Motivated sellers rarely care about your formulas. They care about one number: how much money they walk away with. A seller net sheet answers that, and a side-by-side comparison of a cash offer and a traditional listing is one of the most honest tools a wholesaler or agent can bring to the kitchen table.
01What is a seller net sheet?
A net sheet estimates the seller's proceeds: sale price minus the mortgage payoff, back taxes and liens, and every cost of the sale. Title companies prepare an official version at closing; investors and agents use an estimate before an offer.
02What goes on a net sheet?
- Mortgage payoff and any second loans.
- Unpaid property taxes, judgments and other liens.
- Agent commissions (often 5–6% combined).
- Seller closing costs: title, escrow, transfer taxes, recording fees.
- Repairs to get the house ready to list.
- Buyer concessions and credits after inspection.
- Holding costs while it sits on the market: mortgage, taxes, insurance, utilities.
03How to calculate net proceeds
Net = price − payoff − liens − commissions − closing costs − repairs − concessions − (months to sell × monthly holding cost). On a $300,000 listing with a $150,000 payoff, 5.5% commissions, 2% closing, $15,000 repairs, 2% concessions and four months at $1,800, the seller keeps about $99,300.
04Cash offer vs listing: the honest comparison
Now compare a $240,000 cash offer that closes in a month, as-is, with no commissions. The seller keeps about $88,200. The listing nets $11,100 more, but only after four months of showings, repairs, a buyer's inspection and the risk the sale falls through. For a seller who is behind on taxes, has inherited a house far away, or cannot pay for repairs, speed and certainty are often worth more than the gap.
05How wholesalers should use it
- Show both columns honestly; never hide the listing option.
- Use real numbers: the seller's payoff, the county's tax bill, real repair costs.
- Let the seller decide. Trust closes more deals than pressure.
06How agents use it
Agents use the same sheet at a listing appointment to set expectations about costs and timing, and to show when a quick as-is sale may serve a client better.
07Where these sellers come from
Tax-delinquent owners, inherited properties, tired landlords and pre-foreclosures are the sellers most likely to value speed. LeadCounty finds them in county records every week.
Try the free seller net sheet calculator: it compares a cash offer with listing, line by line, and prints a clean one-page sheet you can hand to the seller.
