Cash buyers and “we buy houses” offers
You are buying speed and certainty, and paying for them in price. That is a real trade and sometimes the right one. What decides whether it goes well is not the headline number — it is whether the contract lets that number change after you have committed.
A strong offer, a signed contract, then an inspection followed by a substantial price reduction — presented at the point where you have stopped marketing the property and have made plans around the sale. The first number was never the price; it was the cost of taking you off the market. Everything below is about detecting that in advance.
When the trade genuinely makes sense
- The house is genuinely hard to sell conventionally — an uninsurable roof, an obsolete panel, failing plumbing, extensive unpermitted work.
- You need a date more than you need the last few percent — a job move, an estate, a divorce settlement.
- You cannot fund the work that would make it saleable to a financed buyer.
- A foreclosure timeline is running, where a completed sale before the sale date is materially better than what follows.
- It is inherited and empty, and carrying it is costing money every month.
If none of those apply and the house would sell normally, the discount is buying convenience you may not need. That is worth being honest with yourself about before responding to a letter.
What to establish before signing anything
- Is the offer firm, or subject to inspection? This is the single most important question, and the answer determines whether the number means anything.
- Can they assign the contract? An assignable contract means the person in front of you may be selling their position to someone else rather than buying your house — which is legal, and changes who you end up dealing with.
- Proof of funds, dated and current. Not a letter of intent, not a screenshot from months ago.
- Who holds the deposit, and how much is it? Escrow with a title company, and enough that walking away costs them something.
- What are the contingencies and how long do they run? A long inspection window on a cash purchase is a renegotiation window.
- Who chooses the closing agent, and are they connected to the buyer?
Wholesaling — contracting to buy and then assigning that contract at a markup — is a legitimate business. What matters to you is that the party who signed may not be the party who closes, that their profit comes out of the gap between your price and the market, and that a contract they cannot assign is a contract they may not complete.
The obligations that do not change
Selling to a cash buyer or an investor does not reduce your disclosure duty. The obligation under Johnson v. Davis (Fla. 1985)† applies to every seller, and the statutory flood disclosure is required at or before contract regardless of who is buying. An investor is arguably more likely to pursue a concealed defect afterwards, not less — they are unsentimental and they keep records.
The state-set costs are also unchanged. Documentary stamp tax at $0.70 per $100† applies on the sale price whoever the buyer is, and the title premium is promulgated at $5.75 per $1,000† on the first $100,000.
If you are selling because of financial pressure
- Check whether you have equity first. If you do, an ordinary sale almost always beats a distressed one, and there is usually more time than it feels like there is.
- If you do not, understand the deficiency position. After a foreclosure sale a lender has one year†, but a short sale produces no certificate of title, so courts have held the short limit does not apply — leaving potentially five years†.
- Be wary of anyone offering to stop a foreclosure for an upfront fee, or to take title “temporarily” while you rent it back. Distressed owners are a deliberately targeted market.
- Never sign a deed you do not fully understand. A quit claim signed under pressure transfers whatever you have and warrants nothing — including your equity.
How to test an offer in one afternoon
- Get one conventional agent’s market analysis, free, for comparison.
- Ask the cash buyer to make the offer firm and non-assignable, and see what happens to it.
- Ask for dated proof of funds and a meaningful escrowed deposit.
- Have the contract read by an attorney on a limited-scope basis before signing.
Related
Common questions
Are “we buy houses” companies legitimate in Florida?
Many are. The trade is real — speed and certainty in exchange for price. What matters is whether the offer is firm or subject to inspection, whether the contract is assignable, and whether there is dated proof of funds and a meaningful escrowed deposit.
Why did the cash buyer reduce their offer after inspection?
Because the contract allowed it, and because you had stopped marketing by then. If the first number was never firm, it was the cost of taking you off the market rather than the price. Establish this before signing.
What does an assignable contract mean?
The buyer can sell their position to someone else rather than buying your house themselves. It is legal and common, but it means the party who signed may not be the party who closes, and their profit comes from the gap between your price and the market.
Do I still have to disclose defects to a cash buyer?
Yes, in full. The duty applies to every seller regardless of who is buying, and the statutory flood disclosure is still required. An investor is arguably more likely to pursue a concealed defect afterwards, not less.
Should I sell to a cash buyer to stop a foreclosure?
Check whether you have equity first — if you do, an ordinary sale almost always beats a distressed one. Be wary of anyone charging an upfront fee to stop a foreclosure or proposing to take title temporarily with a rent-back.
The disclosure duty is common law from Johnson v. Davis; documentary stamp tax and promulgated title rates are statutory. Deficiency limits sit in §95.11, with the short-sale position established by appellate decisions. General information, not legal advice.