BiggerPockets

I just saw a bandit sign on my way home from school in Indiana that said:

Sell Your House in 48 Hours!
[Phone Number]
WE BUY HOUSES.

I was just wondering how long it usually takes from the time you find a serious cash buyer to the time you close the deal. How realistic is 48 hours? How fast should I tell potential sellers that I can sell their house?

I'd bet that 99% of these signs that say they can close in 48 hours are nothing but "puffing". Exaggerated advertising to draw people in. Just like restaurants that say "best fried chicken in the state" or bars that say "coldest beer in town".

From a signed contract to closing, assuming no lenders (even hard money) involved, you probably could do it in Justin's timeline. As soon as you start having to find a buyer, its going to take longer. If that buyer's using any sort of loan against the property, even hard money, then you're looking at an appraisal, title reports, etc. If everyone involved in a hard money deal is moving quickly, you might close in a week from the time when you have a fully signed contract. If conventional lenders are involved, figure a minimum of a month.

So, if you're wholesaling, you need to know your buyers. If you have honest to goodness cash buyer's and you've found a house that exactly meets their buyer's criteria (that is, you can call your buyer as you walk out the door and KNOW they will say yes), you can close in a matter of days.

OTOH, a house about six houses up the block from me was picked up by one of our big local wholesalers. He moves quite a few properties. It languished in his inventory for a month before he dropped it. It eventually sold a couple months later as a HUD to a owner occupant. So, no guarantee you can find a buyer at all.

If you're just starting, and don't have the cash to close deals yourself, I'd avoid making any promises.

Agreed with what everyone above says. My closing attorney does a lot of work for us, and we can generally close in about 3 days after the contracts are signed if there there no title issues.

As Jon and P NW said, throw lenders into the mix, and you need to add a few weeks, at least...

When you form your buyer's list, are hard money investors fine?

Yes, hardmoney is okay by me.

So is this right? When I go on to a wholesalers website, and they have 5 - 10 properties for sale. Does this mean they own them free and clear (or with whatever creative financing) and they are just looking for another buyer to purchase them? Or is the wholesaler still tied up in some contract with seller "A"? I've always wondered about this.

Probably both. Most of the big wholesalers have their own capital to own them outright but I'm sure they assign a few now and then as well. In AZ its hard to find equity, so most are picked up at auction with cash.

So do you just explain to seller A the situation. That you are a wholesaler looking for a buyer for their house?

It may mean they own them or it may not. Some people do close and others just shop it around once they have it under contract. Not sure what the title of the post has to do with your question but on how fast you can close depends if you have cash or if your borrowing it. You can close as quick as the title is done