How to check a cash house buyer before you sell

To check a cash house buyer, find out three things before you agree to anything: who will actually buy your home, whether they really have the money, and what you'd be signing up to. In practice that means asking for proof of funds, looking the company up, checking whether it belongs to The Property Ombudsman or the National Association of Property Buyers (NAPB), and having your own solicitor read every document.

Most cash buyers deal fairly, but the checks take an hour or two and could save you thousands of pounds. This guide covers the warning signs, the checks to make, and what good practice looks like. It's general information for England and Wales.

Why the checks matter

In 2013 the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) studied the quick house sale sector and found practices that "may not comply with the law". Among them:

• Late price cuts. Across the complaints it received, offers were cut by between 7% and 53% of the initial offer, averaging 22%, sometimes after the seller had already committed to buying their next home.
• Firms falsely claiming to be cash buyers, when they were really looking for an investor after the seller had agreed.
• Long lock-in agreements, sometimes six months or a year, that stopped sellers selling elsewhere and cost thousands of pounds to get out of.
• Unexpected fees, for example after an initial valuation.

The OFT went on to accept promises from four national firms to improve their practices, including not cutting offers without a valid reason. The Property Ombudsman now has a code of practice for property buying companies, but not every firm signs up to it, so the warning signs are still worth knowing.

Red flags

Walk away, or at least slow down, if a buyer:

• asks you to pay a fee upfront for a valuation, survey or "registration"
• won't say who the buyer is, or talks about its "investors" or "assigning" the deal (signs it may be a broker, not a buyer)
• can't or won't show proof of funds
• asks you to sign an exclusivity or option agreement, especially one lasting longer than a few weeks, or one that puts a restriction on your title at HM Land Registry
• pressures you to decide on the spot, or says the offer disappears tomorrow
• insists you use its solicitor
• cuts the price close to exchange without showing you a survey or a clear reason
• makes an "instant offer" and treats it as firm without seeing the home
• promises a completion date that ignores probate, a leasehold pack or your mortgage

Checks to make before you agree

1. Find out whether they're buying or brokering

Ask directly: "Will your company buy my home with its own money?" The OFT found three kinds of quick-sale business: buyers, brokers who look for a third-party buyer, and lead generators who pass your details on. The OFT said brokering is likely to count as estate agency work, in which case the firm must belong to an approved redress scheme. GOV.UK names two: The Property Ombudsman and the Property Redress Scheme. The OFT also noted that businesses doing estate agency work must register for anti-money laundering purposes. HMRC publishes a register of the businesses it supervises under the money laundering rules, showing the sectors each one is registered for.

2. Ask for proof of funds

A genuine cash buyer can show you the money, for example with a bank statement or a letter from its bank or solicitor. The OFT pointed out that a buyer who has to free up funds, raise money from investors or borrow is less likely to complete quickly, and funding problems were one reason prices got renegotiated.

3. Look the company up

Search the company's name or number on Companies House, which is free. You can see when it was set up, its current and past directors, its registered address, any mortgages (charges) registered against it and any insolvency. Identity checks for company directors became a legal requirement on 18 November 2025, with a 12-month transition period.

Some genuine buyers are registered outside the UK, so they won't appear on Companies House. In that case, look them up on the register in their home country. Your House Bought, for example, is a trading name of TT Massive Marketing Limited, registered in Ireland (company number 784536), so you'd find us on Ireland's Companies Registration Office register.

4. Check memberships, and check them at the source

The Property Ombudsman publishes a Code of Practice for Residential Property Buying Companies. It says members should act with fairness and integrity, avoid aggressive or harassing behaviour, take special care with people who may be at a disadvantage (for example through age, infirmity or bereavement), and disclose any payments they get for referring you to other services. Members must show The Property Ombudsman's name on their website and contracts. Check the company on The Property Ombudsman's register of businesses.

The NAPB is a voluntary trade body for property buyers, and its members must sign up to The Property Ombudsman's code. Don't rely on a logo on a website: check the member list on the body's own site.

5. Get your own legal advice

The OFT said a quick-sale provider can't require you to use a solicitor of its choice, and that everyone has the right to independent legal advice. Your solicitor or conveyancer should act for you alone. Check them on the Solicitors Register or the Council for Licensed Conveyancers' directory. If the buyer is paying your legal fees or recommending a firm, ask whether that firm is independent and whether anyone gets a referral payment.

Ask your solicitor to read any agreement before you sign it, especially anything that limits who you can sell to or makes you liable for costs if you pull out.

6. Get the offer in writing, and ask what could change it

Ask how the buyer worked out the figure, which recent sales it used, and whether the offer depends on a survey, an inspection or anything else. The OFT advised sellers not to commit to their next purchase, or anything else they'd regret, until the checks are done, there's a final offer in writing, and they've had independent legal advice.

7. Compare it with what your home is worth

Look up sold prices nearby on HM Land Registry's price paid search and ask a local estate agent or two for a valuation. That shows you how far below market value an offer is, so you can decide whether the speed is worth it. See below market value explained.

8. Read reviews carefully

Read independent reviews, and pay most attention to the negative ones. Look for patterns, such as late price drops or missed completion dates, and for how the company responded.

What good practice looks like

A cash buyer you can trust will usually:

• tell you clearly whether it's buying with its own money, and show proof of funds
• explain how it reached its offer, using recent sales nearby
• tell you upfront what could change the offer, and show you the reason if it does
• give you the final offer in writing before exchange
• charge you no hidden fees, and tell you in writing about any it does charge
• let you take independent legal advice and not rush you
• not tie you into a long exclusivity agreement
• tell you honestly when an estate agent might get you more

We'd encourage you to run every one of these checks on us too. We make an offer within 24 hours, pay your legal fees, and there's no obligation to accept. Our offer is below market value, and we explain how we worked it out from recent sales nearby.

Sale and rent back is different

If a firm offers to buy your home and let you stay on as a tenant, that's sale and rent back. It's a regulated activity, so the firm must be authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority. Check the FCA register and talk to MoneyHelper or Citizens Advice before going further. If you're behind on your mortgage, speak to your lender and a free debt adviser such as StepChange first.

If something goes wrong

1. Complain to the company in writing, and keep copies of everything.
2. Take it to the redress scheme if the company belongs to one. The Property Ombudsman's service is free for consumers.
3. Report the business to Trading Standards through the Citizens Advice consumer service.
4. Report fraud to the police, and get legal advice about getting money back.