Best Way for Selling Your Land Fast for Cash, by Owner, Without a Realtor
Even though the information on this web page is provided by a qualified industry expert, it should not be considered as legal, tax, financial or investment advice. Since every individual’s situation is unique, a qualified professional should be consulted before making financial decisions.
From the following guide, you’ll learn how to sell a lot of land and the procedures around it.
We’ll also unpack what happens when you sell land without a real estate agent, as well as the best way to sell land quickly for cash.
Let’s discuss your options.
How to Sell Your Land Privately, Fast, and for Cash
If you need to sell your land quickly and easily, you need to find a cash buyer. Cash buyer means someone who already has the money to buy your property and doesn’t need a mortgage.
When a buyer needs a mortgage, it complicates the selling process and makes it longer. To get a loan, they will need to qualify for it, which includes submitting not only their own financial paperwork but also papers regarding your land.
As part of this process, your land may have to be appraised, inspected, and surveyed. So if you don’t have the time or patience to be put through all these procedures, which take weeks, you need a cash buyer.
The bad news is that most buyers don’t buy real estate for cash because:
- The average buyer doesn’t have the cash to fully fund a land deal.
- Businesses prefer to leverage debt for tax and other financial reasons instead of buying land for cash.
However, there are specialized companies whose business is buying land fast and for cash. You can easily sell a parcel of land to them.
Who Are Cash Land Buyers?
Professional cash land buyers are real estate investing companies that buy and sell land.
They execute varying investment strategies. Some of them buy land to simply keep it and to sell it later when it has grown in value. Others are developers who make improvements to land and resell it.
But they all offer buying land fast, for cash, without having you pay real estate agent commissions, and privately.
Process of Selling Land to a Cash Land Buyer
If you want to sell a plot of land to a professional cash land buying company, the entire process typically involves five steps:
- Request an offer from a cash property buyer.
- Arrange for a land viewing with the prospective buyer so they can assess the land’s condition, location, and value.
- Having done that, they will make you an offer. Accept or negotiate it.
- Close in 3 to 30 days from the day you signed the offer. This depends on how fast you need to sell your land and whether or not it has liens, title problems, or other issues. If it does, the real estate investors will help you resolve them.
- The cash will be sent to your account at closing. But it may take one or two days for the payment to be processed by your and the investor’s banks.
Pros of Selling to Cash Land Buyers
The following are the benefits you get when selling land to a cash buyer:
- You can sell land as is, which means you won’t have to spend time and money on improving or cleaning it.
- These serious buyers purchase land for cash, eliminating the protracted process of loan application, approval, land surveying, and appraisal.
- Cash investors close fast — in three days to a few weeks, depending on the specifics of the purchase agreement.
- Working with a cash land buying company means you avoid paying high realtor fees because you don’t need to hire an agent for such a deal.
- Cash land investors also cover closing costs for sellers. You don’t need to come to the closing with your own cash to pay any fees.
- A sale to cash property buyers is private and doesn’t require advertising to the general public.
Instead of announcing to the whole country that you are selling land, marketing your plot on real estate websites, hoping that there are interested buyers out there, and waiting for them to reach out, you just contact a professional cash buyer and get an offer.
Cons of Selling to Cash Land Buyers
Although you enjoy many advantages in a hassle-free sale to a cash buyer, there’s one downside to keep in mind:
- While it’s not always the case, the cash offer you receive might be lower than the land’s market value.
Some real estate cash buyers purchase land to resell it. In this case, they will have to buy your plot cheaper than the price at which they could sell it to someone else.
However, if you consider the realtor commissions and closing costs you avoid when working with a cash land investor, your take-home amount may be comparable to the one you’d get from a traditional sale.
Where to Find a Cash Land Buyer
Getting cash offers from professional land buyers is easy. But a cash buyer you will come across will not necessarily be an ethical professional.
Some of them advertise a fast cash-based real estate transaction, but in fact, they don’t have the cash to finance their purchase. If this is the case, you will have to waste your time waiting for them to get a loan.
