Want a cash buyer? Get several. Let them compete.Market price. Zero fees.

Option 1 — Quick-buy company

4–8 weeks · committed buyer (it's them) · 15–20% below market

Fast, simple, certain. But the discount is steep — on a £250k property, that's £37,500–£50,000 you'll never see again. The discount is how they make money.

Option 2 — Traditional estate agent

6–9 months · no buyer commitment until exchange · 26% fall-through risk

Closer to market value (in theory), but slow, uncertain, and you carry the fall-through risk. Plus 1.5%+ commission plus VAT on the final price.

Option 3 — Modern Method of Auction

8–12 weeks · committed buyer (reservation fee) · market price

Multiple buyers compete for your property. The winner signs auction terms and pays a non-refundable reservation fee — same financial commitment as a cash buyer. £0 seller fees. The 4-week speed difference vs a quick-buy is the cost of keeping your 15–20% equity.

Daniel needed certainty — he had an onward purchase lined up. A quick-buy company offered £215,000 (about 12% below market) to complete in 6 weeks. He gave Howsold three weeks to find a competitive offer first. Pre-auction offer came in at £242,500, reservation fee signed, completed in 58 days — only 16 days slower than the quick-buy would have been, with £27,500 more in his pocket.

Sarah and her ex needed a clean exit — both wanted certainty, both wanted the sale done so financial proceedings could close. A quick-buy company offered £155,000 in 4 weeks. We discussed the trade-off honestly: was the 4-week gain worth £25,000 of joint equity? They listed with Howsold instead. Pre-auction offer accepted, reservation paid in week 3, completed within 64 days.

Mark had a property needing work and was tempted by three different quick-buy offers ranging from £72k–£75k. Our investor network includes developers who specifically want renovation projects. We listed at a £75k reserve. Three developer-buyers competed, final price £87,500 — completed in 41 days. Faster than a quick-buy would have been, and £12,500 better.

How a cash buyer is committed

A quick-buy company commits by using their own capital. They're buying the property to flip or rent, so they don't need a mortgage — which means no mortgage-application risk, no surveyor-down-valuation risk, no chain to break. The certainty comes from their balance sheet.

How a Howsold buyer is committed

When a buyer wins the auction (or has a pre-auction offer accepted), they pay a non-refundable reservation fee directly to Howsold and sign auction terms. The fee is significant enough that walking away costs them money — typically thousands of pounds. They are now financially committed to completing within 56 days, in the same structural way a cash buyer is committed to closing.

The structural difference

With a cash buyer, you accept one company's discounted offer. With Howsold, multiple buyers compete for your property at market value. The certainty mechanism (financial commitment from the winning buyer) is the same — but the price discovery is competitive rather than monopolistic. You don't pay 15–20% for the certainty because the same certainty is delivered through a non-refundable fee instead of a balance-sheet discount.

What if a Howsold buyer pulls out anyway?

Rare, but possible. The buyer loses their non-refundable reservation fee. Howsold then either approaches the next-highest bidder from the auction (often successful within days), or relists at no additional cost to you. Reservation fee withdrawal is uncommon precisely because the financial commitment is real — but if it happens, the recovery is handled by us at no extra charge.

Your timeline is genuinely under 4 weeks

Repossession deadlines, court-ordered sales with fixed dates, family situations that don't allow 8+ weeks. If the timeline isn't flexible and you genuinely need to complete in under 4 weeks, a quick-buy company can move faster than Howsold's auction cycle. Be honest about whether your deadline is real, though — most "I need to sell fast" situations have more flex than the seller realises.

Property has severe condition issues that exclude even auction buyers

Most properties with condition issues actually do well at auction — investors and developers actively want renovation projects. But genuine outliers exist: properties with structural concerns no surveyor will sign off on, properties in legal limbo, properties where the legal pack itself can't be cleanly assembled. In these cases, a cash-buying company that absorbs all risk may be the practical option.

Family / private sale where price isn't the goal

Selling to a family member at an agreed price, or transferring an asset where price discovery isn't relevant — these don't need a competitive auction. A direct private sale (handled by your conveyancer, no estate agent involved) is often simpler and cheaper than either route.

Maximum simplicity is genuinely worth more to you than maximum price

If you have other significant life pressures and the headspace cost of running a sale process — viewings, decisions, offer-responses — is genuinely more than the £30k+ you'd typically recover via Howsold, a quick-buy makes sense. This is a real situation for some sellers. We won't pretend it isn't.

Net: typically 15–20% below market value. The 4–8 week speed is the headline benefit — the discount is the cost.

Net: market value (open competitive bidding) · £0 Howsold fees. The 4-week speed difference vs quick-buy is the cost of keeping your 15–20%.

The trade-off, plainly:

Howsold is typically 4–8 weeks slower than a cash-buying company — and typically £25,000–£50,000 better in proceeds on a £250,000 property. If 4–8 weeks of patience is worth £25k+ to you, the maths is straightforward. If it isn't, a cash-buying company is the right route.