We Buy Any House Reviews for 2022 & How to Avoid Scams

How to spot fake reviews when they look exactly like genuine ones

Considering We Buy Any House because you want a quick sale but want to verify their reviews and get the best price possible for your home?

In this new report, our team of experts reviewed 6,388 customer consultations (UK homeowners) over the last year and produced this article to answer all of your burning questions. It reveals the top tactics to get the best price, avoid scams and ultimately ensure your house sale completes when and how you want it.

What are the negotiation tricks to get the best price and make further savings?
What you should check in we buy any house reviews and how to validate if they are legitimate?
How much below market value do we buy any house companies actually pay in 2022?
How much do they knock off the original asking price?

We let you in on the secrets...

Top 7 tips to get the best sale price and also win additional perks

1. Our best trick: Get offers from multiple companies and use them as leverage to ask for a better offer

If the original cash offer is not what you were hoping for but you do prefer to use that property company, get more offers from other firms and use those to negotiate, you can even ask and compare other benefits like cash advances. Some cash house buying companies may even give a 'guaranteed cash offer'. These are always worth keeping track of.

2. Imply interest elsewhere

Even if this property is ‘the one’, there’s no harm in implying that there’s another property you’re interested in. Estate agents routinely use the ‘there’s lots of interest in this house’ trick to get you to make or up an offer. Telling them you’ve got options is a cheeky way to stop this tactic in its track.

3. Get valuations from other sources so you know where you stand

The easiest way is to talk to a couple of local estate agents and ask them a simple question: "If you were to put my house up for sale right now, giving it 4-8 weeks, what price would you be the most confident in achieving that's as close to the asking price as possible?"

The question above encourages agents to give you a more considered estimate of open market value (as opposed to the usual deliberate overvaluation used to impress and win new clients).

Online property companies such as Zoopla and Right Move make it easy to see what similar properties in any area have sold for, and that of those on the market today. The Land Registry website is also a reliable source to search average house prices in any given area.

4. Negotiate the details

A quick house sale company won't mind some haggling. Don't forget to negotiate using the terms and benefits other than the selling price.

Things like any reductions to the offer due to essential renovations, cash advances, the exact time of completion, solicitors, even who and when the keys will be handled by!

5. Demonstrate your sellers appeal

You maybe chain free or your house has been redecorated, or maybe there is development in your area. If so, be sure to make this information is known to the agent as some vendors might be more open to accepting a house offer lower than the asking price for a hassle-free transaction.

If similar properties in the area have sold for less, this is a valuable bargaining tool.

6. Shop around - Research other firms pros/cons

Not all companies that buy houses are the same. Make sure you look at what different ones can offer.

7.Take your time Don’t commit too early in the process

Don’t sign on the dotted line until you have a final offer in writing. Don’t rush or be pressured into a decision. Furthermore a genuine cash buying company does not need you to sign any documentation upfront and do the surveys first and foremost, thereafter present you with an offer and if accepted instruct solicitors. The only documents you should be signing is the official solicitors paperwork. This way you are protected as solicitors are regulated by the solicitors regulation authority (SRA).

We Buy Any House Reviews

Webuyanyhouse.co.uk reviews & overview (2022)

We Buy Any House is a company owned by property professionals and purchase properties across the UK. As their name suggests they buy any home in any condition, with a simple and straightforward service. They are cash buyers that offer a reliable cash buying service with a good set of reviews.

How their quick sale process works:

Step 1: Enquire at their website using the form or calling the phone number to receive a callback.
Step 2: A cash offer quote will be provided within 24 hours.
Step 3: If you wish to continue, a 3rd party valuation is carried out at the property by a surveyor. After this step, a final formal cash offer is provided. If you accept they can go ahead and complete the sale in as little as 7 days.

Positives of We Buy Any House:

They were established in 2010.
They can purchase within 7 Days.
They pay for the valuation fees, legal fees and take no commission.
Their valuation is online-based using RightMove Plus, Land Registry house sales as well as valuations completed by local and independent estate agents.

Negatives of We Buy Any House:

We buy any house are not registered with the NAPB(National Association of Property Buyers) or the Property Ombudsman.
In some cases they have offered lower market value for a property, only 70%.
They are not registered on other independent review sites like Feefo.

