Trying to sell your home fast, for cash in the Dallas TX area?
If you’re trying to sell your home as quickly as possible in the Dallas / Fort Worth area, you’re not alone. This guide will help you learn what your options are for selling fast, and questions to ask to find a reputable home buying option for your situation. In it, we’ll talk about why you might be looking to sell your Dallas house fast; what your options are; and how you can find good home buying companies if that’s a route you decide to go. It’s reported that the Dallas real estate market is headed for a slowdown as of the time this article is written, but these options still remain tried and true.
A few reasons why you might be trying to sell your Dallas-based house as fast as possible.
There are an endless number of reasons why you may be trying to sell your home as quickly as possible. Here are just a few:
You’re facing foreclosure: this is a large reason for many homeowners looking for creative ways to get out from under their home and sell as quickly as possible. And it makes complete sense! After all, if you’re about to enter foreclosure proceedings, but a quick cash sale would satisfy the bank and preserve your credit, then a home buying company might make good sense for you. They won’t be able to pay you full value of your home (more on this below) but they may be able to help you walk away with a better solution. If you are in a foreclosure-type situation, we’re truly sorry for the stress you’re probably under and hope this article sheds some light on your options.
You just inherited a house (and just want it sold): this is another common reason for people looking for a fast sale solution. Let’s say you just inherited a home from a relative, but it’s in a different state or city, and it needs a lot of work. If you wanted to list it on the market, you’d probably have to get involved managing some level of the updating/home improvement process, and be involved in the showing process and communicating with the realtor. Some homeowners just don’t want that, and rather than fighting over the responsibility with siblings, find it easier just to find an immediate buyer who will take the home in the exact condition it’s in (even if that means a reduced purchase price) so they can get paid in cash, and get it off their hands.
You just got a new job (congrats!): maybe you just landed an awesome new job, but it’s going to force you to relocate. The problem is, you need your house sold ASAP, and you don’t want to have to go back and forth with a realtor while you’re in a new home, or new area, and working this new job. In that case, you may be looking to see what someone would be willing to walk in and offer.
You’re going through a divorce or dividing things up: divorce is really painful, and we’re very sorry if that’s the situation you find yourself in. When it comes to dividing up your home, some couples opt for a faster, easier solution like finding a direct buyer for the home who can help them just be done with it.
You’re behind on payments or don’t have the ability to make repairs. The bills are beginning to stack up, and you find yourself unable to keep paying your monthly mortgage, or property taxes. As time goes on, you’ll continue to get into a tough situation and owe more and more. And what’s more you may not have the resources, time, or desire to make the improvements your home would need to do well on the market. If it’s falling apart, and you don’t have the ability to fix it, it’s going to be hard to find a buyer.
So there you have it – a few common reasons why people find themselves looking to sell as quickly as possible. So if that’s you, the question is, what are your options?
You have 3 main options when it comes to selling your Dallas house.
- Realtor: they’ll help you list your house on the Dallas market, show your house to prospective buyers, negotiate for you, and help you note any home improvements you’ll need to make.
- Sell it yourself: you could try to sell your home yourself. Maybe put up signs in the front yard, advertise it online, put up flyers at local coffee shops throughout the city, etc. This is typically a lot of work, and for most people it’s not recommended.
- Sell it to a home buying company: the idea here is selling to a real estate investment company located in the Dallas area, who buys homes in cash. You’d basically sell directly to them, and get paid by them.
When it comes to selling with a realtor, we’ll talk about that in a minute. When it comes to selling yourself, there are a few advantages:
The first one might be a bit obvious, but… there are no commissions. Real estate agents can charge 6%+ upon the sale of your home, even if you end up selling the home yourself. This is in addition, to the agent fees, administrative fees, marketing fees, photography costs, etc, etc. When you sell your home directly, you will save yourself THOUSANDS.
Sure you will have to do the work of advertising and showing your home, but when you are moving into a new house, having that additional cash can save you a ton of stress! There are always additional costs when you are moving, that’s just life. And keeping some hard earned money in your pocket will make everything go smoother.
