Guides · Selling
Should you take the cash offer on your Seattle house?
Sometimes. A cash offer trades price for certainty, speed and no showings, and for some sellers that trade is worth making. The only honest way to decide is to compare what you would walk away with from each, not the headline numbers. Get the cash buyer's fees and repair deductions in writing, then put a listing net sheet beside them.
Why you keep hearing from them#
If you own a house in Seattle you have probably had the letter, the text or the ad: a cash offer, no repairs, no showings, close when you like. The companies behind them pay some of the highest per-click prices in Seattle real estate advertising to reach sellers, which tells you how much a seller who says yes is worth to them.
I have a stake in this too, because I am paid when you list. So here is the comparison straight, including where the cash offer genuinely wins.
What a cash offer actually is#
There are two kinds, and they work differently.
Instant-offer companies make an offer online, charge a service fee, and may adjust the price after their own inspection. Opendoor, for example, describes its service fee as competitive with agent commissions. Read that carefully: it means the fee sits in the same range as the commission you might be trying to avoid.
Investor buyers, the 'we buy houses' kind, usually plan to renovate and resell, so they need to buy below what the finished house will fetch. That margin is their business, and it comes out of the price.
Neither is a scam. Both pay you less for the house in exchange for taking on the work and the uncertainty.
Want to know how this affects your sale?
Get a real number before you listCompare the net, not the headline#
The figure on a cash offer and the figure on a listing mean nothing side by side until both have had their costs taken off.
From a cash offer, subtract the service fee, any repair deductions, your share of the closing costs and the excise tax. The excise tax is due on any sale, whoever the buyer is.
From a listing, subtract commission, any preparation, any credit you give a buyer after their inspection, your share of the closing costs and the same excise tax.
Both then lose your mortgage payoff, which is identical either way. Put the two results on one page. The gap between them is what the certainty costs you, and only once you can see it can you decide whether it is worth paying.
When the cash offer is the right answer#
When you need to be out in weeks rather than months.
When the house needs work you cannot or do not want to do before selling, and it would sell poorly without it.
When showings are not practical: a tenant in place, a health situation, a house inherited from out of state.
And when certainty is simply worth more to you than the last few percent. That is a legitimate choice, and nobody should talk you out of it.
When it usually is not#
A house in reasonable condition, in a neighbourhood where homes priced to the market still sell, owned by someone who can spare a few weeks. That describes most Seattle sellers, and for them the gap between the two nets is usually large enough to matter.
Seattle has more homes for sale this autumn than it has had in years, which makes pricing and presentation matter more. It does not stop a well-priced, well-presented house from selling.
Ask these in writing, before you sign anything#
What is the service fee, as a dollar amount rather than a percentage?
Is the offer final, or can it change after your inspection? If it can change, what would cause it to?
Which closing costs do you pay, and which do I?
Can I choose the closing date, and stay in the house after closing if I need to?
Anyone making you a serious offer can answer all four in writing.
Common questions#
Is a cash offer lower than market value?
Usually, once its fees are taken off. You are paying for speed, certainty and not having to prepare or show the house. How much lower depends on the house, which is why the only useful comparison is net to net.
Do I still pay excise tax on a cash sale?
Yes. Washington's real estate excise tax applies to the sale, not to how the buyer pays. It is usually the seller's cost either way.
Can a cash offer change after they inspect?
Many can. Ask whether the figure is final or subject to their inspection, and get the answer in writing before you commit to anything.
Should I get a cash offer even if I plan to list?
It does no harm. A cash offer is a useful floor: if a listing would not clearly beat it once costs are taken off, that is worth knowing before you start.
Is it better to sell as-is to an investor or list it as-is?
Listing as-is reaches more buyers, including ones who want a project and will pay for it. A cash investor gives you speed and certainty. Compare the net on both before choosing.