Here’s a couple questions that others have asked. Please, reach out to us if you have questions that aren’t listed here or you want us to go into more detail regarding anything below. Remember, if you have questions regarding something, others probably are asking the same questions, and we would love answer them for everyone.
Q: Will you be listing my house on the MLS or actually buying it?
A: We won’t be listing or wholesaling your house (wholesaling is where someone puts a house into contract without intending to purchase just so they can sell the contract to another investor without the seller knowing). We are going to be personally purchasing your home, making the repairs ourselves, and will either flip it then sell it on the MLS or keep it as an investment property after making repairs.
Q: Do you pay fair prices for properties?
A: While many of the properties we purchase are below market value, we aim to give fair offers for houses. We as a company need to make a profit either flipping it or renting it out after making repairs, so we’ll need to get properties at somewhat of a discount to market value that way we can pay ourselves for the work we’re doing. It’s important to note that the sellers that we work with don’t value getting “top dollar” for their home as much as avoiding the hassles and uncertainties associated with listing, being able to close quickly, not having to deal with repairs, and foregoing having to pay closing costs and commissions among other things. It’s basically the same thing that draws people to trading in their car at a dealership vs. trying to sell it themselves on Craigslist or Facebook marketplace. Most everyone knows that when they are trading in their car at a dealership, they’re giving it away at a slight discount, but to them the convenience, speed, and good customer experience outweighs the little bit of extra money and ton more stress associated with selling it themselves. By trading it in at a dealership, they don’t have to meet a random stranger in parking lot, deal with scams, take it a mechanic and point out everything wrong, etc.
Q: How do you determine the amount you’re going to offer?
A: The process for how we come up with our offer amount is pretty straightforward. In general, we first take a look at the property, its location, and what repairs need to be made. Then we look at the value of comparable houses sold or rented in the area as well. Combining those and other bits of information, we come up with a fair price that works for us and works for you, too. Here’s a link from Rocket Mortgage going of the process that most investors follow as a general guideline. In general this process is how everyone determines how much to offer for an house – regardless of whether you are selling with an agent or selling it to an investor like ourselves. Our advantage is that we do a lot of the work ourselves, which cuts down on our repair costs and that allows us to offer you more.
Q: Are there any fees or commissions to work with you?
A: No, there are no fees or commissions when you sell your house directly to us. We’ll cover your closing costs which typically add up to around 2% in a standard transaction, and since there are no commissions, you’re saving 6% right there. If there are any liens, back taxes, or mortgage payoffs, the title company will pay those for you at closing from your proceeds, which is standard in any real transaction otherwise you wouldn’t be able transfer ownership and responsibility of the property.
Q: How is selling to CMJones Homes different from selling with a real estate agent?
A: Real estate agents list properties on the Columbus multiple listing service (MLS) with hopes that someone will buy them. The agent shows the properties to prospective buyers if there are any (the housing market is still somewhat frozen right now as buyers have disappeared in market due to rapid mortgage rate increases in 2022) and then takes a percentage of the sale price if they find a buyer. An agent’s standard commission is 6% of the sale price of your house which means if it’s a $100,000 house, you’ll pay about $6,000 in commissions to the agents involved. Additionally, sellers will need to pay closing costs which are typically another 2% of the sales price.
Additionally, when someone lists their home with an agent, they’ll probably need to do prep work prior to listing, they’ll have showings at the worst times, open houses on the weekends, and will probably have a good amount of time elapse before getting an offer. Once an offer is accepted, there are inspections and appraisals. Something ALWAYS comes up during an inspection, and the buyers will most likely ask you remedy the problem, or the house will go back on the market. If appraisal comes in lower than the sale price, buyers can back out of the sale or alternatively, you’ll have to lower your price to the appraisal amount. The whole process is pretty nerve-racking, and your stress level only intensifies if the house needs work or you aren’t in a position to wait.
But that’s where we’re different. We’re home buyers. Our company buys the house directly from you. Since we pay with all cash and purchase the house from you, we can make a decision to buy your house within a couple of days (sometimes even the same day). Again, we make our living by taking the risk to buy the house with our own cash, repair the house, and market it ourselves to find a buyer. There’s no showings, open houses, waiting on the market, negotiations, repairs, or appraisals. You’re getting the same type of cash offer that you would get if you listed except with none of the stress.
Q: Is there any obligation when I submit my information?
A: Nope. It’s 100% free and there’s no obligation to accept our offer. Once you tell us a bit about your property, we’ll take a look at things, maybe set up a call with you to find out a bit more, and make you an all-cash offer that’s fair for you and fair for us. From there, it’s 100% your decision on whether or not you’d like to sell your house to us. We’ll let you decide what’s right for you.