How much below the market value do webuyanyhouse.co.uk pay for a property?

Answer: According to their website, they offer is up to 90% of the verified market value of a property.

Webuyanyhome.com reviews & overview (2022)

We buy any home are a UK company based in London. They are property professionals with over 30 years of experience in buying houses and claim to be 'the UK's leading cash home buying company'. We buy any homes property buying service states they can purchase your house in as little as 7 days with no hidden costs or legal fees to worry about.

How their quick sale process works:

Step 1: Fill in their online form which consists of a few easy & straightforward questions.
Step 2: After your details have been analysed and processed, you will receive a call from one of their agents and they will give you their free cash offer. This should happen within 24 hours of them receiving your details.
Step 3: Once all the important paperwork has been completed We Buy Any Home will appoint a solicitor to act for you as well as carry out surveys to assess your property. You will then receive a final offer based on that feedback.

Positives of We Buy Any Home:

We Buy Any Home are members of the NAPB & The Property Ombudsman.
They have mainly positive reviews on Google & Trustpilot.
They can purchase your home in as little as 7 days.

Negatives of We Buy Any Home:

You won't receive market value for your property.
They have some 1 star reviews on Trustpilot.

How much below the market value do webuyanyhome.co.uk pay for a property?

Answer: According to their website, they offer is up to 80%-90% of the verified market value of a property.

We Buy any Home Companies - Overall verdict

We Buy Any Home are national property buyers who appear to be reliable cash house buyers similar to house buy fast who offer a hassle-free service. They are regulated by both the NAPB (national association of property buyers) & the Property Ombudsman. The majority of their reviews are positive and the customers suggest they usually offer up to 80% of the market value for your property.

How to check if We Buy Any House company Reviews are legit

Only read the "bad" reviews

Yes thats right, try to only read the low star reviews (1 or 2 out of 5 star ratings) and analyse them for insights into a company's sales process, admin processes, how much they pay & do they knockdown prices or any other issues? Additionally, is the customer service not professional? Do they use dodgy valuations or surprise home sellers with late fees or other charges? This will allow you to really see if we buy any house gets many complaints or problems.

Look for reputable independent review websites

Look for the well-established review badges on the website of a we buy any house company. Are these partner review websites legitimate and well established? Are the reviews verified using an email address and other details? Popular ones include Feefo, Trustpilot, Safeguard and Reviews.co.uk. This will give you an indication as to whether the company offers an honest service & is a genuine cash buyer.

Do the total number of reviews look realistic?

Are the customer reviews spread naturally over the years? A review should be from a customer who has happily sold their house via a quick sale (not just a service review). In the house buyers market there naturally should be fewer reviews as a legitimate company can only buy so many properties each month. If a company is posting many hundreds of reviews over a short time, e.g. within 12 months then you need to ask yourself, are they really buying hundreds of houses for cash every month?

Can you check the reviews on a 3rd party website?

Are the customer reviews actually hosted on the 3rd party review website, not just images or other text on the companies website? Good review websites like feefo.co.uk have a live widget feed from their database showing all of the recent reviews. You can check the stated reviews on a companies website by looking for the company directly on the review partner website itself.

Do the reviews comments sound real?

Do they read like a legitimate customer would write? Or are they could be very short or generic and very similar sounding statements made? Are there often many quick short 5 star reviews after a bad review? These are all good ways to spot fake reviews.

Bonus - Customer testimonials

Does the company have some well-explained testimonials that show a real picture and other facts about the house sale? If a testimonial is very "professional" and looks too "clean" then it could be a fake testimonial where an actor and professional video creation company was used.

We reveal the top "We Buy Any House" service Scams

How to check if a ‘we buy any home’ company is legitimate and safe?

1) They are not genuine cash buyers

One of the first things you should do as a homeowner is to confirm whether you are dealing with a genuine cash house buyer.

You'd be surprised to find that many so-called quick sale firms are in fact either middlemen, lead generation companies (that sell your details onto legitimate companies), or simply normal estate agents who operate under a false guise and try to sell your house on the open market after they've tricked you into signing a contract to use their house buying service.

Action: You are completely fine asking for proof of funds such as Company finance statements.

