Selling a house for cash: A step-by-step guide
Key takeaways
- Selling a home for cash is typically much faster than selling to a buyer who’s using a mortgage.
- It’s also more convenient, often with no need to get the home market-ready or make any repairs.
- However, you’ll almost certainly get a lower price for your home than you would in a traditional market sale.
If you’re a homeowner who wants to sell quickly, you might be curious about selling your house for cash. Some buyers offer to pay for homes in full — meaning they make a cash offer — instead of financing the purchase via a typical mortgage process. These are typically house-flippers and other firms looking to make quick updates and either sell for a profit or rent the property out, rather than individuals looking for a residence to call home.
Cash offers can be appealing, as they close more quickly and are less likely to fall through because there are no lenders involved. But it’s important to do your due diligence when dealing with cash-homebuying operations. Some can be predatory and might even offer you substantially less money, assuming you are in financial distress, than you would get in a traditional sale.
Why selling a house for cash is faster
Selling a house the traditional way can be a lengthy process. According to data from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), homes sat on the market for around 32 days before going into contract in November 2024.
And once you’re in contract with a buyer who is financing the purchase with a mortgage, it can still take quite some time to close. This is because their lender will then go through the underwriting process, checking the buyer’s credit and financial situation, before the loan can be approved — or not. If the buyer’s loan is denied, the entire deal could potentially fall apart.
By contrast, the process of selling a house for cash moves on a much shorter timeline. There’s no lender, so there’s no waiting out the underwriting and no chance for a loan to fall through. In fact, cash-homebuyer closings can take as little as a week or two, from start to finish.
“The biggest pro of selling your home for cash is the speed at which it can be done,” says Jeff Shipwash, founder and CEO of Shipwash Properties in Knoxville, Tennessee. “Homes sold for cash can be completed as quickly as the title company can process the paperwork.”
That speed and certainty is likely a big part of why 25 percent of November home sales were all-cash deals, per NAR data.
How to sell your house for cash in 5 steps
If you want to sell your house for cash, here are five basic steps to follow. Keep in mind that some may not apply if you sell directly to a cash-homebuying company.
1. Determine your home’s value
The first thing you need to do is figure out how much your house is worth. If you’re working with a real estate agent, they can help with this by performing a comparative market analysis. This will tell you what other, similar houses nearby are being listed or sold for.
While it won’t give you a definitive value — all homes and situations are different, after all — the information is very useful, especially if you plan to list your home on the open market rather than sell directly to a company. It will help you determine an appropriate asking price, or establish a fair market value to compare a company’s offer to. A professional appraisal can give you an even more accurate evaluation of the home’s value.
2. Find a cash buyer
Once you’ve figured out the value of your home, it’s time to start looking for a buyer. You can put varying amounts of effort into this — the more effort you put in, the more you’re likely to get for your home. Here are your two main options:
- Sell to an iBuyer or “we buy houses” company: There are plenty of real estate firms out there that buy houses for cash, including iBuyers — online companies that use algorithms to determine the value of your home and make a quick cash offer. There are also national and local companies that advertise “we buy houses for cash,” which operate in a similar way. While these companies can be a good choice if your home is not in good condition and you want to sell as-is, iBuyers will be more selective about which homes they choose to make an offer on. Both types of companies work quickly and make things easy, buying directly from the homeowner with no need for a real estate agent (or with a reduced fee). But since they need to make money on the transaction to stay in business, neither is likely to offer full market value.
- Sell the traditional way, with an agent: While you don’t need an agent to sell your house for cash, local real estate agents are plugged into the local market and know what local buyers are looking for. Ask around, and you may find a buyer, or even multiple buyers, looking to make cash offers for a home. A traditional, agent-assisted sale will certainly take longer, but it’s the best way to get the highest price for your home.
3. Evaluate offers and check proof of funds
No matter which type of buyer you go with, take the time to evaluate each offer. How does it compare to the home value you established in Step 1? Keep in mind that any cash offers you receive, particularly from an iBuyer or a “we buy houses” company, is likely to be on the low side. The price is, of course, very important, but you should also consider things like the proposed closing timeline and any contingencies included.
Don’t forget to get proof of funds from the people or companies whose offers you’re considering. You want to be especially mindful when there are large sums of cash changing hands — make sure that the buyer can actually afford to pay, and that you’re not falling victim to a real estate scam. Experienced agents and attorneys can be crucial in vetting your buyer.
4. Sign the contract
Once you’ve decided to accept an offer, it’s time to start the paperwork. Signing a contract makes the deal official. If you’re working with an agent, they will help negotiate and finalize the terms of the sale, including the price and the timeline of the close, before you sign. It’s also smart to have a real estate attorney review the contract before you sign. If you’re selling to a company, the offer will likely be non-negotiable — read the contract they provide extremely carefully, and make sure you understand everything you’re agreeing to.
5. Close the deal
The final step in the home selling process is the closing. This is the finish line, where documents are finalized and money changes hands. A homebuying company will likely take care of all the paperwork and details at closing, and may cover your closing costs as well. If you sell to an individual buyer, though, you’ll need to make sure that you have a clear title to the home and can legally transfer ownership first — your agent and/or attorney can help you make sure all is as it should be.
Any legal fees and agent commissions will be due at closing too. There will be a lot of signing, initialing and check writing. But once it’s done, the sale will be complete and the home will become the buyer’s property.
Pros and cons of selling a house for cash
There are numerous benefits of selling a house for cash, the biggest of which is moving much faster than you could with a traditional, financed sale. “When someone buys your home for cash, they eliminate the need for a bank’s lengthy funding process,” says Shipwash. “This means there is no waiting on underwriting and a much quicker process.” Other benefits include a simpler closing process and less chance of the deal falling through, since there’s no loan to be approved. In addition, homes in rough condition can often be sold as-is to a cash-homebuying company.
However, the main drawback is a big one: less profit on the sale. Selling for cash usually means having to accept a lower price for the property. So if you’re trying to make as much money as possible from your home sale, it might not be your best option. Consider working with a trusted real estate agent on an open-market sale instead: It adds some time to the process, but it will likely put more cash in your pocket.
