Key takeaways
Most are real businesses. Not all of them are buyers, and many failed our basic public-record checks.
BBB is a pointer. Check whether the BBB file matches what the company’s own site claims.
Ask who closes. Get the legal name, the title company, and whether it will assign your contract.
What 481 buyer checks found
In October 2026 we ran 481 checks on “we buy houses” companies and programs in Texas, California, Florida, New York, Georgia, Nevada, Missouri and Wisconsin. A national brand is counted once in each state where it appears. 58 made our rankings, and another 70 passed our basic checks but scored lower.
Of the 26 held, 20 claimed a BBB rating or accreditation that BBB’s own records did not support. Six described a different business model on their own site or terms from the “we buy directly” claim on their homepage.
What these counts do not say
Failing a check is not a finding that a company is a scam or broke the law. Some companies we simply could not verify. The 481 are companies that appeared in search results and competitor lists in those states, not a random sample of all cash buyers. Rows overlap, so a company can appear in more than one. Massachusetts is left out because we checked it in September with an earlier rubric.
Not every “we buy houses” site is a buyer
Many sites that look like local buyers pass your details to someone else. Others sign a contract with you and then sell that contract to another investor, which is called wholesaling.
Wholesaling is not banned outright in the states we cover, but some states regulate it. Missouri and Wisconsin require a wholesaler to tell you in writing, and Texas requires a written disclosure to you and to any buyer before the contract is assigned or marketed.
Wholesaler or direct buyer? How to tellWhat a legitimate cash buyer looks like
Our standard
- Buys in its own legal name, and that name matches the contract, the proof of funds and the state business registry.
- Has a physical address that matches across its site, its BBB file and Google.
- Puts its closing timeline and fees in writing, and explains how it calculates offers.
- Closes through an independent title company, escrow office or closing attorney you can verify.
- Says plainly whether it will close itself or assign the contract.
- Never asks you for money, a deed before closing, or a power of attorney.
What a BBB rating does and does not tell you
The BBB itself says a rating is not a guarantee of a business’s reliability or performance, and that customer reviews are not used in the letter grade.1
BBB accreditation requires meeting BBB standards and paying a fee.2 The most useful thing on a BBB page is whether the address, start date and accreditation match what the company’s own website says. That comparison produced 20 of our 26 holds.
Red flags
- An upfront fee to sell your own house, or to stop a foreclosure.
- A deed or power of attorney to sign before closing.
- Being told not to talk to your lender.
- “Sell and rent it back” under time pressure.
- Refusing to use an independent title company, or not letting you verify it.
- Wiring instructions changed by email.
- No legal name, or a different name on the contract than on the website.
The FTC warns that scammers may try to get you to transfer the deed to your home, and that if you do, you are not likely to get it back.3
On sale-leaseback offers, the FTC warns of hefty fees and high rent, notes that once you sell you no longer own the home, and says to walk away if you are pushed to decide.4
We found no FTC alert, and none from the attorneys general in the states we checked, that names “we buy houses” companies as a category. The warnings are about specific practices.
Mailed cash offers
Georgia is the one state we cover that requires a value warning on mailed offers. A solicitation to buy a home that names a price must say in capitals that the offer may or may not be fair market value. If the price is below the prior year’s county assessed value, it must also say the offer is less than the county assessed value.5
Treat a mailed price as a starting point
A buyer that has not seen your house cannot know its condition. Compare any mailed number with a recent sale of a similar home nearby.
How to check a buyer yourself
Get the legal name
Ask which entity will sign the contract and take title. Compare it with the website footer and the proof of funds.
Search the state business registry
Usually the Secretary of State. Check that the entity is active, when it was formed and who its registered agent is. In Wisconsin, it is the Department of Financial Institutions.
Check any license
If anyone markets your house or calls themselves an agent, look them up on the state real estate commission’s license search.
Search the county recorder
Look the buyer up as a grantee to see whether it actually takes title to homes in its own name.
Search court records
Check state court portals for lawsuits or judgments naming the company or its owners.
Choose or verify the closing company
Call the title company, escrow office or closing attorney on a number you looked up yourself, and confirm any wiring instructions by phone.
Ask about assignment in writing
“Will you close in your own name with your own funds, or assign this contract?” Put the answer in the contract.
How much real estate fraud is reported
People reported $275.1 million in real estate fraud losses to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center in 2025, across 12,368 complaints.6 That FBI category covers real estate investment and rental or timeshare fraud, so it is broader than home sales and does not count problems with cash buyers specifically.
If something feels wrong, report it to your state attorney general and to ReportFraud.ftc.gov. For a stolen closing wire, call your bank first, then file at ic3.gov.
Skip the guesswork.
Compare cash buyers that passed our public-record checks.
Common questions
Many are real businesses, but checks matter. Of 481 checks across eight states in October 2026, 58 made our rankings and 70 more passed our basic checks. 81 named no legal entity we could find, and 41 listings were networks or marketplaces rather than buyers.
Sources
- BBB — Overview of BBB ratings (Accessed October 26, 2026)return
- BBB — BBB accreditation standards (Accessed October 26, 2026)return
- Federal Trade Commission — Mortgage relief scams (Accessed October 26, 2026)return
- Federal Trade Commission — Risky business: offers to cash out your home equity through a sale-leaseback (Accessed October 26, 2026)return
- Georgia Office of the Attorney General, Consumer Protection Division — Unsolicited offers to buy your home (Accessed October 26, 2026)return
- FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center — 2025 IC3 Annual Report (Accessed October 26, 2026)return
