Selling a House Fast is a Relative Term: How Long Does It Take To Sell My House With An Agent Vs An Investor?
Every Market is Different and so is Every House and if you need to sell your House Fast in Stockton, Manteca, Modesto or Sacramento then two things will drive the decision and the answer.
- What Condition of the house
- How Much Time Do You have
Sometimes it is a matter of urgency and sometimes you just want to be done with that house.
If you need to sell your house fast and you find yourself working against the clock and wondering “how long does it take to sell my house with an agent vs an investor?” then this article will provide some answers…
You want to sell your house, and perhaps you need to sell in a hurry then chances are, you arrived at this blog post because you’re hoping to find the best solution for you that sells your house as quickly as YOU need.
Before we answer the basic question however, it’s important to understand the difference between what Real Estate Agents do and what a Real Estate Investor does:
When you sell your house with a real estate agent, you contracting with the agent to represent you in the sale and to try and find a buyer on your behalf. Of course this comes with a cost and its known as a Real Estate Commission and be aware that in California there are 2 Commissions to pay: one for the buyers agent and one for your agent. In other words, you’re selling THROUGH an agent to a buyer and you are ISOLATING yourself from both the process and any direct contact with any of the potential buyers.
When you sell your house with an investor, you are actually working directly with the person who will be buying the house. In other words, you’re selling DIRECTLY TO the investor (they are the buyer).
Now that you understand the difference, here’s how long it can take…
How Long Does It Take To Sell My House With An Agent Vs An Investor?
The Real Estate Agent…
First the Real Estate Agent will want a contract to sell your house that guarantees them a commission. That document is called a listing agreement and they are generally for 180 days. The agent needs to advertise and show your house to prospective buyers and try to convince them to buy. Therefore, they’ll want your house to be in Market Ready and Pristine Condition, and then they need to find as many prospective buyers as they can to show your house to.
As a result, the real estate agent will want you to fix up your house and that can take several weeks or months before an agent feels that it’s ready to list. Once the agent lists it, it can take months for the agent to find buyers to show your house to, and for one of those buyers to make an offer (on average, it can take 3-6 months… sometimes as long as 12 months for this to happen). And what people don’t realize is: if the buyer can’t get financing or gets cold feet during that process then they can back out and you have to start the process all over again.
Realistically, it can take months to sell your house through an agent – it all depends on how quickly you can get your house in “Market Ready Condition” and how quickly they can find a buyer and whether the buyer goes through with the purchase.
How Long Does It Take To Sell My House With An Agent Vs An Investor?
The Real Estate Investor…
This is the part surprises most people: an investor can buy your house very fast – some investors can even buy in as little as 7-10 days if that’s what you want. That’s because the investor is the buyer (so no showings are necessary) and many investors (Westbrook REI included) We buy houses in any condition or As Is, so you don’t have to fix or clean anything.
So, should you sell through an agent or sell to an investor? That’s up to you. An investor is definitely the fastest. If speed is important to you then you may want to think about selling to an investor.