Sell House for Cash Pros and Cons

Are cash buyers genuinely faster?

In almost all cases, cash buyers are faster than using an estate agent or auction house. A cash buyer can purchase your property in 1-3 weeks. According to Zoopla data, the open market (estate agent) can take between 17 and 34 weeks for a sale. Modern and traditional auctions take anywhere from 4 to 12 weeks, including the lead up to the auction. 

Everyone’s situation is different, but you can usually really on a good cash buyer closing your sale 12x faster than an estate agent on the open market. 

Are conveyancers and surveyors still required with a cash buyer?

If you’re selling to a cash buyer, will they still be required to use a conveyancer? It’s a valid question, because cash buying companies like TPBC usually state they can buy a home in as little as 7 days, and even removing the mortgage step, it can seem like quite a jump to get through the whole process in such a short time.

The answer is yes, a cash buyer still has to instruct a conveyancer or solicitor to handle the legal aspects of the sale. They can choose to do this themselves, but that would generally be a long and time-consuming process. If your chosen cash buyer wants to proceed without legal aid, consider this a red flag.

The survey is a significant part of a house purchase. It’s an inspection done on the property and its condition by a third party that identifies any problems or issues for the prospective buyer. It’s generally done after the offer on a property is accepted and is typically undertaken by an RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) qualified surveyor.

There are various levels of surveys and although we generally wouldn’t advise it, a cash buyer isn’t required to conduct any form of survey on a property. It’s a common question as typically companies that offer mortgages will require and stipulate in the contract that you have or they are able to conduct at least a basic level of survey.

Legitimate cash buyers will almost always conduct an RICS-standard survey of your property. Aside from exceptional circumstances, this survey helps confirm the initial offer or provide validation for increasing or lowering it. Cash buyers who don’t conduct a survey may insist on offering too far below market value based purely on their online research. If you feel a survey is warranted to justify a higher price, you should insist on it or choose a cash buyer willing to do one. 

Are cash house buyers honest? 

There are numerous genuine and trustworthy cash house buyers out there. Most of these are cash house buying companies with NAPB and TPO memberships, high Trustpilot reviews, real client testimonials, legitimate cash funds and decades of experience. 

There are plenty of honest individual cash buyers, but you just need to be cautious and vet them. Read our article on legitimate cash buying companies to learn what to look out for when vetting genuine companies. Doing this with individuals can be hard, hence the higher risks. 

The Property Buying Company is a legitimate and honest cash house buyer. We have a 4.5/5 rating on Trustpilot, over 20 years’ experience, NAPB and TPO memberships, video testimonials from real people and on-site cash funds to boot. We uphold the highest trading standards as outlined by these governing bodies and have a consistent and proud reputation for quality service and transparency. 

What are the risks when using a cash buyer?

If you’re planning on selling to a cash buyer or a cash buying company, there are things that you should be aware of to ensure you sell your home quickly and minimise any potential risk, including getting scammed.

Overpromising

One to be really careful of from both the perspective of a cash house buying company and just a general investor is overpromising on the price. Cash buyers almost always want to achieve a discount on buying your property; it’s why they buy with cash. Companies will typically offer 15-25% below market value, while individuals may offer 10-15% below.

Cash house buying companies have higher overheads than private property investors. They have to think about the bottom line and how to make a profit while still paying their staff fairly and offering the trustworthy and reliable service that people expect. This is a big reason why they offer less than individuals. It’s the only way they can continue operating.

If a cash buyer offers you 100% of the market value of your property, this should be a red flag. It doesn’t make sense – they wouldn’t be in business very long if they were genuinely operating this way. If the offer sounds too good to be true, it probably is. People have been burned in the past by cash buying companies luring them in with high offers, only to lower their offer last-minute and hope the person’s need to sell pushes them to accept. 

The other thing that people or companies will generally overpromise on is the timeline in which they can actually buy your property. We’ve even seen and heard claims of being able to buy your home in 24 hours. It’s extremely unlikely. Around 1-3 weeks is the typical timeline for a cash buying company. For private investors it’s more likely around 4-6 weeks.

These delays can arise from a cash buyer lying about their available funds. This happened to one Reddit user who sought advice online after a cash buyer revealed their funds wouldn’t be available right away, delaying the sale by months. 

“We accepted a lower offer back in February on the understanding that the buyers were cash buyers and could proceed quickly. It’s now come to light that their funds are actually tied up in a Bonds ISA until August,” they wrote on Reddit. “Our solicitor received an update on Sunday: the buyers are now proposing to put down a £100,000 deposit to exchange contracts, with completion delayed until September 2025.”

This seller felt “backed into a corner” after accepting the buyer’s initial offer. The real gut punch was that their dream home was in jeopardy because of this delay. This unethical behaviour is why it’s important to vet your cash buyer and choose a company with a strong track record. 

Scam artists who want your money or personal details

Scam artists posing as legitimate cash buyers are not uncommon, especially when look at private investors. 

Edward Sharp, partner and head of the Residential Property department at Sills & Betteridge Solicitors, states, “Sometimes a fraudster will pretend to be a potential buyer and make an offer for your property. The deal will fall through, but not before they have harvested details of the property and your personal data. They can then use this to try to fake a transfer of the property to themselves, which they would then register at the Land Registry, or to secure a loan against it.”

As you can see, a scam cash buyer is not always a simple grab-and-go job. If you think you’re being scammed, you should follow these steps to protect yourself, your money and your assets. 

How to protect yourself and your financial welfare

This one will work slightly differently depending on who you are selling to. If you are selling to an investor (individual), it’s harder to check they are genuine. The main way to do this is to ask them for proof of funds and how they got the money. Make sure they can prove they can purchase your property with cash that they earned through legitimate means.

Selling to a cash house buying company gives you a bit more protection. It’s also a lot easier to check whether a cash house buying company is legitimate. Here’s a checklist we recommend you tick off when dealing with any cash buying company:

How can you spot a scam cash buyer?

Just like there are green flags for a genuine cash buyer, there are various red flags for a scam cash buyer. If you notice one or more of the following, you may want to reconsider continuing to communicate and do business with your cash buyer. The consequences could be life altering, and not in a good way. 

• Asking you to pay fees upfront – A genuine cash offer should be free and come with zero obligations. 

• No proof of funds – If they can’t prove they have the required funds they may be lying. 

• Pressuring you to accept their offer – This is unethical trading and isn’t tolerated by the NAPB or TPO. 

• No office or unwilling to meet in person – They may not want you to see their face to make it harder to find them afterwards. 

• Offer is at or over market value – Likely a tactic to lure you in with a bait-and-switch to back you into a corner to sell for less. 

• Vague contract – Leaves room for them to commit underhanded tactics after the sale. 

• Paying with a cheque – Be wary of any buyer who pays with a cheque and make sure it doesn’t bounce before continuing with the sale.