Frequently Asked Questions
(Q) What type of home sellers and situations do you deal with?
A: Great Question. We work with homeowners facing any situation, regardless of the condition of the property. Our goal is to guide homeowners in the right direction depending on their needs. We commonly work with individuals facing the following circumstances:
- Facing foreclosure
- Inherited an unwanted home
- Dealing with bad tenants
- Dealing with Divorce
- Facing a job transfer/relocation
- Your house in in complete disrepair
- No longer can afford up keep and bill payments
- Do not want Realtors involved
- Out of state owners
There is no situation or problem that we will not attempt to solve.
(Q) How long does the closing process take?
A: Since our transactions are cash transactions, the closing process is much quicker and simpler than the normal retail transaction. There are no bank appraisals, official home inspections, and the transaction is not dependent on the say of the bank and their procedures. Also, you will not have to get the certificate of occupancy in most cases since we will be taking the house as-is. Our standard closing varies from house to house depending on variables like title, attorneys etc. On rare occasion delays can happen in the process if title cannot be transferred cleanly from the seller. This sometimes happens if the house has been inherited. Otherwise, we generally shoot for a time frame of approximately 10-20 days.
(Q) Do you charge a fee for the consultation you perform at the property?
A: No, we do not charge any fees for this service. We want to understand the entire picture so we can determine the best solution for your needs, as well as make you a fair and accurate offer.
(Q) Do I need to hire an attorney if we come to a mutual agreement?
A: No, it is not required. However, we strongly advise that you do hire a competent real estate attorney to ensure a smoother and faster closing. This is especially the case if you do not fully understand the closing legal procedures and the house is part of an estate. Many times it is money well spent.
(Q) How do you determine the price you will offer on my house?
A: Great question. The way we price houses will depend on a number of variables, such as style of house, location of house, size of lot, renovations needed, exit strategy, etc. For simplicity sake, the way we determine how much we can pay for a standard project house (buy, fix, resale) is done fairly objectively. First, we determine how much the house will be worth once renovated (aka After repaired value or ARV). We do this by looking at the most recent sold homes in the area most similar to the subject property. Then we determine the dollar investment required to perform the renovations needed. Next we determine our “soft costs”, which are all of the other costs associated with the project such as taxes, insurance, utilities, closing costs, real estate commissions, transfer tax, etc. Then of course we determine a fair profit for ourselves dependent on the risk, workload, and other variables involved. Finally we back out the renovation, soft costs, and desired profit from the ARV to come up with our offer.
Mathematically it would look like this:
A house on Smith Drive we discovered can sell for $300,000 (the ARV) after performing the necessary renovation. It will require an investment of $60,000 in order to sell the house for that amount. The total soft costs are approximately $25,000. Our desired profit is 20% as figured by the amount of risk and work involved, or $40,000. Our offer would be the following:
$300,000 – $60,000 – $25,000 – $40,000 = $175,000
It is important to understand that the after repaired value means what the house COULD be worth once fixed. The as-is value is what the house IS worth in its current condition. Using the same example above, the as-is value of the home may be $200,000. After paying a real estate agent 6%, closing costs, and continuing to pay carrying costs like taxes, insurance, and mortgage payments, our offer is very close to the seller’s net dollars after paying fees these expenses. Except without the hassle or stress.