A cash sale is faster and certain, but the offer is below market value. Listing usually produces a higher price, but costs you commission, repairs, concessions and months of carrying costs. This calculator compares what you would actually keep on each route.
We did not rig this in our favour. On the default settings it tells you to list, because for a home in reasonable condition with no time pressure, listing genuinely nets more. Every assumption below is editable, including the margin we build into our own offer.
What a comparable renovated home sells for
Cosmetic updating: paint, flooring, older kitchen or bath
Deducted from both routes equally
Payment, taxes, insurance, HOA, utilities
Marketing time plus escrow
Costs money up front and delays the listing, but reaches full market price
On these numbers, listing nets you about $27,300 more than our cash offer. You would wait roughly 17 more weeks for it, and the outcome is not guaranteed. If your home is in sellable condition and you are not under time pressure, listing is very likely the better financial decision — and we would tell you that on the phone too.
Put another way: selling to us costs about $1,606 per week of time saved. Whether that is worth paying depends entirely on your situation — a foreclosure date, a probate deadline or a house you cannot afford to carry can make it worth every dollar. If none of those apply to you, it probably is not.
This is an estimate, not an offer or an appraisal. It uses typical percentages, not your actual property. Real repair costs, commission rates and market conditions vary, and a listing carries the additional risk that it does not sell at the price you expect. Nothing here is financial, tax or legal advice — please speak to a qualified professional about your own circumstances.
Most sellers who choose a cash sale are not doing it because the arithmetic favours it. They are buying certainty. Here is what actually differs between the two routes.
| Cash sale | Traditional listing | |
|---|---|---|
| Repairs required | None | Usually needed to compete |
| Staging and photography | None | Expected in most price bands |
| Public showings | None | Ongoing until it sells |
| Financing contingency | None — cash purchase | Buyer's loan can fall through |
| Inspection renegotiation | None | Common; can reopen the price |
| Closing date | You choose it | Whenever a buyer is found and funded |
| Certainty of closing | Fixed once agreed | Conditional until it funds |
| Price upside | None — fixed offer | Yours if the market is strong |
Note the last row: with a cash sale you give up the upside. If the market moves in your favour while your house is listed, that gain is yours — not ours.
We will look at your actual property and explain the factors behind the offer, including condition, comparable sales, estimated repairs and resale costs. If the calculator above says listing is better for you, we will say the same thing on the phone.