ARE CASH OFFERS FOR MY HOME A SCAM? WAYS TO TELL IF THE OFFER IS LEGIT
INTRODUCTION
Selling your home is a stressful process, and if you're doing it fast, you might begin looking for the first reasonable offer that lands in your lap. But if a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. "Cash for homes" companies often make money by buying homes at below-market prices and reselling them quickly. If you aren't diligent about screening these companies, they could end up costing you tens of thousands of dollars. To help protect yourself against being scammed, here are some things to look out for when you're working with a cash-for-homes company:
GET A SECOND OPINION.
Your next step should be to ask around. Get a second opinion. In many cases, your local real estate agent or mortgage lender will be able to tell you if they have had any experience with the company you are looking at working with and can give some insight into how legitimate it is. If not, that's okay! There are plenty of other ways to get information on this topic:
Check with the Better Business Bureau. They'll let you know about any complaints levied against a business for fraudulence, unfair practices, or illegal activities
Check with your local bank branch manager—they may have heard from people who were scammed by cash-for-homes schemes before and can give tips on how to avoid being taken in by one yourself
DON'T FEEL RUSHED.
Not all fast cash offers on your home are the same, and there’s a big difference between making a fast transaction possible and feeling pressured into making a quick decision. If a company is legitimate, they will not pressure you into signing any agreements or contracts right away without giving you time to think about the offer or consider your options. If they do, this is probably a sign that they are not legitimate and they want to take advantage of your situation. If this happens, don't be afraid to ask questions and say no. You have all the right in the world to protect yourself from people who would try to take advantage of your situation when it comes time to sell your house.
It's also important not to feel rushed into making any decisions about selling your home or getting rid of things from inside it (like old furniture). At the end of the day, a good cash-for-homes partner is part of the community and should understand the importance of making sure the seller is happy with the transaction. Building a reputation by having satisfied home sellers is the only way upstanding home buyers can grow- so watch out if a company is clearly going for the “quick buck.”
AVOID "NO OBLIGATION" OR OFFERS WITH UNCLEAR TERMS.
Avoid cash for home companies that want to buy your home without a clear explanation of why their offer is fair. Likewise, avoid cash for homes companies that want to buy your home without clearly explaining how much they will pay. It should raise red flags if the company generally lacks transparency or clarity when discussing the deal. Companies that make offers like this are likely scams.
DO YOUR RESEARCH.
You should start your research by checking the company’s website. If you are able to find a website for the company, check to see if there is an “About Us” section that includes information about its history and how long they have been in business. This will help you determine whether this is a legitimate business or not.
Next, you need to do some quick online research on the cash for houses company that you are considering working with. Check out the reviews of this particular business and see if anyone has complained about them in any way; then take all of those negative reviews into consideration before moving forward with that company or not moving forward at all (if there are too many complaints). You should also look up their Better Business Bureau rating because if they do have one, it will give greater insight as to whether or not they have been taken care of any customer complaints properly before dealing with them again later down the road when things might get worse because no one else knows what happened yet!
CHECK ONLINE REVIEWS.
When researching a cash-for-homes company, look for online reviews. The best sites to review are ones that are recent and have reviews from a wide range of sources. Look for any specific information on the companies you're considering (say, if they're accredited by the Better Business Bureau) and try to find reviews that reflect your situation and needs. You can also look at other business review websites—such as Yelp or Angie's List—to see what others are saying about them.
When reading these reviews, it may be helpful to pay attention to the following things:
How recent is the review? If it's old, take extra caution because things may have changed since then, but don't disregard an older review entirely just because it was written some time ago.* Are there many different people who posted reviews? This is generally good news because more people means more data points so you'll get closer to what most customers feel about a company.* Is there enough detail in each person's story? Some reviewers will give detailed accounts of their experiences with a company while others will be short on detail and vague about exactly what happened when dealing with the organization in question.* Does each person seem like someone who had a similar situation as you do or not? For example, if you're looking into buying or selling an investment property then seeing somebody else say "I used this service when buying my first apartment" would likely be helpful while hearing someone say "I recently bought my dream home at auction" might not apply much at all
ASK THE COMPANY FOR REFERENCES.
If the company is legitimate, they will be more than happy to provide references to help give you peace of mind- so don't be afraid to ask for them. It's one of the best ways to determine whether a cash-for-homes company is legitimate. After all, if anyone knows whether the company is easy to work with, it's the people who have already done it. When you call the previous clients, ask them about the process, outcome and their overall experience with the company. You should also ask them how much money they were paid, what kind of timeline they were given and if there were any hiccups along the way.
At Midwest Cash Offer, we are more than happy to provide references for previous homes where homeowners have sold their house fast for cash. We pride ourselves on making sure any transaction is one that benefits both parties, and stake our reputation on the words from people we’ve worked with in the past.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, we hope this article has been useful for you. As we said before, it is important to know how to separate the good from the bad when it comes to home buying companies. Be wary of companies that try to get you to sell them your house quickly, without a clear explanation of why their offer is fair or legitimate. If in doubt about a company’s legitimacy, always get a second opinion!
