Selling a house in Hackensack, as it is, for cash
Hackensack is Bergen County’s seat and a city where most households rent. That means plenty of owners here are landlords, heirs or people who bought decades ago and now need out. If the house needs work or the timing is tight, a direct sale can be simpler than a listing.
Straight talk about where we’re from
Our home base is Montgomery, New York, up in Orange County. Hackensack is a drive for us, and we won’t pretend we have an office around the corner from the courthouse. What we do have is a habit of showing up: when you ask for an offer, Greg Helbeck or Brett Gennarelli comes to see the property before putting a price on it.
After that visit, a cash price arrives in writing, typically by the next day. It names the price, the closing date we suggest and who covers which costs. You don’t clean, repair or stage anything, and unwanted belongings can stay where they are.
We are not the answer for every Hackensack seller. An updated home with a patient owner may well fetch more through an agent, and we’ll be honest about that if it comes up.
A small, busy city with a lot of rentals
Hackensack covers about 4.6 square miles and held 46,030 people in 2020. Census survey estimates put the share of homes occupied by their owners at roughly 37 percent, so the rental side of the market is large. The county courthouse, the county government buildings and a major medical center are all here, and the Pascack Valley Line stops at Anderson Street and Essex Street.
The properties we’re asked about most often in Hackensack are two- and three-family houses with long-term tenants, older single-family homes on narrow lots, and houses that have been empty for a while after an owner died or moved into care. The city’s roots go back to a Dutch trading post, and George Washington’s army camped on The Green in November 1776, so some homes here have seen a century or more of alterations. Expect us to look closely at the electrical panel, the boiler, the foundation and anything that looks like an unpermitted conversion.
Low-lying blocks toward the Hackensack River deserve a look on the federal flood maps. A flood designation matters a lot to a buyer who needs a mortgage and flood insurance; for us it simply becomes part of the price calculation.
New Jersey does a few things differently
If you’ve only ever sold in New York, a Hackensack sale has some steps you may not expect.
Attorney review. New Jersey gives both parties three business days of attorney review whenever a licensed agent drafts the residential sales contract; in that window either lawyer can approve it, ask for changes or cancel. Our purchase agreement isn’t an agent’s form, but you should still have a New Jersey attorney read it before you sign. We expect you to.
Smoke and carbon monoxide certificate. Before a one- or two-family house changes owners, New Jersey’s fire code calls for a smoke alarm compliance certificate. It is issued after a local fire inspection, and carbon monoxide alarms are checked as part of it. Your attorney or ours will make sure it’s handled before closing.
The realty transfer fee. New Jersey charges a fee when the deed is recorded, and the Division of Taxation says the seller is legally responsible for it. Certain sellers, including some senior citizens, qualify for a reduced fee, so ask your attorney.
Bergen County paperwork lives here
Because Hackensack is the county seat, the offices that touch a sale are in town. The Bergen County Clerk records deeds and mortgages at One Bergen County Plaza. The Bergen County Surrogate, also in Hackensack, handles probate, so an executor selling a family house deals with that office before signing anything.
New Jersey property taxes are paid quarterly, and at closing they are split between seller and buyer by date. If you’re behind, the unpaid amount comes out of the sale proceeds on closing day, not from your savings ahead of time.
Reasons Hackensack owners reach out
Some are landlords who are done with it, and we can buy a building with the tenants still there. Some live across the state line now and don’t want to manage repairs from a distance. Some are executors trying to wrap up an estate without paying to fix up a house first. And some just need a firm date, because a new job or a new home elsewhere won’t wait for a listing to play out. Whatever the reason, the first step is the same: a phone call, then a visit.
A word on pressure. We won’t hand you a deadline designed to rush you, and you are welcome to have your sister, your accountant or a second buyer look at our offer first. Hackensack owners often get mailers and texts from investors they’ve never met. Ask any of them, including us, for a written offer, a real name and a company you can look up, and compare before you commit.
Hackensack questions we get
Do you have an office in Hackensack?
No. Our only office is in Montgomery, New York. We buy in Bergen County and travel to each property we make an offer on, so you will meet one of us in person before you see a number.
Is there an attorney review period if I sell to you?
The three-day attorney review rule applies to contracts prepared by real estate licensees, and ours is not one of those. Even so, we want a New Jersey attorney to read the agreement for you before you sign, and we won’t rush that step.
Who arranges the smoke alarm certificate?
It is the seller’s obligation under state rules, but in practice the attorneys and the title company make sure the inspection is booked and the certificate is in hand before the closing date. If an alarm needs replacing, it is usually a small fix.
My Hackensack tenants owe back rent. Will you still buy the building?
Yes. Late or non-paying tenants change the price, not whether we can buy. Bring whatever leases, rent records and deposit information you have.
Who pays the New Jersey realty transfer fee?
The seller, under state law. It is deducted from your proceeds at closing, and your written offer shows how it affects what you take home.