Also, you run the show. You don’t want showings this Saturday? Ok, don’t schedule any. When you are working with an agent, often times they will be the one calling the shots. Of course, you are ultimately the owner, but if you hire an agent to sell your home, (hopefully) they will do their job and bring lots of people to see it.
This means weekend showings where you will be asked to leave, evening showings, etc. All of these can occur at the drop of a hat, so you will have to keep your home in tip-top shape while it is on the market.
You can also have your terms, your way: an agent will always be looking at what they can make off the sale of your home. This means they may stand firm on the price in situations where you might be open to negotiation. Even if you are eager to sell, an agent is always going to be trying to make as much as possible. Will they really have your best interest at heart when so much money is laying on the table?
In addition, you can decide all of the dates. When the new homeowners can move in, when you have to be out, when you close, etc.. You can set the terms as to what you will fix, what you won’t, and how much you are willing to spend to fix things. When you choose to sell on your own, you call the shots when it comes to the contract, without any influence from an agent who may only have their best interest in mind. As they always say in real estate, “cash is king.” If you are able to find a cash buyer for your home, you will save ample time and money. Closings typically take only a couple weeks as opposed to a couple of months when you work with a bank. Plus you won’t be waiting for your buyer to secure financing. A cash buyer will pay directly, without any red-tape from the banks. These deals rarely fall through and you end up saving a fortune on repairs, staging, and other sales related expenses.
Selling your home yourself will save you time which equates to money saved. Think about all the extra cash you will save on taxes, utilities, insurance and the mortgage by selling your home faster! While a cash offer might be lower than what you would list it for, many times you end up with more money in the long run after all of the fees, commissions and other costs are taken out. Not to mention the stress and headaches of having your home on the market. (imagine people driving by constantly some even peeking in your windows! It happens!)
So when it comes to selling your house yourself: you can either do it completely by yourself, or “sell it yourself” – but through a company that has the legal structure in place, contracts, etc. and is able to work with the bank on your behalf, which we listed here as #3 – selling to a cash home buyer.
Now, there may be a few other creative options out there for you, but these tend to be the 3 main options homeowners have. So the question is, if you decide not to sell it yourself (as in, all by yourself without any other companies involved) should work with a cash home buyer or sell through a realtor?
Should you sell to cash home buyers, or work with a realtor? A guide…
OK, so now comes the question:
Should you sell your home directly to a Dallas-based real estate investor (or, cash home buyer), or just work with a real estate agent who will help you get listed?
The answer is: it really just depends. The truth is, it really depends on your unique situation. So here are a few guides to help you:
Pros of working with a realtor:
- You’ll (usually) earn more money on the sale of your home. This depends of course on your house’s value and the current real estate market in Texas and the Dallas/Fort-Worth area, but in general, realtors are going to help you earn the most money if the condition of your home.
- They’ll show your home for you.
- They’ll negotiate for you.
Cons of working with a realtor:
- They take commissions and fees. Again, you still will likely coming out earning more than you could other ways, but just make sure that you factor in the percentages they take out from you that will come out at closing time.
- It can take a long time to sell your home. This is the major problem for homeowners whose biggest goal is to sell in a month (or sooner). While technically a really good Dallas-based agent could help you sell much sooner, the average is longer than that. Zillow reports that in 2010, it was 140 days, while in the 2018 market, it’s more like 47. That’s assuming your house isn’t falling apart or really ugly though, and so your situation could be sooner, or faster. It just depends.
- You’ve got to keep making monthly payments and maintaining your home while you wait for it to sell. In other words, you’ve got to keep it clean, be ready to leave so people can walk through, etc.
Pros of working with a Dallas “cash for homes” company:
- You can (usually) sell your house in as fast as 30 days. In fact, some companies are able to buy your house from you in 10 days, if the conditions are right and your market doesn’t prohibit it.
- There are (usually) no commissions or fees to factor in. You just get an offer number and then get paid when you close.
