Sundae Real Estate Reviews: What to Consider Before You Sell

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  Written by Michelle Delgado

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  Edited by Andrew Whytock

Sundae reviews | Should you use Sundae? | Pros and cons | How it works | Sundae vs. other cash buyers | Sundae vs. selling with an agent

What is Sundae?

Sundae real estate is an online marketplace that connects home sellers with real estate investors who buy properties for cash.

Sundae’s platform is meant to encourage competing bids. In theory, this approach could help you get a higher sale price — even if you’re listing your house as is.

But you might not actually get the best deal through Sundae.

Most cash buyers, including Sundae investors, are looking for a bargain on the purchase price. Buyers try to pay no more than 70% of what they believe they can get for the house after a flip, minus the anticipated cost of repairs. Plus, Sundae charges investors a fee that it takes out of the bid price before sellers see the offer, further reducing the sale price.

The Sundae cash buyer marketplace may also be on the decline. It’s available in only 6 markets this year compared to 18 markets last year.

If you want to sell your home fast but get the best offer, Clever Offers may be a better option. With Clever’s free service, you can compare multiple cash offers from legitimate investors against your home’s fair market value. You’ll also get a dedicated agent to walk you through the fine print so you can make an informed decision.

Sundae real estate at a glance

Sundae real estate reviews and complaints

Sundae real estate reviews have an average rating of 4.3/5 out of 678 reviews.

Sundae is accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and has an A+ rating.

✅ Sundae reviews note these positive aspects of the company: 

• Customer service
• Easy, simple process
• Good offers on homes, often better than competitors
• Speed
• Convenience
• Lack of fees
• Transparent communication throughout the transaction

❌ Sundae reviews complain about:

• Communication and responsiveness
• Expectations not being met
• Aggressive marketing tactics, including sending unsolicited home purchase requests to homeowners with no intention to sell
• Disappointingly low offers
• Houses being flipped for significantly more just weeks later

Should you use Sundae to sell your house? 

If you need a fast cash offer due to extenuating circumstances, Sundae is worth considering. 

Sundae connects you to a network of property investors who are interested in buying your house as is. Multiple bids may result in a higher price than you’d get from reaching out to a single cash buyer, and transactions are typically faster than the open real estate market.

If you want more money for your property’s sale, then Sundae isn’t your best option. 

The key trade-off for Sundae’s convenience is that investors will typically pay less than your home’s fair market value. 

As a general rule, investors offer a max of 70% of the property’s anticipated resale value, and they deduct the costs they anticipate putting into repairs.

Sundae also deducts a $1,000 admin fee and a Sundae buyer premium (which varies by purchase price and market) before showing you an offer. You could potentially make more by selling to an investor directly — especially if you’re willing to compare offers. 

If getting the best possible sale price is your top priority, one option is working with a great real estate agent who knows your local market and has a plan to sell your house fast. You can still compare that plan against cash offers from investors to make an informed decision.

Sundae pros and cons

Pros

• You can receive multiple offers. Sundae’s marketplace allows multiple investors to bid on your property. According to Sundae, the average home seller receives around 22+ offers, with a price range between the lowest and highest offers averaging around $71,000.

• You can skip repairs. Sundae’s marketplace is built for online real estate investors prepared to buy homes as is, so you don’t have to worry about making any changes to your home or cleaning it out.

• You can get a cash advance. Sundae provides a $10,000 cash advance to sellers to help with any expenses before or during closing.

• There are no out-of-pocket fees. In a traditional home sale, sellers pay both agents’ commissions and closing costs like escrow and title fees. With Sundae, all fees and closing costs are handled by the investor buying your home.

• Investors are vetted. To join Sundae’s network, investors have to verify their identities and pay an earnest money deposit for accepted offers, ensuring you don’t get swindled.

Cons 

• You may get lowball offers. The offers you receive through Sundae will likely be less than the fair market value of your home (which is typical across most cash buyer companies).

• Locations are limited. Sundae’s service area is currently limited to six major metro areas in California and Texas.

Where does Sundae operate?

