One of the most common questions I get asked by people about what I do as a real estate investor is WHY would someone sell their house to you at a discount when they can get more for it on the market with a realtor?

This is a legitimate question and one I used to think myself before I started investing in real estate.  First, let me start by reassuring you that we run a very transparent business.  My #1 partner & right hand man is a Realtor. So together, we can’t just tell a home owner what we will pay cash for a property.  We always disclose that he has his real estate license. We always, always, always (did I mention always?) tell a home owner what they can get for their home on the market.  And I ALWAYS tell a homeowner that the way to get the MOST money for their home is to list it on the market with a realtor. The benefit of having an investor/realtor team is that we are able to give people multiple options to solve their real estate problem and we let the homeowner pick the solution that works best for them. Hence our slogan: Providing Options, Finding Solutions! We not only present the homeowner with a cash offer, but also present them with a market value and many other options for selling. 

 SO WHY WOULDN’T SOMEONE WANT TO GET THE MOST MONEY THEY CAN OUT OF THEIR HOME?  

Unfortunately, money alone isn’t always the answer to a person’s problem. And as a real estate investor I spend my days solving people’s problems.   In order to answer this question I thought it would be best to give you some REAL examples from deals that we have done in the past:

• Single family rehab to re-sell:  Homeowner was addicted to drugs, owed a debt to a drug dealer and needed fast cash to go to rehab. Had a wife and kids and also needed money quickly to place them in another more affordable home while he was away at rehab. Didn’t have time to list his home on the market. In this situation selling his home quickly was more important than getting the most money out of it

• Single family rehab to re-sell:  Homeowner had fallen behind on taxes and water/sewer bills.  Grew up in the home, inherited it from her parents, had fallen ill and could no longer work. She could no longer keep up with payments or maintenance of the home and the home was in need of repair. Due to debts owed on the house she had no time for the home to sit on the market and had no money to make repairs that would have been needed for the home to sell. The debt owed was stressing her out and she needed to sell quickly to move forward with her life.

• Single family rehab to re-sell:  Homeowner had her home broken into by an ex-boyfriend who very badly physically abused her which landed her in the hospital and then a woman’s shelter.  She could not go back to the home for fear he would find her there again.  Home was in need of repair and the woman needed money quickly to buy a home in a different location where she could not be found. She was referred to us via a friend and we bought her home in under a week.

• Single family buy and hold:  Man inherited a home from his parents. He lived alone and could not take care of the home.  He was battling depression and needed to “start fresh” in a smaller place he could make his own.  He did not want to list the home on the market as this would mean he would have to clean out the home – which needed significant clean out – and repair it.  He didn’t have the time for either. We bought the home and took care of all the clean out and repair.  He just showed up at settlement and collected a check.

• Duplex buy and hold: A woman was referred to us by a friend. Her husband was dying of cancer and all she wanted to do was buy a house in Florida. This was his dream – to live in Florida. He no longer wanted to be in PA and did not have long to live.  She moved him to Florida and then flew back home to sell their house.  She needed to sell quick to get back to Florida to be with her husband.

• 2 unit buy and hold:  A woman called us off an ad.  She was elderly, owned a 2 unit in which her son lived on the 1^st floor. The son was an alcoholic and was not paying any rent.  She could not get him to leave and needed to sell the 2 unit with him in place. She could not list it on the market with him in there.  We purchased it and gave him 15 days to vacate.  We paid him to leave. The quicker he got out – the more money he got. The longer he stayed, the less money he got.  He was out within a few days.

• Single family buy and hold:  A single mother, recently divorced with one child could no longer keep up with the maintenance and repairs needed on her home. Her child was being bullied and she needed to move quickly to another school district. She did not want to put the home on the market due to repairs needed and the time it would take to sell. 

• Single family buy and hold:  An elderly man and his wife wanted to downsize. They didn’t need to sell their house to buy another and they didn’t want to put the large chunk of their money from selling their home into a bank account where it would be making 1% interest or less.  So we presented them with multiple options for selling and they chose an option where they got monthly payments (which covered the mortgage payment on their new, smaller place) AND.. made WAY more interest on their money than 1%.  Smart cookies these two were!!

AND THERE’S MORE!!!

I could go on and on through every home we own or have rehabbed but do you want this to be a blog or a book?  I hope the above examples helped you to realize that the market is not for everyone! Sometimes home owners are more concerned with time, or their home is in need of repair, or they just want to make more money with their money! There are TONS of reasons why people choose to sell to an investor instead of selling their home on the market. What is important to my partner and I is that we don’t tell a homeowner what is the best solution for them. My job is to present them with options and let THEM choose the solution that best fits their needs! And really.. the homeowner is the only one that knows what the best solution is!

If you know anyone that is looking to sell and isn’t certain the market is the best route for them please send them our way! We always have time for referrals! We would love to help your friends and family by providing them with multiple options for selling!  Contact us today!

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