2) Inaccurate valuations of your property

Many we buy any house companies often miscalculate the true value of your property resulting in a lower final offer.

An experienced property company will ensure they have good market data and tools to determine the true value of your property - usually asking for extra information which helps them accurately predict what your property is worth.

These firms will tell you things like we buy any house at 100% market value in order to get you on their side.

Action: Check to ensure they provide a completely free valuation and quote (offer) house with no obligation or paperwork to sign at the valuation stage.

3) Reducing cash offer after overvaluing

A common scam or tactic by dodgy companies is where a firm overvalues your property or gives you a cash offer they actually have no intention of paying. Then as completion time approaches they take advantage of your situation and start bombarding you with messages to try and get you to agree to a lesser figure so they can make more money out of the transaction. These types of buying companies cannot offer you a guaranteed sale or sell your house quickly.

They likely are just middlemen and are now trying themselves to sell quickly to true cash home buyers. Don't be surprised if the firm tells you they are lowering their offer because of external factors or market value changes. In almost all cases this is a lie.

Furthermore, a genuine quick sale firm will be able to buy your house within 7-14 days pretty easily. It's very unlikely that any external factor or market change will force them to make a lowball offer in the space of just a fortnight!

Action: Confirm that they will not advertise your property on the open market (why would they need to do this if they are the buyers! Have a look at their website and track record - have they been actively buying and selling houses for a minimum of 5 years with over 200 properties purchased? Doing this will allow you to gauge if they will do a good job selling your house.

4) Be vary of any hidden fee's

It's important to note that legit organisations and misleading firms that pose as cash buyers differ in extra or 'hidden' fees so be sure to confirm what you will be paying for before signing anything.

The hidden costs often come in the form of upfront fees, survey fee's, a legal fee and closing costs. Be vigilant as the 'hidden fee' is not always made clear at the start.

Action: Ensure they do not charge fees (commissions, valuations, solicitors, or other expenses such as "admin"), checking they are NABP approved will also give you more assurance on their quick sale company status.

5) False promises on completion time

Many quick sale firms claim that they will buy your house in 7 days. This is very much doable but only if they are true cash house buyers.

If the firm cannot meet the deadline they have set (whether that is 7 days, 14 days, or more) then alarm bells should start ringing on your side. It could be that the firm is trying to sell your home on the open market or sell your details onto a real cash buying company

Action: Confirm they can guarantee the property sale will not fall through and complete within 7-14 days if required. Also, confirm in writing that they are the direct buyers of the property.

6) Watch out for option agreements

What are option agreements?

They are agreements put into the small print of a contract between you and the buying firm.

One common 'agreement' you should watch out for gives these dodgy firms the right to sell your house via a third party. To avoid this scam read the small print.

If you see something like this, do yourself a favor and find another firm who will buy your property – you're not getting a quick cash sale with them. They do not have the cash funds available to purchase your house quickly.

Look for the following in any contract or paperwork "have the right to assign to a third party”. You can also look through their 3rd party reviews comments and ensure they have at least a 4/5 verified review score.

7) Unregulated rent back schemes

A firm must be FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) regulated to offer rent back schemes.

If you're looking to sell up and then rent back, remembering this will help you avoid this scam.

This regulation was put in place because many rogue firms in the past would promise sellers that they could stay in their homes for an agreed amount of time after they had sold it, but then after a short while, they would force them out without warning!

Action: Simply ask the firm which is buying your home if they are regulated by the FCA. There should also not be any other fancy-sounding regulatory bodies - quick sale companies are not officially regulated by any UK government body (the quick sale industry is not regulated) unless it's a sell and rentback house service.

Summary and the bottom line

There will always be people looking to make a quick buck so we don't foresee we buy any house scams disappearing anytime soon, however, if you're careful and research into a firm thoroughly before selling up, you will have a much better chance at avoiding getting undersold or scammed in any other way.

The points we've provided above will help you get a better price, avoid getting scammed and also give you the confidence to sell your home to a genuine company - when checking reviews ensure you read we buy any house reviews for 2022.

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FAQ: Frequently asked questions about We Buy Any House firms

1Are cash buyers regulated?

They are not. Companies that buy houses for cash are NOT regulated by any government bodies.

