Transparency
How we calculate your cash offer
Nobody else in this market publishes this. We think that is the whole problem with the industry, so here is the entire formula, the assumptions behind every input, and a calculator you can run before you ever talk to us.
A cash offer equals the home's after-repair value, minus the cost of repairs, minus holding costs during the renovation, minus the costs of reselling, minus the buyer's return. In San Diego that arithmetic usually produces an offer between 70% and 85% of after-repair value, with the repair scope being the variable that moves it most.
Run it yourself
Move the two inputs. The arithmetic on the right is the same arithmetic we use internally — it is a genuine estimate, not a lead magnet that always says "call us".
$850,000
This is an estimate from two inputs. A real offer accounts for the specific comparable sales near you, the lot, the floor plan, permit status, title and your timeline — which is why the real number is sometimes higher than this and sometimes lower.
Get the real numberEstimated cash offer
That is roughly 72% of after-repair value. Estimates only — not an offer, and not a commitment.
What goes into each input
After-repair value
What the house sells for once it is fully renovated. We build it from closed sales — not active listings, which are asking prices, and not an automated valuation, which cannot tell that the comparable had a new kitchen and yours does not. We want three sales in the last three to six months, within about half a mile, of similar size, age, lot and floor plan, then we adjust for the differences.
Every offer we send names those three sales with addresses and dates so you can look them up yourself. If a buyer will not tell you which comparables their number rests on, the number is not grounded in anything you can check.
Repairs
The itemised cost of getting the house to that renovated standard, priced at what our contractors charge in San Diego County today. Roof, HVAC, electrical panel, plumbing, foundation, windows, kitchen, baths, flooring, paint, landscaping, permits and contingency. This is the largest source of variance between two buyers' offers on the same house, and the input most worth arguing with us about. If you have a contractor bid that says our number is high, show us — we will look at it.
Holding costs
We own the house for roughly four to six months. During that time we pay property taxes, insurance on a vacant property under renovation (which is not cheap), utilities, and the cost of the capital itself. Typically about 2.5% of after-repair value.
Resale costs
When we sell the finished house we pay the same costs you would: agent commissions, escrow and title, transfer taxes, and often a concession to the eventual buyer. Around 7.5% of the resale price. This is the cost people forget exists on our side, and it is why the spread cannot be as thin as sellers sometimes expect.
Return
About 10% of after-repair value on a standard project. That is the compensation for the capital, the execution and the genuine risk that the market moves against us or the renovation uncovers something expensive behind a wall. Any buyer who tells you they are not building in a return is either not being straight with you or is not going to close.
What makes an offer go up
- A location where finished houses sell quickly and predictably
- Cosmetic rather than structural work — paint and flooring beat foundations and sewer lines
- Clear title, one decision-maker, and no probate or litigation
- A floor plan and lot that support an addition or an ADU
- Flexibility on the closing date, which reduces our risk
What makes it go down
- Foundation movement, fire damage, or a failed septic or sewer line
- Unpermitted square footage that will need to be legalised or removed
- A hard-to-insure location or an HOA in litigation
- Tenants at well-below-market rent with strong protections
- A drawn-out closing timeline that extends our carrying cost
How to check any cash offer, ours included. Ask for the three comparable sales. Ask for the itemised repair scope. Then get a second offer from a different buyer. If a buyer resists any of those three, that resistance is your answer.
When this arithmetic says you should not sell to us
When the repair number is small. A house needing $15,000 of paint and carpet has almost no room in the formula, which means our offer will be well below what you would net on the open market even after commissions. In that situation, list it. We will tell you so, and we would rather do that than talk you into a bad decision you will think about for years.
Get the real number for your house
With the comps and the repair scope attached, so you can check our arithmetic.