951-643-2442

The calls never end.  This guy called me on my cellphone at around 8:00 AM.  I put in the number from caller ID.

Cash buyers who have cash and want to pay you cash for a quick sale of your house.  They tell you that you don’t need a real estate agent.

But be careful.
•    Wholesaling Paper flipping. They go after seniors who have no idea how much their home is worth.  Maybe they are lonely or a bit confused.  Then they immediately sell the home to someone else for a lot more money.  Once you have signed the papers it’s too late.
•    According to the Attorney General of North Carolina this is the way these scams work “Homeowners respond to a “we buy homes” ad or mailer. But instead of buying houses, most of these companies want to convince you to sign over control of your home. The company then leases the property out to a new tenant. As a result, the owner loses rights to their home but is still responsible for making the mortgage payments.’
•    According to the Attorney General of Pennsylvania, “Businesses behind the “We Buy Houses” signs typically offer to purchase a consumer’s home for less than actual value, and the “Cash for Homes” scams can take two different forms. One targets those who are trying to avoid foreclosure. The buyer may promise relief from foreclosure, but will then take the deed without paying off the mortgage balance, leaving the home-seller ultimately responsible for the monthly payments and subject to foreclosure. Another scam is when the buyer lures sellers in with promises to take the house “as is,” allowing the seller to avoid having to make repairs. However, the buyer will sometimes back away from that promise and demand certain repairs to their satisfaction before accepting a deed, leaving the seller footing the bill of the repairs after all.

Suggestions:
1.    Hire a real estate agent.  Yes, they charge a commission, but it’s worth it.  Ask your friends for a recommendation. Choose a reputable title insurance company.  The scammers will tell you that you don’t need to pay these fees, but that’s how they get you.
2.    If you don’t go with a real estate agent, don’t sign anything unless you have a Real Estate attorney look over all of the papers.  They may say they are just the standard papers, but you don’t know that.  Also hire an appraiser to get a fair value of your house.  And don’t sign over the deed until you have your money, and their check has cleared.  If their check bonuses, too bad, if you have signed over the deed someone else now owns your house.  You can fight the evection, but in the end you will not win.
3.    You have lived in your house for a long time, take a couple of weeks to think about it and maybe get three other offers for your home.
4.     Avoid signing anything today because your signature could be used for fraud.
5.    In California you need a real estate license to solicit real estate deals unless you are selling or renting your own property.  Verify that the caller has a real estate license for your state. In California go to https://www2.dre.ca.gov/PublicASP/pplinfo.asp .  And verify their ID to make sure they are not just using someone else’s license.
Honest real estate investors don’t need to do cold calls, avoid escrow companies, avoid real estate agents and will not need you to sing things right away.  Legit home buyers don’t use fake phone numbers (burner phones), change their phone number every day or hire cold callers.

Attorney General North Carolina
https://ncdoj.gov/protecting-consumers/mortga ... uy-homes-scams/

Attorney General Pennsylvania https://www.attorneygeneral.gov/taking-action ... buy-homes-scam/