When you’re trying to get out of your home fast, local home buyers may be your best option. The traditional method- trying to sell through an agent – isn’t fast.

To explain why, let’s dig into what I mean by “local home buyer.”

Who are Local Home Buyers?

In simple terms, a local home buyer is a real estate investor. Sometimes it’s a person. Other times it’s a company.

Just like it sounds, these investors are local to your area. They know the neighborhoods and they can accurately estimate the value of your home.

They know the neighborhoods and they can accurately estimate the value of your home.

If the deal makes sense, these investors will gladly buy your home! The condition of the house doesn’t matter. Fixer-upper? We’ll buy it. In great shape? Again, we’ll buy it.

Why Sell to a Local Home Buyer?

To help you figure out if it makes sense to work with a local investor, here are the pros and cons to consider.

Pros of Selling to a Local Home Buyer

Avoid the Real Estate Agent Fees – These fees usually cost 3% of the selling price of the home. That may not sound like much, but it comes out to $9,000 on a $300,000 home. That hurts.

But that’s not all. The buyer’s agent also wants a piece of the pie – another 3%. When you factor that in, you’re looking at $18,000 just going to the agents. When you sell to a local buyer, that isn’t an issue.  No agents, no heft commissions.

Sell Your Home Fast – Some people need to escape from their mortgage. It’s crushing them. That’s when working with a professional home buyer is useful. They can often have your funds delivered to you within seven days of the agreement!

Usually when someone buys a home, they need to get the mortgage approved by a bank. Typically this takes 30 days, even if the person was pre-qualified. Having to wait 30 days to get out of a soul-sucking mortgage stinks.

In this industry, there is something called carrying costs. These are the costs associated with owning and maintaining the home. To make it simple, let’s say this is $1,200 a month. If you work with an agent that takes five months to sell your home, you paid $6,000 in carrying costs.

You don’t have to worry about that when selling to a local professional home buyer. Because we operate so fast, these costs will be minimal.

Closing Costs – The seller usually has more closing costs than just the agent fees. Prorated taxes and homeowner association fees, for example.

Fortunately, an investor will often pay these costs for you.

Easy – Do you remember how long you had to spend at the attorney’s office when you bought the home? For most people, it’s at least an hour. Many times it stretches out to several hours – it all depends on how well the paperwork was set up.

Investors know time is money. They’ll do everything they can to make the process quick and easy. Sometimes the only reason for you to show up is to get your check!

Cons to Selling to a Local Investor

Lower Selling Price – Local home buyers are in the business of making money. They may buy the property to rent out or flip. Either way, they try to get the best deal possible.

As the seller, this means you might need to sell the home for a discount. It’s not always the case, but being able to close quickly or deal with a sticky situation might come at a slight premium.

Finding One Can Take Time – You can find companies that buy houses through some tips further down in this post, but it’s not easy. Even if you do find a few, they may not necessarily be interested in your home at this time.

That’s why we created Area Code Home Buyers. We make it easy for you to connect with local home buyers. Our network is quickly growing, making it easier every day to find a buyer for your home.

If you work with an agent, you may (or may not) sell the home a little faster. Some agents take months to sell their clients’ homes.

Click Here to Find Your Local Buyer

You Do All of the Work Yourself – There is a nice element of working with real estate agents. It feels great to have someone as your advocate when you enter a negotiation. They also help you market the home, getting more eyeballs and (hopefully) a better offer.

When you sell your home to a local home buyer, you won’t have an agent helping you out.

Who Should Sell to a Local Home Buyer?

Based on the pros and cons above, this question points to a single type of seller. If you are trying to sell your home as quickly and hassle-free as possible, a local home buyer is for you. Just realize your sale price will be a bit lower.

How to Find a Local Home Buyer

There are a few ways to find a local investor to purchase your home. Here are a few options.

• Contact a Network of Local Buyers. Just like it sounds, this is a group of people who invest in your area. The easiest way to do that is through our site. We have investors in many area codes right now.
• Join a Local Real Estate Investor Group. Each of these groups is different, so it’s difficult to tell you exactly what to expect. In general, these are groups of real estate investors that learn from each other.
• Ask Around. Tell everyone around you that you’re trying to sell your home to a local investor. Friends, family, coworkers, neighbors, etc. Be clear that you don’t want to sell your home to another family, as that process typically takes a long time (up to 30 days.)

Ready to Sell Your Home Fast?

Area Code Home Buyers has helped over 273 home sellers across the United States in the last year. If you’re serious about selling your house, reach out at 866-263-9960 or fill out the form below.