What a direct sale actually looks like

What a direct sale actually is

Let’s clear one thing up first, because it trips up almost everybody. A direct sale means we buy the house. Not a listing, not a promise to go find you a buyer, not a pitch in disguise. We are the buyer, and the house changes hands between you and us.

That changes two things at once. It changes what gets asked of you, and it changes what you should expect to get paid. Both matter, so here is the honest version of each.

Start with what you get

• You do not repair, paint, clean out, or stage anything.
• You do not sit through showings or open houses.
• You get written terms, and an estimate of what you would net, before you decide anything.
• You pick the closing date, or something close to it.

The list of things you stop doing is genuinely long. That is the whole appeal, and I am not going to pretend otherwise.

Now the part where you give something up

This is the section most house-buying websites leave out, so here it is near the top.

• You will probably be offered less than a strong listing would bring. Not always, and not by some fixed amount, but usually. A house marketed to every buyer in Sacramento can get bid up in a way a single buyer will not bid it up.
• You give up the competition. One buyer means one offer, and one offer is not a market.
• You are accepting a discount in exchange for convenience and certainty. That discount is real. It is also the reason any of this works at all.

If you can handle the repairs, the prep, and a timeline you do not fully control, listing is probably the better financial move. I would rather tell you that now than have you find out somewhere in the middle.

How it actually works

• You tell me about the house. Address, condition, whether anyone is living there, and when you would like to be done. Nobody comes out yet.
• I look it over and call you. We talk through condition, access, and timing. Ask me anything, including whether you should just list it instead.
• If it fits, you get written terms. The price, what I am responsible for, what you are responsible for, and the estimated net to you.
• You decide. Nothing gets signed to receive the terms, and there is no obligation to take them.
• Closing. We put the terms and the date in writing and the title company handles the rest.

Nothing is signed to get an offer. That is worth repeating, because I know how the other version of this conversation usually goes.

Who this tends to suit

• You inherited a house you do not want to keep.
• The repairs have gotten away from you and you do not want to spend into it.
• You are managing a rental and you are done with tenants.
• You live out of the area and cannot run a listing from a distance.
• You want a specific closing date, and a listing cannot promise you one.

And who it does not suit. If the highest possible number is your only real priority, and you have the time, the cash, and the patience for a listing, then list it. That is not me being modest. It is just true.