“Interested in hearing a cash offer for your house at 155 Mable?”…
That’s what the text said as it flashed across Jim’s iPhone. He halted his Tuesday afternoon stroll with his wife, Veronica, to skim the message that came through.
See…Jim owned 155 Mable as a rental property. He’d owned it for a good 13 years…tenant paid on time, but they were enjoying his house at below market rent.
Jim and Veronica decided to give the new mom and her child a break on the rent. Market rent was around $1,100, but she’s paid consistently $675 on time for the past 10 years.
Jim had taken care of the house…but knew it likely needed a bit of love to shine once again.
“Sure, what are you offering?”
…
…
“I can give you $155,000 for it as-is. No repairs. We can close fast with cash!!! How does that sound?”
Jim was quite surprised. He didn’t know who texted him…but this John Doe was willing to part with $155,000 for his rental property. He knew his house would probably sell for $200,000.
But…you know…that requires getting the tenant out…paying contractors…paying realtor commissions…$155,000 wasn’t a bad deal.
“Make it $160,000 and you got a deal!”, Jim shot back.
…
…
“Done. I’ll send the contract. What’s the best email for you, Randy?”
…Randy?…Jim didn’t know who Randy was, but he figured this guy was texting a lot of people. Sent over his information and Jim and Veronica started planning out what they were going to do with their $160,000 about to zap into their account.
“A vacation!”…Veronica squealed. Jim walked with a pep in his step as nothing pleased him more than seeing his wife excited for something.
…Fast forward a week later…
Over the past 7 days, Jim finally connected with mysterious texter #1. His name was Dexter and he was sourcing properties to wholesale.
Wholesalers are “investors” who get properties under contract, then essentially sell the contract to someone like us at Rocking Porch Homes who holds it or fixes it up and sells it.***
Jim liked Dexter. He was personable. Easy to talk to. Handsome. All great qualities.
Jim allowed Dexter to finally come and see the house…Dexter couldn’t make it so he sent one of his “associates.” The associate took pictures, and also an inspector came through to put the bones of the place through the ringer.
Everything seemed to be going swimmingly…
Then, on the 8th day, Jim got a phonecall.
“Hey Jim, it’s Dexter! Hope you’re doing well. Got a minute? “
“Sure, Dexter…what’s up?”
“Well, I’d hate to do this to you, Jim, but my inspector went through and it does not look good. We saw a ton of red flags on the property.”
“What kind of red flags?” , Jim slowly responded back…
“Oh, well, the house needs a new roof, a new air conditioner and furnace, the bathrooms need updating, and so does the kitchen. We’ll also need to paint, add some new flooring, and it looks like some siding is coming off.”
“Ok…”, Jim sheepishly replied…a dread of what’s coming…
“Like I said, I’d hate to do this, but I’m thinking this is something like $30,000 in repairs we’re looking at. So, our offer unfortunately has to come down to $125,000….else we can’t move forward with the sale.”
“But, I already told the tenants they have to vacant in 30 days…they’re already packing up!” Jim pushes back with a bit of anger behind his tone.
“I mean, I’m sorry. I didn’t know the house needed this much work.” , Dexter calmly responds.
“You told me you were buying the house AS-IS! What does that mean then?!?” Jim explodes…
“Oh, well that just means you don’t have to do any repairs. You get to leave the house however you want, Jim. It’s easy for you. With a realtor, you’d have to clean up, fix the place, do showings and all that.” , Dexter replied with a tone of confidence.
…
Let’s recap…
- Jim is under contract to sell his house.
- Jim’s wife is excited about getting rid of the house and using the money for something else. Jim would hate to let his wife down.
- Jim has already told his tenant of 10 years to beat it
- Jim has already invested time in this transaction and (subsconsciously) is already done with this house
- Jim does not want to pay for repairs
After stewing in frustration…Jim said he won’t go lower than $133,000.
Dexter quickly agrees, and everything is back on.
But…just like that…Jim lost $22,000 in a matter of minutes.
For someone working for 10 per hour at Starbucks…that’s OVER A YEAR of working 40 hours per week…poof…evaporated.
…
To make matters worse, Dexter calls a couple days before closing and says he needs another $3,000 off for some decking rot and water damage found in the foundation.
Jim, at that point, wants to hear nothing else. He agrees…and sells his house for $130,000. $25,000 less than what he originally agreed to.
CAN YOU SEE WHAT JUST HAPPENED HERE?
Jim receives a text…out of the blue…from someone he’s never met.
This person makes an offer without knowing anything about Jim…his house…who lives in the house…more importantly, the CONDITION of the house.
Let me be absolutely clear about something…
If someone makes you an offer on your property that is a strong cash offer WITHOUT having seen your house…
(even if you’ve listed with a realtor and it’s on Redfin and Realtor.com)…
THEY ARE NOT A SERIOUS BUYER.
They’re simply pulling off a bait and switch.
The bait being —> You sign a contract…you become emotionally invested in said-contract…and mentally preparing yourself to be done with the property.
The switch being —> They come back (and they always will…100% of the time)…with a “repairs adjustment.” They’ll talk you down even more about needing ‘big’ repairs done.
Here’s why they aren’t serious…
Have you ever bought anything without seeing it?
Even when you go on Amazon to buy a book…you’d like to see the cover of it?
These people texting you…all they’ve seen is the public records and maybe a Google Street View. They haven’t driven by the house no matter what lie they tell you.
These people are sending out 500 texts a day (as that’s all they can legally do without drawing attention from the government).
They’re fishing. Some would argue illegally.
The question is…are you going to fall for this bait and switch? I’d estimate hundreds if not thousands have.
iBuyers already pull this bait and switch on a mass scale and get away with it.
At Rocking Porch Homes…
#1. We know this area. We live here. We know what it costs to fix things, what the values are…what schools are good and bad.
#2. We give you a price and we stick to it. At times, we will give you a price over the phone without seeing the house…but we ask extensive questions about what repairs need done before making our offer. Usually, we try and set an appointment first to give you the clearest picture.
#3. Your transaction goes smoothly every time. If something comes up…say a title issue…or a major problem with the house that I missed on a walk-thru, we will sit down and figure out what we can do. We’ll work to make sure no more money comes out of your pocket if it makes sense.
What you see is what you get.
That’s rare nowadays…
Not in politics…not in your job…not in real estate do you get 100% honesty.
We pledge to be honest about your house.
Heck, I told someone two days ago to list their house with a realtor and not sell to us. They had a pristine house that would sell fast. No repairs required. “Get a realtor and list it. It’ll sell fast. You don’t need us.” That’s what I told her.
If you’re interested in hearing 100% honesty…and not get the runaround with bait-and-switch schemes…click this button right now and fill out the form about your house. It’s free, no high-stress pitch. Let’s just chat.
I’ll talk to you later,
Joe Cassandra