Should I sell to a builder or investor?

Question

I have a single family house (primary residence) and am wondering the pros and cons of selling to a builder? The offers are about the same as if I list with a realtor. Commissions would be 5% or $50k plus repairs, moving out my furniture etc. With a builder I can just pick up and leave as is. If I decide to sell to a builder, should I have a real estate agent or just have a lawyer read over the documents? Any opinions or suggestions are most appreciated.

Jay Hinrichs · Answer

do you have an offer from a builder currently and by builder do you mean your house is a tear down and rebuild.. or just a rehabber who is looking to rehab the home and flip it ?

FSBO is very possible in hot markets.. if you already have buyers lined up.. in markets that are not hot your going to get deluged by investors looking to low ball.. And rarely will you net as much or more from an investor than you would from  listing with an agent.

Interveiw agents commissins are negotiable so negotiate those.. and these are very simple transactions so any competent attorney can reveiw the contract etc.. And if your in a Market with a title and escrow companies they can do the transaction for you as well.

Eileen A. · Answer

Thanks so much! I thought about For sale by owner. Will look into those videos

Scott Johnson · Answer

I would recommend sitting down with an attorney so they can outline what the process will be like and their rent for closing the selling and what documents they'll need from you (if any because they can draft them).

if you decide to sell to a residential buyer, make sure you're confirming that they are able to finance it or that they have cash to purchase it. You can also look into the builder to make sure that they are reputable.

Also, look up some videos on selling a house for sale by owner in your state. You don't have to use a broker to sell your house, but they do these transactions every day and can make the process a lot less stressful and streamlined.

After you confirm the buyers financing, have the attorney draft the agreement to purchase and get the process rolling. Otherwise, hire a broker 😄