What is a Cash Offer?

 

For homeowners about to sell a house for the first time, it’s normal to feel overwhelmed by unfamiliar real estate terms and concepts. For example, one way to sell a house involves accepting a cash offer, which could have advantages for sellers. Here’s a closer look at the benefits of this situation and how homeowners looking to sell their property should approach it.

 

When an eager buyer presents an all-cash offer for your home, this means they won’t need to seek financing, such as from a mortgage lender. Instead, they can simply offer cash for the value of your home, and skip the middleman altogether. Usually, this means that the closing process will move along much faster sometimes as quickly as two weeks.

 

When you receive an all-cash offer, you can rest assured that the buyer is truly serious about investing in your property. Plus, since they don’t need to take out a mortgage, there is much less of a risk that the sale will fall through, as there’s no lender to deny the applicant funds. This offers the seller more confidence in the transaction, and it removes the need to have the home appraised. The elimination of financing also reduces the amount of paperwork that goes into the closing process, and it might even relieve the seller of some contingencies.

 

Even with a cash offer, real estate transactions require careful thought and planning. Before you accept the money, it’s important to find out for sure whether the buyer has the cash available for use. For example, some buyers may be waiting on the sale of their current home to go through and do not yet have the money. They should provide a bank statement or a cashier’s check to illustrate their ability to pay. 

 

It’s also important to remember that, while not necessary, cash buyers still have the right to schedule a home inspection and appraisal. If any issues with the house are uncovered, or the home is appraised for much less than the selling price, you might need to negotiate a new purchase price.