It's the first question every seller asks, and a lot of websites dodge it. So here's the honest answer: a genuine cash house buyer typically pays around 75% to 85% of your home's full market value. Let's unpack why — and how to make sure the offer you're given is fair.
Why the offer is below market value
A cash buyer is taking on everything a normal buyer offloads onto you. They buy with no chain and no mortgage, complete in days, purchase in any condition, and carry the risk and cost of reselling. That certainty and speed is the product you're buying, and it's priced into the offer. Any buyer promising full market value and a fast cash completion is either about to drop the price later or isn't a genuine cash buyer at all.
What you save that offsets the discount
- No estate-agent fees — commonly 1–3% of the sale price, gone.
- No legal costs — a good cash buyer covers them.
- No months of carrying costs — every month a house sits unsold is another mortgage payment, council tax, insurance and utility bill.
- No fall-through risk — around a third of open-market sales collapse; each restart costs time and money.
- No repairs, staging or viewings.
Run the numbers on the net outcome, not the headline. A guaranteed 80–85% with no fees and no waiting is often much closer to a drawn-out agent sale than it first looks.
How to check an offer is fair
- Know your market value first. Get two or three free agent valuations and check recent sold prices for similar homes on your street. We build every Braehold offer against genuine local sold prices — see the real figures on your local area page.
- Get the offer in writing, with the percentage of market value made clear.
- Ask how they reached it. A fair buyer will show you the comparable sales behind the number.
- Watch for last-minute reductions. A genuine offer is held to; "gazundering" just before completion is the oldest trick in this trade.
Red flags
Upfront or hidden fees, pressure to sign quickly, no proof of funds, or an offer that mysteriously drops at the eleventh hour — any of these, and you should walk away. See our guide on how to spot a genuine cash buyer.
Braehold's promise is in our name: sold fair. We show you how we reached the figure, put it in writing, and hold to it — here's how it works.