Sundae currently operates in the following markets:

• Dallas–Fort Worth, TX
• Inland Empire, CA
• Los Angeles, CA
• Orange County, CA
• Sacramento, CA
• San Diego, CA

If you don’t live in one of Sundae’s services areas — and need cash right away — you might want to consider other cash buyers that operate nationwide.

How does Sundae work?

Step 1: Submit your information 

To get started with Sundae, home sellers will first provide information about their home online or by phone. 

A Sundae representative will tell you how the selling process works, learn more about your property, and ask about your goals for selling. 

If the service is a good match, Sundae will have you sign a Marketplace Agreement and schedule an appointment for a local Market Expert to view your home, typically within one week of submitting your information. 

Step 2: Meet with a representative 

When a Sundae team member visits your home, they’ll do a video walk-through, take photos, and collect a 3D tour and virtual map of your house.

Based on the walk-through evaluation, you’ll get an estimate of what Sundae thinks investors will offer for your home. The offer range considers your home’s after-repair value, estimated construction costs, holding and resale costs, and comparable sales in your area. 

If the offer range is acceptable, you’ll schedule a home inspection and sign an agreement allowing Sundae to list your home on its marketplace. 

Step 3: Complete a home inspection and sign disclosures

Before listing your home, Sundae will schedule a third-party home inspection to evaluate its overall condition and note any necessary repairs. As a seller, you’ll also need to fill out documents disclosing any issues, such as lead paint or prior water damage, that you are aware of with the home.

Your home’s inspection report and seller’s disclosures will be posted with your property profile on Sundae’s marketplace.

Step 4: Go live on Sundae’s marketplace 

Once the home inspection, initial title reports, and photos are prepared, your home will go live on Sundae’s marketplace. Sundae investors will have four days to place their bids.

Home sellers can also choose to host a showing so investors can see the inside of the home — though it’s not required.

Step 5: Review cash offers

Your home will be listed on Sundae’s marketplace for three business days. On the fourth day, you’ll get to review the three highest bids from investors. Offers are valid for three business days.

There’s no obligation to accept one of these bids — in fact, Sundae allows home sellers to back out any time during this process until you sign the actual purchase agreement with the investor. 

Step 6: Close the transaction 

Once you sign a purchase agreement with the investor, you’ll be eligible to receive a $10,000 cash advance from Sundae to help with any expenses that come up before or during closing.

Depending on your timeline, you can request a closing date within as little as 10 days, or up to 60 days.

Sundae real estate fees

There are no out-of-pocket expenses for homeowners who list and sell their properties through Sundae. Buyers pay ALL transaction costs, including:

• A $1,000 admin fee
• A 5–7% buyer’s premium, which varies by property value and market
• Closings costs (including those usually paid by the seller)
• Expenses related to repairs, cleaning, and removal of personal items left by the seller

The catch is that Sundae deducts its fees before showing you an offer, meaning you could potentially make more by selling to an investor directly.

Can you trust Sundae home buyers?

Sundae excels in vetting investors and making the process easy for sellers. 

Sundae doesn’t require investors to provide proof of funds or past purchases before their account is activated. But they must go through an onboarding process that verifies their identify before they can access the marketplace. 

Sundae’s investors must also agree to abide by the company’s rules. Any investor who attempts to reach out to a seller or drive by their property without permission will be dismissed from the platform.

Once an investor’s account is activated, they can bid on available homes. If an investor’s offer is among the top three bids on a property, they’re required to fill out a purchase agreement, which Sundae sends to the seller for review.

However, Sundae is not 100% transparent about how the fees work.

Sundae deducts both a $1,000 admin fee and a 5–7% buyer’s premium before a seller sees the final offer price. So you won’t actually know how much the investor offered.

Listing with Sundae vs. selling with an agent 

In general, listing your home on the open market will lead to the highest possible offer — sometimes above fair market value, if your property is in a seller’s market. 

If you have some flexibility with your timeline or if your home is in decent condition, listing on the open market is usually the best course of action — especially considering that the median sale price of homes sold on the open market is a full 20% higher than those sold to an investor. 

