PROTECT YOURSELF
VET EVERY CASH BUYER.
INCLUDING THIS ONE.
Anyone can build a website that says we buy houses. The barrier to entry in this business is a phone and a contract template, which means a seller has to do their own screening.
Use this on Ben as readily as on anyone else. A buyer who resents these questions has answered them.
Are you buying this, or assigning it?
Ask first and ask plainly, because the answer changes what you are actually agreeing to.
Some buyers purchase with their own funds and close in their own name. Others put a property under contract and then transfer that contract to a different buyer, who closes in their place, for a fee. That second practice is called assignment, and it is a real and long-standing part of the business. It is not automatically dishonest.
What makes it dishonest is concealment. If a contract is going to be assigned, you should be told before you sign, the contract should say so, and you should know that the person you shook hands with may not be the person at the closing table. The risk to you is specific: an assignor who cannot find a buyer may come back for a price reduction or may simply walk, and you have lost weeks of marketing time.
Ben buys directly and also, at times, assigns. Sellers are told which one is happening. If any buyer will not answer this question in a sentence, that is your answer.
The questions, and what a good answer sounds like
Proof of funds
Ask for it in writing. A current bank or lender letter, dated, naming the entity that will actually close. A screenshot with the numbers blurred is not proof and neither is an assurance.
Which closing attorney
Name and firm, and confirm the firm exists and answers the phone. South Carolina closings run through an attorney, so a buyer who cannot name one has not closed many here.
Earnest money
How much, when it is deposited, with whom it is held, and under what conditions it is refundable. Money held by the closing attorney is different from money promised.
The walkthrough clause
Ask exactly what happens if something is found after you sign. Does the price change, and on what basis, and can you walk away without penalty.
Closings this year
How many South Carolina closings, in which counties, in the last twelve months. Not lifetime. Not in another state.
Who signs
Which entity is on the contract, who has authority to sign for it, and whether that entity is registered in South Carolina.
Everything on this site is an extension of Ben Lovro's main site.
Contract terms that should slow you down
Read the document. All of it, before you sign, ideally with an attorney of your own. These are the terms that most often cause trouble for sellers.
- An inspection or due diligence period long enough to be a free option. A buyer who can cancel for any reason for a long stretch has tied up your property without commitment.
- Earnest money that is trivial or fully refundable at any time. Earnest money is the seriousness signal. If it costs the buyer nothing to walk, it costs them nothing to walk.
- A financing contingency inside a cash offer. If the contract still depends on somebody's approval, it is not a cash purchase.
- A memorandum or notice recorded against your property. Ask whether anything will be recorded. A recorded interest can cloud your title and make it hard to sell to anyone else if the deal dies.
- Blank spaces. Never sign a document with blanks in it, and never sign one you were handed minutes ago at a kitchen table.
Behaviour that should end the conversation
Terms are one signal. Conduct is a faster one.
Pressure to sign today. An offer that expires in an hour. Discouraging you from talking to an attorney, a family member or an agent. Refusing to put anything in writing. Asking for a deed or a power of attorney before closing. Offering money on the spot in exchange for a signature. Going quiet for two weeks and then reappearing with a lower number and a reason.
Special caution if you are behind on payments or in foreclosure. Those situations attract people who know that a seller under pressure reads less carefully, and South Carolina regulates certain dealings with homeowners in foreclosure precisely because of that history. Anyone proposing that you sign over the deed and rent the house back should be treated as a reason to call an attorney immediately.
What to verify independently
Ten minutes of your own checking is worth more than any reference a buyer hands you.
- Look up the entity. South Carolina business filings are public. Confirm the name on the contract exists.
- Search the county records for deeds recorded by that entity. A buyer who closes here leaves a public trail.
- Call the closing attorney's office and confirm they work with the buyer.
- Read the reviews that are not on the buyer's own site, and weigh complaints about renegotiation and cancelled closings heavily.
- Take the contract to your own attorney. The cost is small compared with the transaction and it is the single most useful thing a seller can do.
Ben is a principal investor and buyer, not a licensed broker, attorney or CPA. Nothing on this page is legal advice. It is the checklist he would want his own family to use.
Frequently asked
Questions people actually ask
What is proof of funds and what should it look like?
A dated letter or statement from a bank or a lender showing that the buying entity has access to the funds required. It should name the entity on the contract. Verbal assurance, a screenshot without a date, or a letter from an unnamed source are not proof.
Is it bad if a buyer assigns my contract?
Not by itself. Assignment is a normal part of the business and the person who found you is being paid for finding you and for underwriting the property. What matters is that you were told before signing, that the contract permits it openly, and that the buyer can perform if no assignee appears.
Should earnest money be refundable?
Some contingency is reasonable, particularly before a walkthrough. What is not reasonable is a long period during which a buyer can cancel for any reason with no cost. Ask when the deposit goes hard, who holds it, and what specifically makes it refundable.
How many closings should I expect a buyer to have done?
Ask for the count in South Carolina in the last twelve months and which counties. The number matters less than whether they can answer specifically and whether the county records back it up. Everyone starts somewhere, and a new buyer should be honest about being new.
Can I have my own attorney review the contract?
Yes, always, and you should. The closing attorney is handling the closing, not representing your interests in the negotiation. A short review by counsel of your own is the cheapest insurance in the whole transaction.
What if a buyer lowers the price right before closing?
Ask what changed and ask for evidence. A genuine discovery has documentation behind it. A reduction with no explanation, arriving late, is a known tactic, and you are allowed to refuse, keep any earnest money the contract entitles you to, and go back to your other options.
Make your next move
A year from now, what will you be glad you started today?
You don't need another promise that everything will be easy. You need something useful to learn — and a next step you're willing to take.