Homeward Review: Is It Worth It to Buy Before You Sell?

Homeward offers flexible options for buying a home in a competitive market or buying and selling a house at the same time:

1. Sell to Homeward. Get the majority of your home value upfront.[1] Homeward will work with your agent to list the home and give you any additional profit from the sale, minus fees and selling costs.
2. Buy before you sell. Borrow against your home value to purchase a new house. Then, list your home with a realtor and pay Homeward back once it sells.
3. Make a cash offer. Make a cash offer on a new home, boosting your chances of winning in a competitive market. Buy the home back from Homeward with your mortgage.

While Homeward's products can help you avoid financing contingencies and move on your timeline, reviews are somewhat mixed. Sellers repeatedly mention walking away with less money than expected after Homeward collects its fees. Before settling on Orchard, we recommend exploring a few alternatives — including iBuyers providing a direct cash offer and buy-before-you-sell programs with lower fees.

To save time, you can also start with a cash offer marketplace like Clever Offers, which helps you quickly compare your bottom line across a variety of selling options — ranging from direct cash offers to buy-before-you-sell solutions providing cash upfront with a second payout when your house sells. Compare options, get a realistic idea of your timeline and net proceeds, and choose the path that’s best for you — no added fees or obligation to move forward.

Is Homeward worth it?

Homeward's cash offer products are built around selling and buying a house at the same time. They tend to appeal to home sellers who:

• Need the cash tied up in their current home to make a down payment on a new house
• Need to move quickly but don’t want to sell for a lower price to a cash buyer
• Don’t want to live in their home while keeping it open for showings and open houses
• Fear missing out on their dream home while waiting for your current one to sell

While Homeward's products are designed to ease the process of buying and selling, they can add considerably to the expense. Program fees range from 1.9—7% of your total home sale or purchase price. Sellers also report unpredictable repair bills and high maintenance costs that accrue while Homeward works with your agent to sell your home.

If you’re in the position of buying and selling at the same time, you have alternatives that don’t involve such high fees, says Darren Robertson, realtor and founder of Northern Virginia Home Pro: “iBuyers and the like are much more straightforward and guarantee better timing, at the cost of a lower sale.”

Pros and cons to consider with Homeward

✅ You can make a competitive, contingency-free offer on your next home

When you use Homeward’s Buy Before You Sell products to purchase your next home, Homeward effectively turns your offer into cash — removing the financing and home sale contingencies that make sellers nervous.

This can be a major advantage in competitive markets. Many former Homeward reviewers credit the cash offer program with helping them win bidding wars or secure their dream home. One first-time buyer wrote that they "tried winning bidding wars for a year with a regular mortgage company" before switching to Homeward and winning an offer immediately. [2]

✅ You choose your own agent and lender

Unlike competitors such as Orchard, which requires you to use its in-house agents, Homeward lets you work with the real estate agent and mortgage lender of your choice. This is a significant advantage for two reasons.

First, choosing a top agent — rather than being assigned one — can directly impact your sale price and how quickly your home sells. Working with a brokerage that offers competitive commission rates can also save you thousands on fees, helping offset some of the cost of using Homeward's program.

Second, the freedom to shop for the best mortgage rate can save you substantially over the life of your loan. Homeward does incentivize using its in-house mortgage service — you'll get a 1% credit toward your program fee with Homeward Mortgage [3] — but you're not locked in. One reviewer noted that they "chose a different lender when it came to the new mortgage as they were high for today's market," and Homeward still honored the reduced fee discount. [4]

✅ You can sell your home vacant — potentially for a higher price

One key benefit of Homeward's Buy Before You Sell program is that you can move into your new home first, then prep and list your old one empty. Multiple reviewers say this made a meaningful difference in their sale.

Wade, who has guided several clients through buy-before-you-sell programs, notes the practical impact: "My clients who utilize this process have had a lot of success. They were able to buy, move out, fix their house up and then sell. In many cases the buyers and sellers have children and pets, and having a vacant house to sell is much easier than trying to balance showings while juggling the busy schedules of families."

One longtime homeowner echoed this, writing that they "had time to find a new house and move, then time to paint and fix up the old house so I could sell it for top dollar."[5]

⚠️ Unexpected deductions can significantly reduce your proceeds

A recurring complaint in Homeward reviews is that sellers' final payouts end up far lower than what they were initially led to believe. In an extreme case, one seller noted that their home sold for $200,000 more than their initial payout and they were supposed to get a second check for $70,000 — but it ended up being only $1,738. "They make up fake expenses and fees," the reviewer claimed, "Total SCAM."[6]

In addition to the program fee, sellers are responsible for agent commissions, closing costs, utilities, maintenance (lawn care, etc.), property taxes, and the cost of any repairs Homeward determines your home needs to get it market-ready.

