How can you skip the long process between getting a contract signed and closing on the property?
In the current real estate market, you hear a lot of stories about a house going on the market and selling the very same day. It is an exciting time to sell a house and it might seem like you could make a move at a moment’s notice.
What most people mean when they say their house sold the same day it went on the market was that they got, and accepted a contract for a homebuyer to purchase their property for the asking price, or even more. In most cases, this is a great thing. Your house is sold and that is a big load off of your mind.
If you are truly in a hurry, however, this process may not move as fast as you would hope. A contract on your house is not a completed transaction. There are many steps between accepting that contract from a potential buyer and actually closing on your home.
Before a contract can be fulfilled and the money for the sale actually changes hands there are a number of steps that must be taken, and sometimes these steps can take up time that you just don’t have.
A homebuyer might be delighted with your house when they look at it themselves but they will want to have the home professionally inspected to account for any detail they wouldn’t notice themselves. Scheduling these inspections could take weeks or even months.
After an inspection, there could be contingencies on the contract that require you to address anything that a home inspector might find. More weeks could pass as you fix wiring, plumping, or even re-shingle the roof.
The new homeowner will want their insurance appraisers to look at the house and a policy has to be written, and, more often than not, whoever is financing the house will want to have their people take a look as well.
So you could be looking at months after the contract has been accepted before you actually see a check for your house.
There are times when this schedule just will not work. If you are due to take a job in another state you may need to be out of the house as soon as possible. If you have inherited a house, selling the home quickly might be important so you don’t get saddled with paying another year of property taxes and insurance.
There could be any number of reasons that you would need to complete the deal on a property in a couple of weeks instead of a couple of months.
If selling your house fast is important then you will want to avoid the traditional real estate market. In the traditional market you are not only dealing with the buyer but the agent and ultimately the financial organization. The more people involved the slower the process.
That is where real estate investors come in.
Your average real estate investor is able to buy your house for cash, eliminating the need to go through a finance company. They are also prepared and willing to take the house in an as-is condition. Since this is their business they have a great deal of experience in getting a house renovated and ready for market. They can probably do it for a lot less than you would have to pay to do it.
Where the average person might buy or sell a house five or six times in their lifetime, an investor could easily do that many deals in a month. They have processes in place to make things happen fast. They have to if they want to stay in business very long.
They have working relationships with insurance brokers and closing attorneys that can schedule a closing quickly. Sometimes in as little as two weeks.
It is true that you might have to sell your house at a bit of a discount if you sell to an investor but you won’t be paying real estate agent commissions, or closing costs and the speed and ease of the transaction could more than makeup for the lower selling price.
A word to the wise, however. No matter how fast you need to sell your house, don’t just go with the first investor that offers you an acceptable price and a fast turnaround.
You will want to check out the investor. Find out how many deals they have done. See what their reputation is. You should even check out their Google reviews. Real estate is big business and not everyone can deliver like they say they can.
If selling your house fast for cash is more important than quizzing every dime out of the deal, then nine times out of ten you will want to sell to an investor. If you are confident in the investor you can expect a fast closing date and you could be holding a check for the house in just a couple of weeks if not sooner.