Offer economics
Are We Buy Houses Companies Legit?
The model is legitimate. Plenty of the operators are not. Those are two different questions and most articles on this topic answer only the first one, which is why sellers still get caught out.
Three different businesses use the same sign
The yard signs and the postcards look identical. Underneath, there are three distinct operations, and knowing which one you are talking to changes everything about how you should treat the offer.
The direct buyer
Buys with their own capital and takes title. The name on the contract is the name on the deed. The offer they make is the offer that closes, and they carry the risk if the repairs cost more than they estimated.
The wholesaler
Signs a contract with you, then markets that contract to real buyers for an assignment fee. Legal in Georgia, but your price is exposed to renegotiation and your closing depends on a buyer who has not been found yet. It should be disclosed to you up front.
The fraud
Advance fees, deed transfer schemes, and pressure to sign outside a proper closing. Rare, but it targets exactly the sellers under the most pressure. The FTC documents these patterns in its mortgage relief scams guidance.
Seven questions that sort them out
- Are you the buyer, or will you assign this contract? A direct buyer says yes without hesitating. Vagueness here is the single most useful signal on this list.
- Whose name goes on the deed? If it is not the company you are talking to, you are dealing with an intermediary.
- Can you show proof of funds? A bank letter or statement. A real buyer has one ready.
- Which attorney will close this? Georgia requires a licensed attorney to close. A buyer who cannot name a closing firm has not done this often. See Georgia closing costs.
- What is your inspection or due diligence period, and can you retrade? A long period with an open right to renegotiate is a price that is not really a price.
- What are the fees to me? The answer should be zero. Any fee charged to a seller is a reason to walk.
- How did you arrive at this number? A buyer who will not show the arithmetic is not making you an offer, they are making you a guess. See how cash offers are calculated.
Hard stops
Any request for money from you. The FTC notes that demanding payment before delivering services is illegal in the mortgage relief context. There is no legitimate reason for a buyer to charge a seller.
Signing a deed anywhere other than a closing. Deed transfer and rent-back schemes are how sellers lose their equity outright. In Georgia the deed is prepared and executed under an attorney's supervision, not at a kitchen table.
Pressure to decide immediately. Exploding offers exist to stop you comparing. A real offer is still there tomorrow.
A blank or incomplete contract. Never sign a document with terms left to be filled in later.
Refusal to put it in writing. Verbal numbers are not offers.
Apply this to us too
Every question above should be asked of us. We buy directly, we close with a Georgia attorney, we charge sellers nothing, and the offer we put in writing is the one we sign. If any answer we give you does not match what is on this page, that is a reason to walk away, and we would rather you did.
If you are weighing whether a direct sale is even the right route, should I sell to a cash buyer includes the cases where the answer is no. For the automated-offer alternative, see cash buyer vs iBuyer, and for the open-market route, cash offer vs listing with an agent.
FAQ
Checking a cash buyer
Are we buy houses companies a scam?
The business model itself is legitimate. Buying property below retail in exchange for speed, certainty, and as-is condition is a normal transaction. The risk is not the model, it is the operator. Some companies buy directly with their own funds, some are wholesalers who tie up your house and shop the contract, and a small number run genuine fraud.
What is a wholesaler and why does it matter?
A wholesaler signs a purchase contract with you and then sells that contract to an actual buyer for a fee. You may never meet the person who ends up buying. It matters because the price can be renegotiated once they find out what the end buyer will pay, and because the deal can collapse if no end buyer appears. Wholesaling is not illegal, but it should be disclosed.
Should I ever pay a fee to a cash buyer?
No. A legitimate direct buyer never asks a seller for money up front. The FTC identifies demanding payment before delivering services as a hallmark of mortgage relief and foreclosure rescue fraud. If anyone asks for an application fee, a processing fee, or a deposit from you, stop.
What if someone offers to take the deed and let me stay as a renter?
Treat that as a red flag. The FTC describes deed transfer schemes where scammers take title promising you can buy the home back later, then sell it and keep your equity. Do not sign a deed over to anyone outside a closing conducted by a licensed Georgia attorney.
Ask us all seven questions
Get a written cash offer, then put it through the checklist on this page. If it does not hold up, do not sign it.
Get My Cash Offer →