If you are thinking about selling your home you’ve probably seen ads in social media, heard a radio commercial or received a flyer in the mail about a quick and easy way to sell your house fast. Some of these people might be legitimate buyers but many are not. There are many red flags to watch out for when trying to spot a “house buyer” scam and how to protect yourself from becoming another victim!
We Buy Houses Scams: What You Should Know About It
If you’re thinking about selling your home to a We Buy Houses Company, there are a few things you should know about we buy houses scams.
Have you ever get a call from someone who says they want to buy your house? Could it be the start of a “we buy houses” scam? Here’s how you can protect yourself.
Getting an offer for all cash might seem like a dream come true, but scam artists are using this scam more and more to target home sellers. These scam artists have been known to improve their tactics over time to get a property owner to think they are going to buy their house as quickly as possible, continue reading to lear more about these tactics, you will be surprised that many buyers out there are not actually going to buy your house.
Red Flag 1: The “We Buy Houses” investor wants to buy it too quick
A scam artist’s goal is not simply to scam someone out of their money; it is also to scam them fast. Many scam artist will call people with an offer to buy your house for cash in a couple of days, but the question remains – how does he/she plan on doing that? The scam artists usually say there are “no inspections, no contingency contracts” and that they will close quickly due to giving you top dollar. It sounds like a great deal, right? But there are always strings attached!
Let me tell you this, it is possible to sell your house without doing a walkthrough. These days we are able to do everything virtual, evaluate repairs with pictures and many other ways. But you should always keep in mind the condition of the house is essential for an investor to, why? because we really need to understand how much it is going to cost to repair the house and be able to bring it back to its top value. Without this information a real “We Buy Houses” investor wont be able to determine what is the purchase price he/she is willing to pay.
If your “We Buy Houses ” buyer is more interested in closing the “deal” fast than in how much is it going to cost them, you should probably consider taking it slowly and evaluate if they are actually the right buyer for you.
Red Flag 2: Who is responsible for paying whom when you sell your house?
This is one of the biggest red flags when it comes to “We Buy Houses” scams because they typically ask for a deposit, fee, administrative expense, or whatever they call it in advance.
This is why it is important to understand who pays whom? Make sure you know exactly how this process works so there are no surprises when it comes time to sell your house in cash.
Short answer is, if you are the one selling the house, there is no reason why you should make any payment in advance. You should be the one getting paid for selling your house, there may be different situations where you actually have to pay to sell it, however in any of these scenarios you are required to make any payment in advance.
This is a big red flag you may be getting straight into a scam. It doesn’t matter the amount they ask, make sure you do not make any payment in advance to sell your house, if you make any payment they will turn around and leave with your money. You probably are not going to heard back from this kind of “buyers”.
A legitimate house buyer will never ask you for upfront fees, in fact a Real Estate Investor like us will even pay all the fees associated with the sell of your house so there isn’t any fee on your side, you would be selling your house completely for free. Remember the buyer is the one paying YOU.
There are definitely a lot fo benefits to sell your house to an investor, but make sure you are talking to a real one before you decide to sign in the doted line.
Red Flag 3: Ernest Money is part of the sale
Many fake buyers wont be comfortable about putting an Earnest Money deposit. You may think it is not a big deal, but have you thought about the details of this? Let’s imagine this “investor” in trying to buy your house for $100,000 and they are refusing to make an earnest money deposit of $3,000. Do you think they are serious about buying your house for $100,000?… maybe not.
Fake house buyers are often going to try to sale the rights they have in the contract you sign with them to a legitimate Real Estate Investor like us, what they do is usually try to get the lowest price point they can with you, then reach out to a real We Buy Houses Investor and “assign” the contract. There is just one buyer in this transaction, however there are two people getting paid out of the sale of your house. This may not be the position you would like to be.
We are happy to put an Earnest Money Deposit in place, Why? because we will be paying whatever price we accorded anyways, for a real home buyer like us this is just a payment in advance. By the time we put the Earnest Money Deposit we are 100% sure we will buy your house according to the price and terms we established.
How to Avoid a We Buy Houses Scam!
There are a few ways to avoid scam “We Buy Houses” investors, but the best way is to just do your homework, before you decide to sell your house to someone make sure it is a reputable company that is actually going to be able to buy your house directly from you. We all have been in a situation where we just get a bad feeling about someone or some details in the offer or contract that just doesn’t make sense to us, this could be a red flag as well. If you are not sure about something or just don’t understand the terms, ask questions! never accept an offer you don’t understand or trust! Scams are everywhere!
If you are interested in selling your house, reach out to us. We will buy your house directly from you and we will make sure you are always up to date in the process and that there are not concerns.
Just fill in the form below, we will reach out to you within 30min. Do you prefer call or Text? Awesome reach out to us (210) 570-2861
Go To House Buyer does not provide legal, tax, or investment advice. This material is for informational purposes only. It should not be considered as investment advice and may not be used as a basis for any financial decisions. Please seek advice from a professional in these areas before making a decision.