyer is getting financing from a lender. For a truly fast sale, you’re going to want to find a cash buyer.
If you’re trying to sell your house fast in North Carolina, you can get a free fast cash offer from Smith Liquidations today. When you sell your home to us, you won’t have to make any repairs or deal with a real estate agent commission. You also won’t have to deal with a number of the costs associated with selling a home, including the closing costs.
Wondering how much cash you can get for your home? Find out for free today!