2How much below market value do We Buy Any House firms pay?

We buy any house companies on average pay around 85% of the market value for a property. That said it must be noted that the knockoff in price is because of the convenience a homeowner would receive getting a cash sale. In addition, many legitimate house buying companies cover all fees related to the sale which are often forgotten during the sale of a house. This makes it quite lucrative than selling with a local estate agent for example as they will charge you additional fees as well as commission!

3Should you go with a We Buy Any House company?

We Buy Any House companies are good and appeal to a wide audience of house sellers. There will be homeowners who need a quick sale because their home may be on the verge of getting repossessed or they are struggling financially and need a fast sale to get everything back in order. We buy any house companies are one of the few ways they can potentially gain a guaranteed sale (depending on the chosen company) and complete the sale of their house fast. This will give them the cash injection they need to straighten out their affairs.

4We Buy Any House’ Vs High-street Estate Agents

Both an estate agency & house buying companies operate in the property industry but there are a number of differences between high street estate agents and we buy any house companies. Let's take a look at some key stats and fees below:

Commission charged:

High street estate agents: Typically between 0.75% - 3.0% +VAT. We buy any house companies: 0%.

Completion time:

High street estate agents: Average time 3 – 6 months. We buy any house companies: 7-14 days.

Additonal fees:

High street estate agents: Likely to charge for legal fee's, survey fee's etc.

We buy any house companies: A genuine company will not charge you any additional fees.

Ease of sale:

Highstreet estate agents:On average 1/3 of sales fall through selling with a traditional estate agent.

We buy any house companies: More likely to complete due to fewer obstacles such as not having to worry about broken house chains or getting a mortgage as they buy in cash. This will get your property sold fast as these companies only deal in quick property sales..

5What are the advantages and negatives of using a ‘we buy any house’ company?

Pro's

Being able to complete the sale of a house in as little as 7 days
We buy any house companies don't have to worry about issues like securing a mortgage or broken house chains. They will purchase your home in cash and are able to skip most of the steps involved in a sale if you were to sell via traditional methods, i.e, estate agents.
True we buy any house firms will not charge you additional fee's which will help you save more money.

Con's

You won't receive the full market value of your property.
Some companies pose as cash buyers but are undercover brokers or lead generation agencies so be sure to do your research before proceedings with a sale.
Loss of liquidity.

6What areas of the UK do cash buyers operate in?

We buy any house companies generally operate on as national property buyers throughout the UK. This includes England, Scotland & Wales.

7How quickly can genuine companies buy my house for cash?

A genuine we buy any house company can complete a sale within 7 days in some circumstances. However, the average time can be anywhere between 7-28 days.

8How do we buy any house make money from houses?

We buy any house companies profit comes from being able to buy in cash at below market value price. They are then able to move on the house and make a profit from it.

9What does we buy any home companies do with their houses?

In 2022, most firms will try to sell on the property. After a sale goes through with a customer, it then falls to the we buy any house company to finance the refurbishment of the property. More often than not the property is left in a poor state so this can cost a large amount.

Once the refurbishment is complete the company will either:

Sell your house to property investors. (A standard property buyer or a property cash buyer)
Sell it on the open market.
Convert the house into a rental property.

10Can you haggle with we buy any house companies?

Of course, you can! You should always make a case for your home and why you deserve a higher price for it. For example, if your home has some unique features or is in an area with lots of amenities - you should mention them after you get your quote!

11Can I still sell to a property buying company if I'm on the market with an estate agent?

It's possible to sell your house via a quick sale firm even if your home is already on the market but you must ensure that no sole agency agreement was signed.

It's imperative for a homeowner to read all fine print as they could incur fees for canceling a sole agreement and the time in which they're allowed to cancel can vary.

12Are there any other costs to expect selling to a reputable firm? Is this really a free service?

A genuine house buying company will pay cash, cover legal costs and all other fees related to the sale of your property. If you're being asked to cover fees it is advised to find another more reputable company to sell your house with.

13How do we buy any house firms work?

We buy any house firms work by purchasing houses in cash. This allows us to skip many of the steps involved in a house sale if a person was to sell via more traditional methods (for example with estate agents).

This results in the seller receiving both a faster sale and transfer of monies!