When it comes to selling a home, there are many different reasons for Why do people sell to cash house buyers?. These generally center around the condition of the home or the situation the homeowner is in or some other factor which overshadows getting the highest price or going through the traditional home sale process. It may be the work involved with selling, a bad past experience working with a realtor, convenience or ease, concerns over the time it will take to sell, embarrassment of the home’s condition, concerns about the sale falling through, a desire not to have showings, or some other reason (typically some sort of motivating factor).
Here is a list, albeit non-exhaustive, of scenarios where the owner or representative of the owner may elect to sell to a cash home buyer.
- Inherited property – the homeowner inherited a property and doesn’t want it. They may not be local to the property location and just not want to deal with it. Or it may be in disrepair. Or there is an emotional reason to just sell quickly to a cash house buyer and get the sale over with quickly.
- House in disrepair – the home needs work and the homeowner doesn’t have the resources to address the issues with the house. Or the homeowner is embarrassed of the condition.
- Divorce – the divorced/divorcing couple may just want a quick sale
- Moving into retirement living – it may make the transition easier. Or family is helping with the sale and decide to sell via an investor for ease. Or the house is in disrepair.
- Pre-foreclosure – falling behind on mortgage payments puts pressure on the homeowner to remedy the situation and there is a clear timeline involved. This may be combined with other factors leading the homeowner to Why do people sell to cash house buyers?
- Facing Foreclosure – if the homeowner doesn’t make their payments (this can happen for many reasons!), their house will likely be foreclosed upon by their lender and be sold at auction. In Michigan, the homeowner has a period of time (usually 6 or 12 months) after the auction sale where they can remain in the house and have the opportunity to redeem their house by paying off their mortgage(s) in full. During this redemption period, they have the ability to sell the house and may Why do people sell to cash house buyers?
- Relocation – relocation can be tough. Sometimes there are major constrains such as timing or needing to sell your home before you can buy a home at your destination. This can be very difficult and Why do people sell to cash house buyers?
- Failed/Expired MLS listing – have you ever seen a house that has been listed for sale with a realtor for a long time and for some reason or another it’s just not selling? Well, there are many reasons why this can occur. And it’s just another reason why Why do people sell to cash house buyers?
- Frustrated or worn out landlord – having other people living in a house you own can be very difficult and trying. Sometimes landlords are ready to be done and Why do people sell to cash house buyers?
- Estate sale – sometimes its just easier because of family dynamics or emotion or property condition just to sell to a cash house buyer
- Vacant property – sitting on a vacant home costs money and presents its own risks. Vacant homes still have property taxes needing to be paid. They still need to be insured (well, not insuring introduces additional risk) and vacant property insurance is not cheap. They need to be winterized (in Michigan). They need to be kept up – lawn, snow, leaves, landscaping, etc. The owner may opt to sell to a cash buyer to simply ‘cut the cord’ and be done.
- IRS liens – similar to property taxes stacking up when not paid or falling behind on your mortgage, owing the IRS or state taxes and having them put a lien on your house can be burdensome and/or embarrassing. Often combined with other factors, this is a reason some people choose to sell to a cash house buyer.
- Can’t afford payments – you may not have fallen behind yet but when things get too tight for comfort, a quick sale might be just what you are looking for
- Need cash ASAP – Completely unrelated to the house, you may have an urgent need for money and selling your house is the only and/or best option you have.
- Back taxes – similar to having an IRS or state lien, getting behind on property taxes can be a burden and, often combined with other factors, this is a reason some people choose to sell to a cash house buyer.
- Water damage – even with an occupied and insured home, water damage may not be covered by homeowners insurance and result in significant damage requiring costly repairs. This may be motivation to sell quickly and ‘as-is’ to a cash house buyer.
- Seller in jail – the homeowner may be in or about to head to jail and want a quick sale (yes, this happens!)
- Health issues – health issues are a reason that some people choose to sell to cash house buyers. This can be for a variety of reasons. For some, there may be concern about further health issues or complications being caused by others being in their home for showings or open houses. For others, it has caused loss of income or they have incurred significant healthcare bills and there is financial motivation to sell. For others, it may be that they just can’t’ take care of the house any longer and want to be done with it.
- Don’t want to deal with showings – this is real. Some people just do not want others entering their home when they aren’t home…or just period. This can be a reason to sell directly to a cash house buyer.
- Bad experience with realtor – like with just about any industry, there are good actors and bad actors. While most realtors are probably wonderful, there are some that are not out to serve their customers well. For someone who has had a poor experience working with a realtor in the past, it may be enough reason for them to either list FSBO or sell at a discount to a cash house buyer.