Let’s go with “What Happens to Your Mortgage or Liens When You Sell As-Is” — this directly builds on the corrected payout language we worked out for the Cash Offer page and FAQ, so it’ll be consistent with what’s already live on the site.
What Happens to Your Mortgage or Liens When You Sell As-Is
One of the most common questions we hear from homeowners is some version of: “I still owe money on my house — can I even sell it?” The short answer is yes, almost always. Here’s exactly how it works.
You don’t need to pay off your mortgage before selling
A lot of people assume they need to fully pay off their mortgage, or clear a lien, before they can even consider selling. That’s not how it works, whether you sell to us or through a traditional listing. Any mortgage balance, tax lien, or other lien on the property gets paid off directly out of the sale proceeds at closing — you never need to come up with that money yourself.
Here’s what that actually looks like: say your house sells for $150,000, and you still owe $90,000 on your mortgage. At closing, $90,000 goes directly to your lender to satisfy the loan, and the remaining $60,000 comes to you. You never have to write a check to your mortgage company to “unlock” the sale.
What about liens beyond a mortgage?
The same principle applies to other liens — unpaid property taxes, a contractor’s lien, a judgment lien, or similar. These all get resolved at closing out of the proceeds, in order of priority, before you receive whatever is left over. If you’re not sure what liens exist on your property, that’s something we can help you look into as part of the process — you don’t need to have it all figured out before reaching out.
What if you owe more than the house is worth?
This is a real situation, and it’s more common than people think, especially with older mortgages, cash-out refinances, or houses that need significant work. If your mortgage balance is close to or higher than what your house would sell for, a traditional sale might not generate enough to pay off your loan in full. In situations like this, a short sale (where your lender agrees to accept less than what’s owed) may be worth exploring. We’re upfront about this rather than making an offer that doesn’t actually solve your situation — if a short sale or another option makes more sense for you, we’ll tell you.
No fees taken out on our end
When you sell to us, there’s no realtor commission and no closing costs coming out of your side of the transaction — we cover those. The only amounts that come out of your proceeds are what you actually owe: your mortgage payoff, any liens, and typical prorated items like property taxes for the part of the year you owned the home. Everything else is yours.
You don’t have to figure this out alone
If you’re not sure exactly what you owe, what liens might be attached to your property, or whether selling even makes financial sense right now, that’s a normal starting point — not something you need to have resolved before reaching out. We can help walk through the numbers with you honestly, with no obligation to move forward.