How to Vet a Cash Buyer for an Estate Property: 10 Questions to Ask

The “we buy houses” industry has honest operators and it has people who make everyone look bad. Estates attract the second kind, because the sellers are often grieving, out of state, unfamiliar with real estate, and eager for the whole thing to be over. We’re a cash buyer ourselves, so telling you to be skeptical of cash buyers might seem odd — but skepticism is exactly what we want from you. A seller who asks hard questions and compares offers is a seller who closes with confidence, and legitimate buyers have nothing to fear from the list below.

Ask every prospective buyer these ten questions, in writing where you can. The answers matter, but so does the reaction: a buyer who bristles at basic due-diligence questions has answered a bigger question already.

1. Can you show proof of funds?

“Cash buyer” is a claim, not a fact, until you’ve seen evidence — a recent bank statement, a letter from their bank, or a verifiable line of credit in the buyer’s name. Some “cash buyers” have no money at all; they intend to find money, or another buyer, after tying up your property. A legitimate buyer expects this question and answers it within a day. If the proof of funds is in a different company’s name than the contract, ask why — the answer connects to question seven.

2. Will you put the full offer in writing, with all terms?

A number over the phone is not an offer. You want a written contract stating the price, deposit, contingencies, closing date, what conveys with the property, and who pays what. Verbal assurances that “we’ll work all that out” work out, reliably, in the buyer’s favor. For an estate, the written contract also matters because the personal representative may need to show it to the probate attorney — or the court — before signing; our guide on selling a house during probate explains where a contract fits into administration.

3. Who pays which closing costs?

“We pay all closing costs” is common marketing. Make it specific: title search and owner’s title policy, documentary stamp taxes on the deed, lien searches, recording fees, any HOA estoppel fees. In Florida the allocation of these is negotiable, so nothing is standard until it’s written down. Ask for a line-item estimate of the estate’s net proceeds — the number the heirs actually care about — before you sign anything.

4. How much earnest money, and who holds it?

The deposit is the buyer’s skin in the game. A serious buyer on an estate purchase puts down a meaningful deposit — not $100 — and it should be held in escrow by a neutral third party: a title company or an attorney’s trust account, never the buyer themselves or their own company. Ask what happens to the deposit if the buyer walks without a contractual reason. If the contract lets them exit freely and cheaply at any time, you don’t have a sale; you have an option they’re holding for free.

5. What are your inspection and contingency terms — and do you re-trade?

Every contract has some contingency structure; the question is whether it’s a bounded diligence period or an open-ended escape hatch. Ask how long the inspection period is and what happens after it ends. Then ask the sharper question: “Do you renegotiate price after going under contract?” The practice — called re-trading — is the signature move of bad-faith buyers: tie up the property, wait until the estate is committed and tired, then drop the price citing “unexpected issues.” Ask directly for addresses of recent closings where the final price matched the contract price. Buyers who don’t re-trade can prove it.

6. What exactly is your timeline — and will you commit to it in the contract?

“We can close in two weeks” is easy to say. Ask what the contract’s closing date is, what can extend it, and how many extensions they’ve taken on their last few deals. Note that on an estate, some delays are legitimately on the seller’s side — probate authority, title work, creditor windows — so a fair buyer builds in realistic time and says so. A buyer promising a seven-day close on a property that’s mid-probate either doesn’t understand estates or is telling you what you want to hear; realistic probate timelines are worth knowing before you evaluate anyone’s promises.

7. Are you buying this yourself, or assigning the contract to someone else?

This is the question sellers most often don’t know to ask. Many “cash buyers” are wholesalers: they contract with you, then sell the contract to an actual buyer for a fee, and never intended to close themselves. Assignment isn’t illegal, but you deserve to know which kind of counterparty you have, because a wholesaler who can’t find an end buyer will delay, re-trade, or vanish. Ask plainly: “Will the name on the contract be the name on the deed at closing?” and check whether the contract says “and/or assigns” after the buyer’s name. If they are assigning, everything in questions one through six applies to the person they’re assigning to — whom you’ve never met.

8. Can you point me to references and reviews?

Look for a track record you can verify: online reviews across more than one platform, how long the company has actually operated, and — ideally — a past seller or two you can call, particularly other estates. Check the company’s status on Florida’s state records (Sunbiz) to see how long the entity has existed. A company formed two months ago with a stock-photo website is not disqualified, but it hasn’t earned the benefit of the doubt either.

9. Have you bought probate properties before — and do you know what Letters of Administration are?

Estate sales have machinery that ordinary sales don’t: Letters of Administration establishing the personal representative’s authority, possible court approval, homestead questions, creditor periods, sometimes multiple heirs signing. A buyer who has never touched a probate purchase will make promises the process can’t keep, and their frustration becomes your pressure. Ask the question in the header verbatim. A probate-experienced buyer will answer immediately and will probably ask you good questions back — who the PR is, whether Letters have issued, which attorney is handling administration. If the buyer looks blank, they can still be honest; they just can’t be your guide. Background for your side of that conversation is in our pillar guide to Florida probate and our article on the personal representative’s role in a sale.

10. Will you work with the estate’s attorney and title company?

The estate’s probate attorney and a reputable title company are the sellers’ protection: they confirm who may sign, clear the title, hold the deposit, and disburse proceeds correctly. A trustworthy buyer welcomes them. Be wary of any buyer who insists on their own title company only, pushes a notarized document “to get started” before the attorney has seen anything, or suggests the attorney is an unnecessary expense. Special caution: never sign anything that transfers an interest in the property — a deed, an option, a memorandum of contract — outside a normal closing. If a buyer’s paperwork confuses you, the answer is “my attorney will review it,” full stop.

Get more than one number

Even a buyer who passes all ten questions is still just one data point. Get at least two written cash offers, and get a licensed agent’s opinion of the as-is listing value — many agents will provide one at no charge hoping to earn the listing, and that’s a fair trade. Compare everything on net proceeds and time, not gross price. Our companion article Keep, Rent, or Sell provides the framework, and if you’re weighing repairs first, so does As-Is vs. Fixing It Up.

Where we stand

123SellCash will answer all ten of these questions in writing for any property we make an offer on — proof of funds, escrow-held deposit, no assignment without telling you, references, and yes, we know exactly what Letters of Administration are; estate purchases in Broward, Miami-Dade, and Palm Beach counties are our focus. Our offer will be below full retail; that’s the honest trade for speed, certainty, and buying as-is, and we’d rather you compare us against a listing than take our word for anything. When you’re ready for a number you can put through this gauntlet, request a no-obligation offer — and bring your attorney into it from the start. That’s not a concession we make; it’s how we prefer to work.