However, if your property is in very poor condition or you urgently need cash, Sundae offers homeowners in its service areas the best chance for a competitive off-market offer. With Sundae, you’ll also be able to avoid making repairs, receive an offer with no contingencies, and close on YOUR timeline. 

That said, top listing agents often have plans for getting homes sold quickly and for prices well above what you could get from an investor. And a good agent will tell you if they don’t think they’ll be able to net you more than what you’d get from a cash buyer.

Sundae vs. other cash buyers

Compared with other cash buyers, which typically include national “we buy houses” companies and smaller-scale local investors, Sundae’s business model is fairly unique.

Most “we buy houses” companies make a direct cash offer on your home, typically below — and sometimes significantly below — fair market value. There isn’t usually room for negotiation, so you have to shop around for the highest offer.

With Sundae, multiple investors compete for your home within a single platform, allowing you to get a competitive off-market price without paying any fees or closing costs. 

However, it’s important to note that direct cash buyers such as HomeVestors or MarketPro Homebuyers can typically move faster than Sundae — making an offer and closing all in as little as 7–10 days. 

By contrast, Sundae’s process takes somewhat longer because the company requires a walk-through, inspection, and initial title search before listing your home on its marketplace.

Once listed, investors have three days to bid on your home. On the fourth day, you can choose a winner from the three highest offers.

Sundae vs. We Buy Ugly Houses

We Buy Ugly Houses makes cash offers but with little room to negotiate. The company might be a good fit if you want to move quickly, since you can close in three weeks. But Sundae’s bidding structure and zero fees could net you more. We Buy Ugly Houses is nationwide, making it a good alternative if you’re outside of Sundae’s nine states. 

Sundae vs. HomeVestors

HomeVestor is a network of real estate investors (and the parent company of We Buy Ugly Homes). But it doesn’t bid on your home. The company sends a real estate specialist to your house to inspect its condition. Then it will send you a cash offer, which you can accept or reject. You can close faster with HomeVestor, but you might net more through Sundae’s bidding structure. 

Sundae vs. MarketPro Homebuyers

MarkeyPro Homebuyers is a company that buys houses in Maryland, DC, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. It can be a great choice if you’re facing foreclosure or you need to sell in two weeks or less. It might also offer more of your home’s value than Sundae. The company isn’t a direct competitor to Sundae, since it operates in different areas.

Sundae vs. iBuyers

Another way to sell your house quickly for cash is through an iBuyer. iBuyers make near-instant cash offers on homes that only need minor repairs. They have stricter criteria for buying homes, but they pay much closer to market value than cash buyers.

Sundae vs. Opendoor

Opendoor operates in more markets than Sundae, and it makes higher offers than other iBuyers. But Opendoor’s closing window is slightly less flexible than Sundae’s, it charges a 5% service fee, and it’s much more selective about the homes it buys. Sundae might be the better option if your home needs heavy repairs. 

Sundae vs. Offerpad

Like Opendoor, Offerpad offers services in more markets and is more selective than Sundae. You’ll likely get a higher offer from Offerpad than from Sundae, but only if your home is in good condition. Offerpad’s 6% service fee is slightly higher than Opendoor’s, but its closing window is the most flexible of all three companies.

Before you sell one of your biggest assets, it’s worth exploring your options. 

Clever can introduce you to pre-vetted real estate agents with reputations for quickly selling homes in your area. You can interview as many agents as you’d like to find the right fit for your needs.

When you list with Clever, you’ll pay just 1.5% in listing fees — helping you save thousands AND ensuring you get a great deal.

Recommended reading

3 Ways to Sell Your House Fast: Need to sell ASAP? We gathered tried-and-true strategies for finding a buyer quickly.

What You Should Know Before Selling an Inherited Home: Selling an inherited property may be more complicated than it seems. From tax implications to legal processes, we broke down everything you need to know.

Are “We Buy Houses” Companies a Rip-off? You’ve seen the signs tacked on telephone poles. But are companies that advertise fast cash offers too good to be true? We found the truth.