Guide · November 8, 2026
Selling your house for cash in Florida and Arizona: the full guide
Everything that happens when you sell a house for cash, in order, with a guide for each step.
Key points
- A cash sale has four parts: the first call, the written offer, the closing, and getting paid.
- The offer starts from recent nearby sales, minus the repairs the house needs. It is below full market value.
- Compare what you keep after every cost, for a cash sale and for a listing.
- A licensed title company runs the closing, pays your mortgage and liens from the sale, and pays you the rest.
- Check any cash buyer: proof of funds, a title company, no upfront fees, and the price in writing.
How does a cash sale work?
Selling a house for cash means selling it directly to a buyer who pays without a bank loan. There is no listing, no agent and no showings. The buyer takes the house as it is.
With BIMINIO it goes like this. You fill out the form or call, and you get a text within a minute and a call within the hour. We look up the property, ask a few questions, and send a written offer within 24 hours. If you accept, a licensed title company handles the paperwork, and you pick a closing date from 7 to 35 days out. We pay the closing costs, and you are paid at closing.
- Tell us about the house: the form or a call.
- Get a written cash offer: within 24 hours, with the comparable sales we used.
- Close when you want: any date from 7 to 35 days out.
- Get paid: the title company pays your loan and liens and sends you the rest.
The offer: where the number comes from
Every price on a house starts from comparable sales: recent sales of similar houses close by. Fannie Mae's Selling Guide asks appraisers for at least three closed comparable sales, and says sales from the last 12 months should be used.
From that value, a cash buyer takes off the cost of the repairs the house needs and the costs of owning and reselling it. That is why a cash offer is below full market value. At BIMINIO the repair budget comes from a scope of the work led by a trained architect, and a person checks every number before you see it.
Read the guide: How a cash offer is worked out →
The costs: what you keep
A listing usually brings a higher price and more costs: commission, closing costs, repairs before listing, and the bills you keep paying while the house is for sale. A cash sale to BIMINIO has a lower price, and no commission, no repairs and no closing costs on your side.
The fair way to compare is what you keep at closing after every cost. The net proceeds calculator on this site does the arithmetic with your own numbers.
Read the guide: Cash offer vs listing: the costs →
The closing: title company, payoff and deed
A licensed title company runs the closing. It holds the earnest deposit, searches the records for loans and liens, orders your payoff, prepares the closing statement, has the deed signed and recorded, and pays everyone from the sale.
Each state adds its own steps. In Florida, a sale contract must carry the state's radon gas notice, or it must be on another document signed at or before the contract. In Arizona, a deed is recorded with an affidavit of legal value signed by the seller and the buyer.
Read the guide: What happens at closing →
Selling as is: what to tell the buyer
As is means you make no repairs before the sale. Still tell the buyer what you know about the house. For most homes built before 1978, federal rules require a lead paint disclosure, the EPA pamphlet and a warning in the contract.
Florida and Arizona law each list facts a seller need not disclose, such as a death on the property.
Read the guide: Selling as is: what to tell the buyer →
Checking the buyer
A few checks protect you when you sell to any cash buyer: proof of funds with the offer, a licensed title company holding the deposit, no fees of any kind, and the price in writing. The Federal Trade Commission warns never to pay a company upfront for promises of mortgage relief, and warns that scammers may try to get owners to sign over the deed.
Read the guide: How to check a cash buyer →
Property taxes and the other bills
Florida bills property tax once a year, due November 1, with a discount for paying from November to February. Arizona bills it in two halves, due October 1 and March 1. At closing the year's tax is split between seller and buyer by the days each owns the house, and unpaid taxes are paid from the sale.
Read the guide: Property taxes when you sell →
When you owe more than the house is worth
If your loans add up to more than the house can sell for, a normal sale cannot pay them off. A short sale needs your lender's written approval of the price. A deed in lieu means you sign the house over to the lender. Ask the lender in writing to waive any debt left over, and ask a tax adviser about canceled debt.
Read the guide: Owe more than it is worth? Short sale or deed in lieu →
When your loan payment is about to go up
An adjustable rate that resets, a balloon payment that comes due, or a home equity line that ends its draw period can raise your payment on a set date. Before the first reset of an adjustable rate, federal rules require your servicer to warn you 210 to 240 days ahead and list your choices, including refinancing and selling.
Read the guide: Loan payment going up: adjustable rate, balloon or HELOC →
Work done without a permit, or an open permit
A garage turned into a room, an addition or a new roof without a permit, or a permit that was never closed, can come up when a buyer's lender orders an appraisal. In Florida, any owner can close an open permit, even one a past owner pulled, and a buyer who paid fair value cannot be fined for it. Tell the buyer what you know in both states.
Read the guide: Work done without a permit, or an open permit →
Selling in Florida during hurricane season
From June 1 to November 30, a tropical storm or hurricane watch anywhere in Florida can stop new insurance policies from starting, and a buyer with a loan needs one to close. Florida sellers also give a written flood disclosure at or before the contract. Plan the buyer's insurance early in the contract.
Read the guide: Selling during hurricane season in Florida →
Selling an inherited house
Before heirs can sell, someone must have the legal right to sign the deed. Each state has its own paths to that right, and the house can be sold with the furniture still inside.
Read the guide: Selling an inherited house →
Selling a house in foreclosure in Florida
A Florida foreclosure is a court case, and you own the house until the auction. A sale before the sale date pays the lender at closing and stops the sale.
