Every “we buy houses” sign in San Antonio sounds the same. The companies behind them are not. This is an honest breakdown of the four types of cash buyers, including us, what each one really costs, and how to vet any of them before you sign a contract.
No obligation. Real people answer.
Every “we buy houses” postcard, bandit sign, and website in San Antonio belongs to one of four categories. They price differently, close differently, and carry very different risks. Figure out which one you are talking to before you compare a single number.
Large tech companies that generate offers online. The pitch is convenience: request an offer from your couch, pick your closing date, skip the showings. The cost is real, though. Opendoor charges a service fee of roughly 5%, and repair deductions come out after their inspection, on top of normal closing costs. They are also selective: iBuyers generally want newer homes in decent condition in standard neighborhoods, so many older, damaged, or unusual San Antonio properties simply get declined. If your house fits their box and you value convenience over squeezing out every dollar, an iBuyer is a legitimate option.
The “We Buy Ugly Houses” billboards belong to HomeVestors, a national franchise brand. The logo is national; the person buying your house is a local franchisee running their own business. The brand has been around for decades and closes real deals. The catch: your experience depends entirely on which franchisee you get, and franchise overhead tends to show up as a lower offer. Worth a call for comparison. Just judge the local operator in front of you, not the national commercial.
Companies like ours: San Antonio based, buying with their own funds, in their own name. No service fees, no commissions, true as-is purchases, and far more flexibility on hard situations, whether that is a foreclosure timeline, probate, tenants in place, fire damage, or a house nobody has touched in twenty years. Closes are usually the fastest of the four because the person on the phone is the decision-maker. The honest trade-off: a local investor’s offer sits below full retail value. That is how the model works, speed and certainty in exchange for a discount. Any investor who claims otherwise is not being straight with you.
The risk category. A wholesaler signs a contract on your house, then tries to sell, or “assign,” that contract to an actual buyer and keep the difference. Wholesaling is legal in Texas, and some wholesalers are upfront about what they do. The dangerous ones are not: if they never find an end buyer, your “sale” quietly dies weeks later, while your foreclosure clock kept ticking. One question exposes them: “Are you closing in your own name, with your own funds?” A real buyer answers yes without blinking.
ZI Properties will give you a written cash offer in 24 hours, with proof of funds, no obligation. Stack it against anyone else on this page.
Get My Free Cash Offer →(210) 864-8420Typical terms by buyer type. Individual companies vary, so treat this as a starting point, then run the vetting checklist below on whoever you shortlist.
| National iBuyer | Franchise Buyer | Local Investor (ZI) | Wholesaler | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fees | Service fee (Opendoor ~5%) plus repair deductions | None listed; the discount is built into the offer | No fees or commissions | Assignment fee hidden in the spread |
| Close speed | You pick the date, typically weeks out | Varies by franchisee | As fast as 7 days | Unknown until they find an end buyer |
| Repairs | Deducted after their inspection | Buys as-is | Buys as-is; the offer does not drop later | “As-is,” but the end buyer can renegotiate |
| Who actually buys | The company | The local franchisee | ZI Properties, in our own name | Someone else; the contract gets assigned |
| Biggest caveat | Strict criteria; older or damaged homes declined | Experience depends on the owner you get | Offer is below full retail, by design | Deal can die if no end buyer appears |
These six checks apply to every company on this page, including ZI Properties. A legitimate buyer passes all of them without hesitation.
Ask for a bank letter or recent statement before you sign anything. Real buyers expect the question and have the document ready.
The closing should run through a licensed Texas title company that holds the money in escrow. Never a kitchen-table closing.
A buyer who ties up your house for weeks with a token option fee and no real earnest money is keeping an exit open, for them, not you.
Ask which contract they use. Anyone seriously buying houses in Texas knows the standard TREC forms cold and will walk you through every blank.
Look for specific Google reviews spread across months and years, not just testimonials on the company’s own website.
A San Antonio address and a person who will meet you at the property. A call center three states away cannot walk your foundation.
Pressure to sign today (“this offer expires tonight”) is the oldest trick in the book; a real offer survives a few days of thinking. Excuses instead of proof of funds when you ask. A contract with assignment language the buyer never mentioned, which usually means you are dealing with a wholesaler who has no intention of closing themselves. And the late-stage price drop: an offer that mysteriously shrinks a week before closing over “inspection surprises” that should have been priced on day one.
If your house is in good shape and you have a few months, list it with an agent. A well-marketed listing on the open market will usually net you more than any cash buyer on this page, including us. That is simply how retail works, and any investor who pretends otherwise is selling you something.
If your home is newer, clean, and fits an iBuyer’s criteria, get their quote too; on near-turnkey houses their number can come in higher than ours. Where we earn the deal is everywhere else: houses that need work, foreclosure clocks, probate, tenants in place, and sellers who need a guaranteed close in days, not months. Our offer will not always be the highest number you hear. It will be real, in writing, with proof of funds, and it will not shrink on the way to the closing table.
“We were behind on property taxes and getting letters from the county every week. I thought we were going to lose the house entirely. ZI Properties paid off all the back taxes at closing. We walked away completely clean.”
Selling elsewhere in the region: Bexar County · Travis County · Williamson County · Boerne · Seguin
