How To Tell The Legitimate House Buyers
From The Scammers?

What To Look For In A Legitimate Company

Legitimate Companies Have Credentials

They Always Take Time To Make An Offer

They Never Ask For Payment Upfront

They Have A Standard Procedure

Understanding The Procedure Helps Avoids Scams

Regardless of where you live right now, you’ve probably seen signs affixed to telephone poles proclaiming, “We buy houses for cash!” “We buy houses” companies promise an all-cash offer and a quick closing. The phrase “We Buy Houses” is used by companies, family-owned or corporations (ibuyers) that buy houses for cash. It’s crucial to understand the differences between the two.

They claim they wish to acquire your house for cash in its current state and finish the transaction as soon as possible. How can you know if the person or firm you’re dealing with is legitimate? How can you tell if you’re dealing with a legitimate investor rather than a con artist? The simple answer is to conduct some research and begin by asking them simple questions.

What is the business’ name?
What is their physical address in the surrounding area?
Is it possible for you to come in for a consultation?
What is the name of the company’s owner?
Is there a website where you can learn more?
Do they have reviews on their website?

If you don’t get what you need, don’t hesitate to ask for more information. A respectable organization will gladly offer you the information you require to feel comfortable and protected. If the organization is recorded and has an A rating, that is a decent sign. If the organization isn’t registered, that could be a warning.

Reputable real estate investors need the information to make a fair cash offer to you. They want to understand the situation and perhaps take a tour or look at a photo of the property and gather as much data as they need to make informed business decisions. This is an investment for them, so they wouldn’t want to give money for something they don’t understand.

It will take some time for a legitimate buyer to complete the paperwork and look at your home to make a fair offer. If that person or company is trying to get you to sign something just before you get the chance to think about it, there’s a good reason to worry. Serious cash buyers will want to make sure you are happy with your decision before deciding. Someone trying to get you to agree while you still have questions or concerns or rush a decision, may be trying to trick you into something and you may not realize until it’s too late.

Generally, as a rule, money should flow from your potential buyer’s direction into your wallets. You should NEVER pay any upfront fees or commissions. You may have to pay some expenses, such as closing costs, realtor commissions (selling the traditional way with an agent), and possibly service charges (ibuyers tend to have this instead of commission), depending on the buyer, but this should only be done once the sale is completed. If they want you to pay for something in advance, it’s another red flag that you could be dealing with a potential scam.

They may not want to buy your home. Still, they are attempting to persuade you to sign a contract that allows them to back out at any time. They will most probably do so once they have charged you for their services in advance, without ever purchasing your home.

You should never be asked to pay anything before the closing date if you are dealing with a genuine cash buyer. Even if this investor is only seeking a modest sum of money, such as $100 or $200, it is still unnecessary.

When you sell your home, the process can be simple: you accept an offer, they pay you your money, and you sign the deed over. That’s a simple form of how it should work. If they require you to sign the deed to the property upfront or again, pay any money upfront, you are likely to be dealing with an unreputable company that could be part of a scam.

If you individually understand how a cash buyer transaction is intended to work, you may be able to recognize a “We Buy Houses” fraud. If you accept their offer, you can work out the details of any closing charges with them. They might end up covering them for you, and you’ll save a lot of the fees that come with home selling, i.e. commission, misc. seller fees, repairs, etc.

Finally, the company/investor will pay you the agreed-upon sum in cash (or in whatever form you choose) and complete the transaction on your terms. If you wish, they can close in a couple of days. You’ll then have money in your pocket and be able to go on to the next stage of your life.

There will be some variations because each buyer is unique, but all legitimate home buying investors/businesses follow the same procedure. First, they’ll ask you a series of specific questions about your home, and then they’ll send someone over to inspect it in person.

They will research the local housing market and make you an offer based on that information and the condition of your home. At this point, you should not have been asked for upfront payments or fees. When they make you an offer, you should have plenty of time to read over the agreement before signing it — in other words; genuine purchasers won’t pressure you. You can accept or decline the offer.

If you accept their offer, the closing procedure should be quick because they are proposing to buy your house for cash. They are not required to obtain approval from a lender and should be able to supply you with proof of funds if you want verification of funds. Again, not all buyers are alike, and minor variations are okay, but this is the overall pattern that the majority of reputable buyers will follow.

“We Buy Houses for Cash” is designed to be a solution for someone who needs or wants a speedy sale or maybe wants to sell without doing repairs and doesn’t want to deal with the inconvenience of selling with an agent. They may avoid paying a commission this way, and one of the best things is that some of the “We Buy Houses” companies will cover all of the selling fees and will not charge any fees or commission.

It’s not always easy to spot the scammers, but if you’re considering selling your home to a real estate investor, you should educate yourself on the red flags:

They don’t want to meet you in person
They want you to move quickly without ever seeing the property.
They request money upfront
The price is too low.
The listing has typos, poor grammar, or excessive punctuation.

If you are considering selling your home in Southern California, webuyanyhouseincalifornia.com is here to help you. We are always dedicated to offering you the best and highest offer while providing any additional help you may need. We buy houses in any condition, any reason and any situation, we have a solution for you. Please visit our How It Works page for specific information on how we formulate offers and our About Us page to get to know us better.