Shall I Sell To Home Buying Company If I Need A Quick Sale

If you need a quick property sale selling on the open market via an estate agent is often a painfully slow and frustrating experience. Property is one of the most illiquid assets – the average time to sell via an estate agent is 6 months from beginning to end. Of course, some sell very quickly and other sales take more than a year but the average is still pretty slow. However, this delay is necessary if you are to get the maximum price possible for your property. 

 

If time is the priority then there is another option available whereby you can sell your property in 2-4 weeks. This option is normally only suitable to those who really need to sell quickly. This is normally due to financial difficulties, emigration, divorce, separation or the threat of eviction or repossession.  In these circumstances waiting 6 months to sell is not an option. 

 

A specialist home buying company buy properties directly from sellers so there is no need to wait for them to advertise it to potential buyers. They also have the cash available (either in their bank account or as pre-agreed finance which they can access just as quickly). The process for selling to them is normally as follows:

 

1. You contact them via phone or via their website
2. They give you some sort of preliminary offer which you can accept or just refuse and move on. This offer is normally a set % below the market value (i.e. normally 20-30%). 
3. If you accept this preliminary offer, the home buying company carries out a more detailed valuation of the property and gives you a firm written offer which is subject to a survey on the house. 
4. If you accept, they pay for a survey/valuation of your property (beware of companies that ask you to pay for this. You walk away if they ask you to). 
5. If the survey and valuation comes back ok (i.e. there is no structural problems with the property and the valuation is the same as their original estimate) then they will instruct solicitors to start conveyancing process.
6. The sale is then completed in 2-4 weeks. 

 

At no point during this process should you be asked for any money. It is up to the homebuying company to pay for the survey and valuation. They may get you to sign an option agreement or contract saying that you would be willing to sell at X price which just gives them assurance that you will not back out after they have paid money on the solicitors and surveys. This agreement should not tie you in to sell at any price but at a price you are both happy with. 

 

So in conclusion, a good home buying company will give a guaranteed quick home sale and save you selling fees, the hassle of doing multiple viewings and the stress of waiting for a buyer. In exchange for this service you will need to sell property at a discount.  This discount means that is therefore normally only suitable for people who really need to sell quickly.