If you’ve been driving around in Bakersfield, chances are you’ve seen some billboards advertising companies that buy houses.
Often times they say things like “We Buy Bakersfield Houses!” or “We’ll Pay Cash For Your House”.
Are These “We Buy Houses in Bakersfield Companies” Credible?
How do I know if the local house buying companies out there are honest and credible?
Well… sometimes they all look the same at the start… but below we’ll walk you through some things to look for in a local house buying company before you should work with them.
Buying and selling houses is a valid and respectable profession that can help communities and house sellers in many different ways. But just like any other line of work – a small bunch of dishonest house buyers in any market are the ones who make the rest of us look bad.
There are people who are really great, ethical folks who improve their neighborhoods one property at a time. These are the ones that really care about people and the work that they’re doing, as opposed to only focusing on the money. They recognize that money will come when focus on doing the right thing for people and the community.
And then there’s shady, dishonest people who put money ahead of the well being of their clients and who would sign the contract to sell their own grandmother with one hand while stabbing you in the back with the other – as long as they were making enough money.
Yes, they are out there, and unfortunately it is far too common.
We’ll help you avoid these “shady house buyers” so you can work with truthful, upstanding, and reputable local companies who can buy your house for a fair all cash offer, close on your schedule, and make sure you are well taken care of during the entire process.
But let’s not dwell on the negative – at least not yet.
First, let’s cover exactly what the best house-flippers are doing.
What Reputable Bakersfield House Buyers Are Doing
- Helping folks improve their lives by accessing the money they need right away. People often need cash from selling their house to cover unexpected medical expenses, or to relocate to be close to a relative. We can make that happen as soon as possible so you can have peace of mind.
- Helping sellers get rid of a burdensome property without the hassle of having to list it with a broker and wait month after month just to have the disappointment of having escrow fall apart at the last minute. Our offers are reliable and trustworthy, as we do this for a living. We don’t window shop houses just to back out of our word. Our intention is to help homeowners like you with one of the biggest decisions of your life, and add as much value as we can.
- Creating local jobs. We hire plumbers, contractors, electricians, brokers, title reps, loan officers, administrators and many other folks along the way. The average real estate transaction involves 86 people from start to finish. Our investments help create real jobs for people around Bakersfield California. This is something that not many people are aware of. It is not as simple as buying a house and reselling for a profit. There are a lot of moving parts involved in “flipping” a house, and there are dozens of people, dozens of families, that benefit from every single transaction that we make. What a great feeling to know that you are a part of something so much bigger than just one property.
- Buying US products. We spend tons of money on materials that are made right here in the USA – that creates jobs in our timber mills, factories, supply shops, distribution centers and more. The US economy depends on steady improvement, and that requires investment from folks like us. We are excited to give opportunities to hard-working men and women around the country to continue to help this economy grow and prosper.
- Increasing the value of Bakersfield neighborhoods. When we improve a house, we’re helping to increase the value of the entire community. We often repair abandoned and neglected houses, turning them into beautiful homes for families. That activity strengthens Bakersfield. We have conversations with neighbors all the time that are so thankful for what we do because it improves their neighborhood. These are even more people that benefit from one house being sold.
- Increasing the tax base. When a new buyer takes over one of our properties, they’ll pay a higher tax rate based on the new and improved value. Those taxes go to pay for our schools, fire, police, libraries, streets and other valuable pieces of infrastructure. Again, improving our neighborhoods.
Pretty cool stuff, right?
Lots of people think of house-flipping as a get-rich-quick scheme. That’s fueled by silly “reality” shows that amp up the drama because the reality of what we do on a daily basis is actually pretty boring. Have you ever met someone who was able to flip an entire house in 30 minutes in real life? If you have, I would love to meet them and learn their secrets. What we do is hard work and takes a lot of skill and relationship-building to work together and make something beautiful.
Most of our work is coordinating with lots of people to make sure things are happening on time. We have to keep track of so many moving parts.
So let’s get back to how you can use this information to find out if someone is a credible investor, and not just pulling a house buying scam.
How To Ensure You’re Working With A Reputable Local House Buyer
When you talk with a local house buyer to potentially buy your house… ask them some of the questions below to ensure they’re reputable, knowledgeable, and honest.
Ask open-ended questions like:
- How do you help your clients?
- What do you do for people?
- Can you tell me more about your services?
- What aspect of your business makes you the proudest?
- How would you describe your investment philosophy?
- How can I know that you’ll close on my house when you say you will?
Second, look for tell tale signs of tactics that those few shady operators tend to use.
- “Kitchen table closings” – If a property buyer tries to get you to sign the deed (ownership) of your house over to them at your house, rather than a professional place like a closing attorney or title company… be leery. Most reputable house buying services will perform the actual closing of the sale at a neutral 3rd party place… like a title company. This ensures everything is done right and on the up and up. Don’t feel pressured to make a decision that you do not understand. If you are confused, that is their fault for not explaining everything better to you. Knowledge is power, so make sure you are well aware of everything before you sign.
- Pressuring you into a fast closing – If a house buyer tries to pressure you into selling your house and says that you have to make the decision today, be careful. Most reputable house buying services will make you an offer and that offer will be on the table for at least 2-7 days (minimum) for you to make a decision. The reason reputable house buying services like ours at Buyers of Bakersfield do have to place deadlines on our offers is because the market changes and values can change week to week depending on other sales in the area. Also… we buy several houses per month and when we make you an offer we’re assuring you that the cash to purchase your house is ready and we’ll reserve that cash for several days so if you do want to sell your house, we can close on your schedule. If you feel the offer isn’t a fit for you, then we’ll assign those funds to help another seller with their home sale.
Most scammers are looking for a quick score, and not an in-depth interview. Feel free to ask questions and get comfortable with someone who is trying to buy your house. This is a considerable transaction, and you should have all the information you need to make an informed decision. If someone does not have the answers, or doesn’t at least try to find an answer for you, then look for someone who can answer your questions and help you with your specific situation. Not everyone is the same, and you should work with someone that can adapt to your circumstances.
Chances are good that they’ll find excuses to get off the phone and move on to someone who doesn’t ask too many questions. Challenge them to prove their trustworthiness. This doesn’t mean that you should distrust everyone that you speak with, but ask questions just like you were thinking of buying something for yourself.
True investors who run honest and ethical Bakersfield house buying services, however, are building long-term businesses based on relationships and community development. We care about people and about how they think about us. It is always in our best interest to take care of people, since we recognize that we are really in the people business, not the house business.
So when you’re looking at one of the “we buy houses in Bakersfield companies“… never be afraid to ask questions!