- You can sell your home totally as-is. Most companies will let you leave behind anything you don’t want to take, and they’ll take care of the rest. It doesn’t matter how ugly, how bad of shape it’s in, or what junk you leave behind, they’ll probably end up flipping it and then trying to sell it themselves.
- They’ll take care of closing costs and bank paperwork (if they’re reputable and good).
Cons of working with a Dallas cash buying company:
- You won’t earn as much as you could (in most cases anyway) with a realtor. You’re basically trading a faster sale, cash payment, and the ease of selling (as-is, no repairs, etc.) for some of the value of your home.
- You have to make sure you find a reputable company. While there are a lot of good ones out there, there are also a lot of bad ones that won’t pay fair offers, aren’t transparent, charge fees, or just don’t have your best interest in mind.
So which should you choose?
Well, again, it really comes down to your situation and goals. But we’ll take a stab at offering up some more actionable, practical advice:
If earning the most money possible is your greatest goal, then work with a realtor. In other words, if waiting a little longer won’t kill you, and if you have the ability to keep making payments on your home while you wait for it to sell, and you have the ability to make any updates that are requested of your home, then working with a realtor will probably be your best bet.
If selling your house as quickly as possible to get out of a tough situation is your greatest goal, then get an offer from a cash home buyer. There are lots of buyers in Dallas (and we’re one you can contact too!), so if speed is your greatest goal, and you’re willing to trade in some of the value of your home for a faster cash sale where you don’t have to do anything, then you might want to consider working with a real estate investor.
With realtor, the concern is – can they help me in my situation? And in the case of a home buying company, “can they get me a fair price of what I feel my home is actually worth”? In the end, you have to do what’s right for you.
Now, if you decide that an investor is a right step for you, the next question is – how can you make sure you don’t get scammed? In other words, of all the cash for homes companies here in Dallas, how can you make sure you find a solid, Texas-based buyer that will do right by you?
Tips to help you find an ethical cash home buying company.
So, if you’ve decided that selling your home directly to a Dallas-based real estate investor is the right decision for you, it’s important that you find an ethical one. It’s no secret that cash for homes or “we buy houses” companies get a bad reputation in the industry, and sometimes for good reason.
Here are a few red flags of a bad investor or cash home buying company:
- They ask for fees up-front. No reputable investor should require you to pay them anything up-front. They’re supposed to be buying from you, not the other way around.
- They change up the offer number on you.
- They won’t show you how they’re getting their offer amount.
- They don’t have any reviews or testimonials.
- They get consistently bad ratings.
- Their offer is much lower than competitors.
- They’re pushy or aggressive, and make you feel obligated to take their offer.
Here are some tips to help you identify a good investor:
- Look to see if they have reviews. If not, ask them if they can give referrals from past clients. A good investor shouldn’t be afraid of what past clients have said, if they’ve served them well.
- Ask if they can explain to you their offer number, and be transparent with pricing. Lots of ethical investors will be happy to show you the current market value, the repairs they’ll need to make on your home, the profit they need to earn, etc. and how they’re arriving at the number they are. If they can’t show you – they may be hiding something.
- See how they talk to you, and if they care about you. Some cash for homes companies in Dallas just see you as number, and it may reflect that way.
- See if they help identify the right solution for your unique situation. They should ask questions, see what your goals are, and then talk about if they can help. A really good and confident home buying company would be willing to tell you if a realtor would be a better fit for you.
- Ask them if they ever change their offer number up. Most reputable investors will pay what they say they will, the only exception being if something major changes on their end, but even then, they should be up-front about that with you.
- Are they involved in their community? See if they’re really local, or just a national chain based in another state.
- See if they’ll come out and meet with you, or just take the time to talk to you answer questions.
- They should give you space to decide on their offer.
Interested in an cash for homes company? We’ll make an offer in 24 hours.
If you’ve made it this far, we hope this article helped you identify a potential solution for selling your home fast in the Dallas / Fort-Worth area. If you’re looking for an honest, local, family-owned investor with loads of happy clients who really cares about you – that’s us, Homes Sold Speedy. We’d be happy to talk to you an answer any questions or make you a cash offer in 24 hours from the time we receive your information using the form below.