Landlord Products / Services
Buyer Seller beware! I feel like that’s the most appropriate disclaimer to kick off with!
If you’re wanting to sell your house for cash as quickly as possible, what you’re probably looking for is a Cash House Buyer Company – they buy properties outright for cash, meaning there are fewer hoops to jump through, resulting in a super quick sale (often in as little as 7 days).
Certainly an alluring proposition, especially when time is of the essence. For various reasons there’s been a growing demand for these services. It doesn’t really matter why you want to sell your house fast or for cash, but the most common reasons are:
- Inherited property
- Prevent house repossession
- Divorce
- Problem property that is often difficult to sell on the open market (e.g. subsidence, in disrepair, plagued with Japanese knotweed etc)
- Need of fast cash
- Deadline to meet (which requires a quick sale)
What’s far more important than your motive is knowing what you’re getting yourself into (I don’t necessarily mean in that in a negative way), so hopefully this blog post will help make you make a more informed decision.
Unfortunately, the industry is notoriously filled to the brim with snake oil, so you’ll need to have your wits about you. In short, you’ll be wise to do your due diligence and work with a reputable company, so you’re not bent over and robbed blind (sadly, a common occurrence in this grimy corner of the housing selling sector).
My list of recommended Fast Cash Property Buyer Companies
First things first, a tidy shortlist of my recommended cash buying companies (I’ll explain how I derived the list below):
| Service | Rating | Features | Offers (up to) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
My Homebuyers | Rating TrustPilot Reviews | Features
| Offers (up to) 80-85%of Market Value | Get cash offer |
Home House Buyers | Rating Reviews.co.uk | Features
| Offers (up to) 80-85%of Market Value | Get cash offer |
House Buy Fast | Rating Reviews.co.uk | Features
| Offers (up to) 85%of Market Value | Get cash offer |
Property Solvers | Rating TrustPilot Reviews | Features
| Offers (up to) 75%of Market Value | Get cash offer |
QuickBuyers | Rating TrustPilot Reviews | Features
| Offers (up to) 75-85%of Market Value | Get cash offer |
Please note, I try my best to keep the information of each service up-to-date, but you should read the T&C's from their website for the most up-to-date and accurate information.
Why those companies?
Good question, and that’s the type of question you *should* be asking if you’re not a total dimwit.
If you type “How Can I Sell My House Fast For Cash” (or a similar variation) into your favourite search engine you’ll immediately discover that you won’t be starved of options. Naturally, they’ll all be singing their own praises and making compelling arguments for why you should use their service over the competition. You’ll probably get confused, overwhelmed and frustrated. To add insult to injury, many of the bad actors operating in the space have crammed their sales spiel with bogus claims – only you won’t know it.
Full disclosure: I haven’t personally used any of the companies listed, so I can’t recommend any based on personal experience. However, I’ve been studying and navigating the industry for a reasonable amount of time; I’ve done my due diligence, and I’ve built solid relationships with folk “in the know” Basically, I like to think I know what I’m looking at.
I’ve scoured through a hefty bulk of the active “Fast Cash Buying” companies (probably over 50 of them), and I’ve created a short list of the ones I would personally consider using, largely because of the following reasons:
- Genuine cash buyer – they buy the property directly, and therefore don’t need to source a third party cash buyer or secure finance before being able to purchase your property. Many of the companies in this space aren’t direct buyers, they source cash buyers and effectively act as middlemen, which generally isn’t as efficient.
- Highly rated across impartial review/rating platforms (e.g. Feefo, TrustPilot, Reviews.co.uk. The usual suspects).
- Members of redress schemes (e.g. The National Association of Property Buyers (NAPB), members of The Property Ombudsman and Trading Standards etc.). This is crucial because the property cash buying industry is not regulated, so using a company that has voluntarily signed up to a redress scheme ensures you’ll benefit from consumer protection.
- Competitive and realistic cash offers – between 75% – 85% market value. Any cash buying company that claims to be offering north of 90% is likely trying to scam you in one way or another – avoid them like the plague!
- Transparent contact details, including physical premises.
- Registered company on Companies House.
- Reputation – they didn’t open their doors last week and start trading. In fact, I’ve worked in a few of them for several years, some as affiliate partners.
Just to clarify, I’m not saying my formula or list is perfect. I’m sure there are other reputable companies out there, many of which slipped through my net. Moreover, I hate long lists (I find them terribly unhelpful), so I’ve been somewhat cutthroat with my decisions.
“Buy my house for cash service” briefly explained
I’m not going to get into the nuances, but I will cover the key points which I believe to be the fundamentals and must-knows for anyone interested in using one of these cash buyer companies:
- Cash House Buyers are companies in the property sector that buy houses for cash outright. It’s that simple.
- Expect anywhere between 75% – 90% of the market value – their business model is based on buying property below market value, so if you’re not willing to accept a price lower than the current market value in exchange for a fast and easy cash sale, using a cash buying company won’t be a suitable option for you! Everyone always asks “what’s the catch?”, this is it – you have to sell low.
- They are not estate agents – they are direct cash buyers.
For a more in-depth analysis and coverage of the nuances and precautions to be wary of, here’s my full guide on Cash House Buyer Companies.
I highly recommend reading that article because it does cover a lot of the common scams and unethical practises to be wary of.
Benefits of selling your house for cash to these companies
The basis of their appeal, and why they’ve become a pretty popular option among sellers across the board:
- Quick sale – complete in as little as 7 days. But this will vary depending on many factors, and more complex cases will likely take longer. I’d say the average is between 2- 3 weeks (which is still pretty snappy compared to the open market).
- Cash sale – the money will be in your bank account on completion.
- Direct chain free buyers (at least the companies I’ve listed) – there is no chain, meaning you don’t have to wait for any other sale to go ahead before your property is sold.
- Straightforward process
- No legal fees – they cover all legal fees e.g. surveys, solicitor fees etc.
- Any property, any condition – which is why they’re also referred to as We buy any house companies. They’re prepared to buy almost any property in any condition, so it doesn’t matter if your house is in need of renovation (although, as you’d expect, they will take this into consideration when making an offer).
Oh, and of course, there’s this little beauty, which is featured in some form on almost every cash buyer company’s website – created for no other reason than to further moisten your appetite to use their services…
Make of that what you will, I’m just a mere humble messenger!
Disclaimer: I'm just a landlord blogger; I'm 100% not qualified to give legal or financial advice. I'm a doofus. Any information I share is my unqualified opinion, and should never be construed as professional legal or financial advice. You should definitely get advice from a qualified professional for any legal or financial matters. For more information, please read my full disclaimer.
