How Much Do Cash Home Buyers Pay? An Honest 2026 Breakdown

If you're considering a cash sale, the single most important question is: what percentage of my home's market value will I actually receive? It's also the question most cash-buyer websites answer vaguely, if at all. This guide exists to answer it directly, with real ranges and a worked example showing exactly how an offer gets built — because we believe a seller who understands the math is in a far better position to evaluate any offer, including ours.

The honest answer is: it depends heavily on which type of cash buyer you're talking to and what condition your home is in. Those two variables swing the number more than anything else, and they're exactly what this guide breaks down.

'Cash buyer' is an umbrella term covering several very different business models, and the percentage of market value they pay varies a lot between them. iBuyers — large, tech-driven companies that make automated offers based on algorithmic valuations — typically pay in the range of 70% to 85% of market value, but then subtract service fees commonly running 5% to 7% on top of that, plus any repair credits they deduct after their inspection. iBuyers generally want homes in good, move-in-ready condition and in markets with lots of comparable sales data; they're often a poor fit for unique, rural, or fixer properties.

National franchise 'we buy ugly houses' style companies typically pay in a lower range, often 50% to 70% of market value. Their model is built around houses that need significant work, and their offers reflect a wider margin to cover repair costs, holding costs, and the risk of an as-is purchase — but the specific franchisee, their local market, and your home's condition all affect where in that range you land.

Local, independent investors (which is the category Sierra Property Buyers falls into) typically calculate offers as a percentage of after-repair value (ARV) rather than current market value, which sounds different but produces a comparable outcome. On homes needing real work, that's commonly 60% to 70% of ARV. On a home that's already in clean, move-in-ready condition, a good local investor's offer moves much closer to market value, because there's little to no repair spread to account for. This is the single biggest reason 'what percentage will I get' has no one-size answer: a clean, updated home and a home needing a full renovation will land in very different parts of these ranges, even from the same buyer.

A legitimate cash offer isn't a random lowball number — it follows a formula, and any buyer worth working with should be willing to walk you through it. The core formula is: Offer = After-Repair Value − Estimated Repair Costs − Holding & Selling Costs − Buyer's Margin.

After-Repair Value (ARV) is what the home would sell for on the open market once fully renovated and in top condition — essentially the number an appraiser or agent would use for a comparable, move-in-ready home in your neighborhood. Estimated Repair Costs are the buyer's realistic projection of what it will cost to bring the home to that ARV condition: roof, foundation, HVAC, kitchen and bath updates, cosmetic work, and anything else identified during a walkthrough. Holding & Selling Costs cover the buyer's carrying costs while they own and improve the property — property taxes, insurance, utilities, loan interest if they finance the purchase — plus the costs they'll eventually pay to resell it, like commissions and closing costs on that future sale. The Buyer's Margin is the profit the buyer needs to make the deal worth the capital, time, and risk involved; for real investors, this is a business necessity, not padding, since a chunk of deals underperform, or a property surprises them with hidden issues after close.

Say a home's After-Repair Value — what it would sell for fully renovated — is $500,000. The buyer's walkthrough identifies roughly $60,000 in needed repairs: a roof, kitchen update, and general cosmetic work throughout. Estimated holding and selling costs for the 6 to 9 months the buyer expects to own and resell the property come to about $40,000, covering taxes, insurance, financing costs, and the commission and closing costs they'll pay when they eventually resell. The buyer's required margin — the profit needed to make the deal worth the capital and risk — comes to roughly $50,000.

$500,000 ARV − $60,000 repairs − $40,000 holding/selling costs − $50,000 margin = a $350,000 offer. That's 70% of the $500,000 after-repair value — squarely in the typical local-investor range for a home needing real work. Now compare that to a home in the same neighborhood, also worth $500,000 fully updated, but already in clean, move-in-ready condition. Repair costs might be just $10,000 for minor items, dropping the math to $500,000 − $10,000 − $30,000 (lower holding costs on a faster resale) − $40,000 margin = $420,000, or 84% of value. Same buyer, same formula, very different percentage — because condition is doing most of the work.

This is exactly why we encourage sellers to ask any cash buyer to show their math, not just state a number. A buyer unwilling to explain their repair estimate, their holding-cost assumptions, or their margin is asking you to trust a number you can't verify.

The gap between a cash offer and full retail market value isn't arbitrary — it's the price of speed, certainty, and convenience. A traditional sale can take 60 to 90+ days from listing to close, assumes the buyer's financing doesn't fall through, and typically requires the seller to complete repairs, stage the home, and accommodate showings for weeks. A cash sale can close in as little as 7 to 14 days, doesn't depend on a buyer's mortgage approval, and requires no repairs, staging, or showings at all.

You're also not paying a listing commission (typically 2.5% to 3%) or covering the closing costs a traditional sale usually assigns to the seller. When you net out commissions, closing costs, repair spend, staging costs, and months of carrying costs (mortgage, taxes, insurance, utilities) against a traditional sale, the effective gap between 'cash offer' and 'net proceeds from a retail sale' is often smaller than the headline percentage difference suggests — though not always, which is exactly why doing the comparison for your specific home matters more than any general rule.

If you're evaluating more than one cash offer, don't just compare the top-line number — compare what's actually being promised. Ask each buyer for proof of funds (a bank statement or letter of funds availability showing they can actually close without financing contingencies) and confirm whether their offer is truly 'no obligation' or contains hidden contingencies, such as a right to renegotiate after their own inspection. Ask exactly what the buyer is including in their repair estimate and whether they'll show you their comps for the ARV number — a buyer confident in their math will show it.

Also compare the closing timeline and flexibility (can you pick your close date, or is it forced), whether there are any fees deducted at closing beyond standard, customary closing costs, and whether the buyer is a licensed, established local business with a verifiable track record (a Better Business Bureau, at bbb.org, listing and real references are good signs) versus an anonymous wholesaler assigning your contract to someone else without telling you.

A cash sale isn't the right choice for every seller. If your home is in good condition, you have time, and maximizing sale price is your top priority, a traditional agent-listed sale or a well-run FSBO process will likely net you more money, even after commissions and costs. If speed, certainty, zero repairs, and zero showings matter more to you than squeezing out the last dollar — because of a job relocation, inherited property, financial distress, or simply wanting the process over — a cash sale, evaluated with the formula above, can be the right trade.

Sierra Property Buyers builds every offer using this same after-repair-value formula and will walk you through our repair estimate, holding-cost assumptions, and margin on request. We're one option among several, and we'd rather you understand exactly how our number was built than take it on faith.