Questions to ask your quick home buyer

What is a quick home buyer?

Although individuals might have the funds to make you a fast cash offer on your house or flat, a quick home buyer is typically a company that specialises in making homeowners very swift and typically market-competitive purchases of properties regardless of their shape or size.

What are the benefits are using a quick home buyer?

There are several perks of using a quick home buyer for your property, primarily the fact that you can typically secure a very fast sale. If you need to sell your home in a hurry, whether for financial reasons or any other issues, then this can be an ideal option.

Working with a quick home buying company also lets you avoid the fees that you would otherwise have to pay if selling through an estate agent or auctioneer. That means you get to keep the total sale value without having to subtract any expenses.

Another great reason to sell to a quick buyer is that they are open to buying many different types of property, even non-standard construction homes that might otherwise be difficult to sell through the traditional route of an estate agent or at auction.

It’s also a very stress-free process because the buyer will typically handle most of the complicated legal paperwork and other hurdles involved with selling your home.

Are there any drawbacks with using a quick home buyer?

Although selling to a property buying company is usually a simple and swift process with no hassle for the homeowner, there are a few potential drawbacks.

Some less-reputable quick buyers might give you a lower offer than your house is actually worth, so be sure to have a good idea of your home’s value before you decide to sell. There are many ways that you can get a general idea of your property’s value, including using instant online evaluation tools or asking local estate agents to give you a free valuation.

What questions should I ask my quick home buyer?

If you’ve decided to sell to a fast property buyer, there are a few key questions you need to ask to verify both the company’s trustworthiness and the validity of the sale.

Are you a member of The Property Ombudsman (TPO)?

This is a straightforward question that will help you determine whether the quick buyer is reputable. TPO is an independent organisation that sets the rules and regulations for the property selling industry. All registered members must adhere to those policies, so if your quick buyer is a member of the TPO it’s a great sign they are trustworthy. Similarly, if they are not a TPO member you might not want to sell to them.

Do you offer sale and rent back agreements?

You should be cautious if the quick buyer offers these agreements, which occur when they buy your home and then rent it back to you after the sale. They are concerning because after six months the buyer could try to force you out of the property, so they don’t give you any certainty on how long you can continue to live in your home. But then again there are some reputable companies that offer these agreements, and you can find a list of them from the Financial Conduct Authority website.

Are you trying to make me sign a lock out contract?

These are contracts that give the quick buyer completely exclusive rights to buying your property, preventing you from entertaining offers from other buyers or trying to sell through other ways. You should be wary of lock out contracts because there’s no reason why a company that claims to be able to give you a quick sale should need to lock you into a long-term contract giving them sole right to buy your house or flat.