Cash Offer or List It? How to Compare What You Actually Keep in Athens

If you are selling a house in Athens, you will probably hear two numbers. An agent tells you what the house might list for. A cash buyer tells you what they will pay for it as it is. The listing number is almost always higher, so it looks like an easy choice.

Those two numbers are measuring different things. The listing number is a hoped-for price before any costs come out. The cash number is closer to what lands in your bank account. To compare them fairly, you have to work both down to the same thing: what you keep, and when you get it.

Start with a realistic sale price

The list price is only the opening ask. Base your math on the price a buyer will actually pay for your house in the condition it is in today. Online estimates are a rough guess at best, and they usually assume a house in average shape.

Ask an agent to show you recent sales of similar houses close to yours, and ask how those houses compared on condition. If those sold homes had new kitchens and yours has the original one, your price will land lower. Write down a number you believe, and keep the agent's best-case number off to the side.

The costs of listing

Here is what usually comes out of a listed sale before you see any money:

• Commission. Commissions are negotiable and vary from agent to agent. Ask for the full amount in writing, including anything you agree to pay toward the buyer's agent.
• Seller closing costs. In Georgia, a closing attorney handles the sale. Your share can include attorney fees, the state transfer tax, any liens or past-due taxes, and your mortgage payoff.
• Repairs before listing. Paint, flooring, landscaping and anything an agent says will scare buyers off.
• Repairs after the inspection. Most buyers order an inspection and then ask for repairs or a price cut. This often happens after you have already started packing.
• A low appraisal. If the buyer is using a loan and the appraisal comes in under the contract price, you may be asked to lower the price to match.

Time costs money too

Every month the house is on the market, you keep paying for it. That means the mortgage, property taxes, insurance, utilities, lawn care, and the gas to drive over and check on it. If the house is empty, some insurance policies cover less, and you may need a different policy.

Ask your agent how long similar houses near you took to go from listing to closing. Then multiply your monthly costs by that number of months, plus one or two for safety. Deals also fall apart. A buyer's loan can be denied or an inspection can turn up something the buyer will not accept, and then you start over.

The costs of a cash offer

A cash offer is lower than the best price a fixed-up house would bring. The buyer is taking on the repairs, the holding costs and the work of reselling it, and the offer reflects that. You should know that going in.

Some costs go away, though. With most cash buyers there is no agent commission. Some will cover part or all of the closing costs. There are no repairs to make and no showings, and because there is no loan, there is no appraisal or financing to fall through. You also pick the closing date, which lets you plan a move instead of waiting on someone else's timeline.

Put both side by side

Take a sheet of paper and work each column down to one number. For the listing, it looks like this:

For the cash offer, take the offer and subtract your payoff and any closing costs the buyer is not covering. Now you have two numbers that mean the same thing. The gap between them is the real price of speed and convenience, and only you can decide if it is worth it.

When listing is the better choice

If your house is updated and clean, and you have a few months and can keep it ready for showings, listing it will often put more money in your pocket. A good local agent is worth hiring in that case. We tell sellers this too. When a house is a better fit for the open market, Barrington can give you a listing proposal instead of a cash offer, or show you our Equity Protection Program, which pairs a quick cash offer with market pricing.

When a cash offer makes more sense

The math tends to tip toward cash when the house needs big repairs, like a roof, foundation work or water damage. It also tips that way when the house is full of a parent's belongings, when tenants live there, or when you are facing a foreclosure sale, a divorce or a move out of state. In those cases the costs and months on the listing side grow fast, and the gap between the two numbers shrinks.

Athens has plenty of these houses. Older homes in neighborhoods like Cobbham, Boulevard and Normaltown can need more work than buyers expect, and rentals near UGA often show years of student wear. Our Athens page covers the areas we buy in, and our page on selling a house that needs major repairs explains how we price repairs.

What Barrington's offer includes

We have been buying houses around Athens since 2015. Our offer is in writing, with no fees or commissions, and we can often pay your closing costs and attorney fees. You choose the closing date, from about seven days if the title is clear to several months out. You do not have to take the offer, and asking for one is free.

Get both numbers before you decide. Send us the address, and we will give you a written cash offer to set next to the listing math.