Read the guide: Selling a house in foreclosure in Florida →
Selling before a trustee's sale in Arizona
With a deed of trust, an Arizona house can be sold by a trustee without a court case, no sooner than the 91st day after the notice. A sale before that date pays the loan and ends the process.
Read the guide: Selling before a trustee's sale in Arizona →
Behind on mortgage payments
For a loan on your main home, federal rules give four months before the first foreclosure filing. Use those months to apply for help, or to sell while every choice is open.
Read the guide: Behind on mortgage payments →
Selling a rental with tenants
You can sell a rental with the tenants still in it. Each state sets its own rules for visits, ending a month-to-month lease and passing on the deposits.
Read the guide: Selling a rental with tenants →
Selling a house with code violations or liens
You can sell a house with an open code case. Florida asks the seller to tell the buyer in writing and notify the city after closing, and recorded fines are paid from the sale.
Read the guide: Selling a house with code violations or liens →
Selling a storm-damaged house with an open claim
A storm-damaged house can be sold before the claim is paid. Florida sets dates for the claim and for the insurer, and the contract decides who keeps the claim money.
Read the guide: Selling a storm-damaged house with an open claim →
Selling a fire or water damaged house
Fire and water damage keep growing after the event. Act in the first 48 hours, protect the claim, check Florida's total loss and 50 percent rules, then repair or sell the house as it stands.
Read the guide: Selling a fire or water damaged house →
Selling a house with an old roof
A buyer with a loan needs insurance, and an insurer checks the roof's age. Florida law limits when an insurer can refuse an older roof, and a cash buyer needs no insurer to close.
Read the guide: Selling a house with an old roof →
Selling a vacant house
An empty house keeps costing money and can collect problems: leaks nobody sees, tall grass, break-ins. A weekly check protects it, and it can be sold with the work still to do.
Read the guide: Selling a vacant house →
House did not sell with an agent
A listing that ends without a sale leaves you with a house, monthly bills and a decision. Start with the agreement you signed and the buyers' feedback, then compare the next steps.
Read the guide: House did not sell with an agent →
Selling a house during a divorce
In a divorce, the couple has to decide what happens to the house. Florida and Arizona treat it differently, and an Arizona sale during the case needs both spouses or the court.
Read the guide: Selling a house during a divorce →
Selling a building lot or vacant land
A lot is priced on what can be built on it. Buyers check zoning, access, utilities and back taxes, and Arizona asks for a land disclosure on some parcels.
Read the guide: Selling a building lot or vacant land →
How fast a cash sale closes
A cash sale skips the buyer's loan. What remains is the title search, the payoffs and the closing papers, plus a few things that can push the date back.
Read the guide: How fast a cash sale closes →
Selling a house after you move away
You can sell from another state. Offers, contracts, inspections and closing papers can all be handled from where you live, with a notary or a power of attorney for the deed.
Read the guide: Selling a house after you move away →
Selling a house privately
A private sale has no sign, no listing and no showings. The deed still becomes public once it is recorded, and the state papers still apply.
Read the guide: Selling a house privately →
Downsizing and selling the family home
Moving to a smaller home, a 55+ community or near family is a big step after many years in one house. Time the move, sort the furniture, and check the tax rules that can help.
Read the guide: Downsizing and selling the family home →
Repair first or sell as is?
Some repairs pay for themselves and some cost more than they add. Sort them, get written bids, follow each state's permit and contractor rules, and compare the two paths in dollars.
Read the guide: Repair first or sell as is? →
Comparing cash offers
Two cash offers with the same price can leave you with different amounts and different risks. Put them side by side, read the contract terms, and read the buyer's reviews with care.
Read the guide: Comparing cash offers →
Kinds of cash home buyers
A cash offer can come from an app, a national brand's local office, a website that gathers offers, or a buyer in your city. Each is set up differently, so ask each one the same questions.
Read the guide: Kinds of cash home buyers →
When is a cash sale a good fit?
A cash sale fits best when the house needs work, when you need a fixed date, when you want privacy, or when you want one written number with no financing risk. Sellers come to us for many reasons: an inherited house, foreclosure, divorce, a move, a tired rental, or a listing that did not sell.
A listing often fits better when the house is in good shape, you have time, and you are ready for showings. You can get a written cash offer first and compare.
Words you will hear in a cash sale
These terms come up on almost every cash sale. Knowing them makes the offer and the closing papers easier to read.
| Word | What it means |
|---|---|
| Comparable sales | Recent sales of similar houses close to yours, used to price your house. |
| As is | You sell the house in its current condition, with no repairs. |
| Proof of funds | A bank letter or statement showing the buyer has the money. |
| Purchase agreement | The written contract both sides sign. Before it is signed, nobody is bound. |
| Earnest deposit | Money the buyer puts down with the title company, credited to the price at closing. |
| Title company | The neutral company that checks the title, holds the deposit and runs the closing. |
| Payoff letter | The exact amount needed to clear a loan or lien on the closing day. |
| Closing statement | The list of the price, every payoff and cost, and what you receive. |
| Proration | Splitting the year's property tax between seller and buyer by days owned. |
| Retrade | When a buyer lowers the agreed price after the contract is signed. |
What to have ready before you call
You do not need any of this to get an offer. Having it ready makes the first call shorter and the offer more accurate.
- The address, and who is on the title.
- The mortgage lender, and any other loans or liens.
- What you know about the roof, air conditioning, plumbing and any damage.
- Leases and rents, if the house is rented.
- The date you would like to close.
Want a number for your house? BIMINIO buys in Florida and Arizona, as is. A written offer comes within 24 hours.