Others are looking for distressed sellers to take advantage of by confusing them into accepting a lowball offer or paying their closing costs.
Unfortunately, like every industry, real estate has its fraudsters, whether it’s an investor or a realtor.
Therefore, to make sure you are dealing with a reputable company, vet them first. Look at the “About Us” section on their website to identify the people you consider doing business with.
Read reviews that their previous clients wrote on third-party platforms such as Real Estate Bees, Facebook, Google, Yelp, or BBB.
You will have even higher chances to deal with a reputable professional if you request cash offers via our platform.
At HouseCashin, we screen investors who join our network for experience and high standards of service.
Submit a cash offer request form now to start getting quotes from land buyers investing in property near you, wherever in the U.S. your parcel is located.
There are no fees or obligation to accept any offer.
The Traditional Process to Sell Land by Owner, Without a Realtor
Another way you can sell your land yourself is by doing it the classic way — through listing and marketing to the general public.
The procedure for selling land traditionally largely involves advertising your land by using onsite signage, online marketplaces such as Zillow, print media, and social media, among other marketing channels.
To get started, you’ll first need to complete a land selling checklist to verify details about the land for sale. This includes:
- Ensuring you have all the required permits and approvals for selling the land. Depending on your local laws, you may need to obtain copies of surveys, deeds, and other legal documents, conduct title deed verification, and determine whether the land has any liens or disputes.
- Collecting key details about the land, including its size, boundaries, and any distinctive features. If you don’t have them, you’ll need to hire a land surveyor.
- Documenting any existing features or additions to the land, such as roads, utilities, and structures.
Once you’ve ticked off the checklist, you can get into the steps to selling a piece of land by owner:
- Conduct a market analysis to know the right asking price for the land parcel. Find out how much similar plots in the area are selling for and identify market trends that may affect the land’s value.
- Prepare your commercial or residential land for sale. For underdeveloped rural land, clear overgrowth and dead trees, and remove junk.
If you’re selling vacant land in a developed or urban area, remove trash and graffiti, and fix broken fences. If there’s a building slated for demolition, secure it or tear it down.
- Advertise the vacant land to the general public. You will need to take photos, videos, and drone shots to use in your marketing efforts.
After that, you can list the property details on popular FSBO-listing websites such as the HouseCashin investment property marketplace and the Real Estate Bees property marketplace.
- Review the offers you receive, negotiate with the prospective buyers, and select the best deal possible.
- Coordinate with the buyer’s agent, real estate law firm, and title company to handle title search, escrow, deed transfer, and the closing process.
- Close and receive your money in your bank account.
FAQ
Is it hard to sell land?
The ease of selling land is mainly based on the market. In hot markets, such as urban areas and growing suburbs, demand is high, and selling may be somewhat easy.
Rural, underdeveloped land can be harder to sell and may sit on the market for extended periods.’
Overall, the most straightforward solution for a successful land sale is selling to a cash investor, as they will have an appropriate cash offer for any piece of land.
How to find land buyers
The most common way people look for land buyers is advertising on major listing platforms such as Zillow and social media.
However, the major issue with conventional buyers is that they require financing; the mortgage application and approval process delays the sale.
The simplest and most stress-free way you can find potential buyers is by getting in touch with companies that buy land for cash.
With this option, you won’t have to spend time and money on advertising your land and waiting for prospective buyers to reach out.
Professional cash land buyers will make a no-obligation cash offer on your land in less than 24 hours after viewing.
How to sell land to a developer
If you want to sell your land to a developer, you have to ensure the land is suitable for building.
For instance, agricultural land isn’t suited for development, so developers typically won’t be interested. In contrast, land zoned for building houses or commercial properties on it is much more attractive to them.
To find reliable and professional developers in your location, consider requesting a cash offer from the HouseCashin investors. Many of them are developers.
How to sell land online for free
You can sell land online without realtor commissions and closing costs if you sell to a company that specializes in buying land for cash.
At HouseCashin, we have a nationwide network of real estate investors who buy land. Request a cash offer from land investors on the platform to sell your property online and without any fees.
