If you’re selling your home, finding a cash buyer is ideal. Here’s why.

Cash buyers make your life so much easier as a home seller. Cash buyers don’t have to get financing, so they can agree with you on price and terms with no bank getting in the way.

Some people mistakenly think that supply and demand—the number of sellers vs. the number of interested buyers—are the only factors that matter in the market. That’s not true at all. For those who need financing, there is the lender involved in the decision as well.

In a fast-rising market like ours here in the Treasure Valley (Boise, Meridian, Nampa, Caldwell, etc.) banks can be spooked and shy away from above-market offers. Comparable sales in your neighborhood might not support the exact price you’re wanting to get—and you may be right that the market will support that higher price. But probably not with a traditional lender involved.

Traditional lenders will have an appraiser, and while some are more conservative than others, they will all want to justify an asking price based on comparable sales. If the sales aren’t there to support that price, they may ask a higher down payment from the buyer. This is often the reason homes fall out of escrow, and is why, if you’re a buyer, it pays to get pre-approved before house-hunting. But that’s another topic altogether.

Cash buyers, on the other hand, don’t have this problem. With no lender telling them they can’t buy the home at their agreed-upon price, they are free to close on whatever deal they make with the seller.

Cash buyers also can shorten the timeline for closing escrow. If you as the seller are anxious to move out and into your next home (perhaps you’ve already closed on your next one, or it’s pending and waiting for you to get your home sold) a cash buyer is exactly what you need. They don’t need the time traditional lenders need to secure funds and close on the deal. They can close sometimes in less than a week.

For all of these reasons, cash buyers make great counterparties in the sale of your home. Your agent should be seeking them out wherever possible.