The repair issue is a particular pain point. Because Homeward decides what work is needed and manages the process, sellers don't always have control over or visibility into how much is being spent. Several recent reviewers describe being quoted modest repair estimates upfront, only to see much larger amounts deducted at closing. One seller wrote that they were initially quoted $14,000 in repair costs but ended up facing even higher charges.[7] Another described being charged $4,000 for a "deep clean" and cosmetic work they felt was unnecessary or already completed. [8]

Many of these costs aren't fully itemized until shortly before closing, leaving some sellers feeling blindsided. If you go with Homeward, ask for a detailed breakdown of all potential deductions upfront and get cost estimates in writing before you sign.

⚠️ Communication breakdowns can create costly hiccups

While many Homeward reviews praise the company's communication, a recurring theme in 1-star reviews is being bounced between six or more contacts, receiving contradictory information, and having to re-explain their situation at every step.

This is especially concerning for a process where timing matters. Several reviewers describe closing delays caused by internal miscommunication — and in some cases, Homeward making decisions about their home's listing price or accepted offers without consulting them. One seller complained that Homeward "lowered the price without consulting us and also ended up accepting a contract on our home without negotiating with us." [9]

It's worth noting that while Homeward used to respond to negative reviews on Google and Trustpilot, recent complaints appear to go unanswered — a potential red flag for prospective customers.

⚠️ The backup offer won't come close to market value — and the clock starts ticking at 90 days

If you use Homeward's Buy Before You Sell program and your home doesn't sell within 180 days, Homeward will buy it — but only for the Equity Unlock amount minus typical seller closing costs. According to Homeward's FAQ, the Equity Unlock amount is typically about 80% of your home's market value. [10] For a $400,000 home, an 80% Equity Unlock amount would be $320,000 — and that's before closing costs are deducted.

It's also important to understand the timeline. The 3.5% program fee only covers the first 90 days after your new home closes. If your old home hasn't sold by then, you'll pay an additional 1% per month for up to three more months of extension time. [11] So while you technically have 180 days before Homeward steps in to buy, you're paying a premium for every month past the first three.

While most sellers won't need to exercise the backup offer — Homeward says 99% of clients sell their homes on the market [12] — the possibility should be weighed carefully, especially in a cooling market. If your local market is sluggish, the combination of extension fees and a below-market backup offer could put you in a difficult financial position.

Top Homeward competitors

Homeward's main competitors include other buy-before-you-sell programs, iBuyer companies, and cash offer marketplaces, which help you explore a variety of options for getting cash offers.

The following companies are highly rated and may provide more flexibility or lower fees.

» MORE: See our rankings lists for the best iBuyers and buy-before-you-sell programs in 2026

Homeward reviews and complaints

Homeward reviews are mostly positive. The company has a weighted average customer rating of 4.55 across 1396 online reviews.

What recent Homeward customers have to say

We analyzed 557 Homeward reviews (all reviews since 2023) across BBB, Google, and Trustpilot. Overall, 87.3% are positive. Notably, roughly 1-in-3 Homeward reviews are posted by real estate agents, suggesting the company actively solicit positive reviews from its partner agents. Many customer reviews, especially those that mention buying a home with Homeward, are also positive. Buyers frequently praise Homeward for helping them secure their next home while eliminating the burden of having to sell first. Reviews from sellers are somewhat mixed, with the most common complaints centering on higher-than-expected fees and a process that felt more complicated than advertised.

How Homeward works

Homeward has three key offerings: Sell to Homeward, Buy Before You Sell, and Make a Cash Offer. Homeward also provides mortgage and title services through its affiliate partners.

Homeward fees and other costs

Homeward's program fees are among the steepest in the buy-before-you-sell space. Its Sell to Homeward option costs 7% of the home sale price.[13] The Buy Before You Sell product costs 3.5%, and Make a Cash Offer runs 1.9%. However, buyers who use Homeward Mortgage receive a credit at closing, which may help to offset at least some of the program costs.[17]

For comparison, Knock charges 2.25% plus about $1,850 in loan fees for a similar bridge loan product, [18] and Orchard's Move First program costs 1.9–2.4%. These costs are on top of the usual selling costs, such as realtor fees, closing costs, pre-listing home prep, and ongoing utilities and maintenance costs while your old house sells.

If your old house doesn't sell within 90 days of closing on your new one, you'll pay 1% per month for a 90-day extension.[19]

What homes are eligible for Homeward's products?

Homeward can provide a cash offer or equity advance on most single-family homes and townhomes valued between $200,000 and $1.7 million. Homes should be built after 1950 or renovated and on lots of five acres or less.

Generally, your home may not be eligible for Homeward’s programs if it:

• Is in poor condition or needs significant work
• Has unpermitted additions
• Has outdated plumbing or electrical
• Has an active or coming-soon listing on the MLS
• Is occupied by tenants with a lease in place
• Is under renovation
• Has solar that is leased or financed
• Is a multi-family dwelling, condo, mobile or manufactured home, land leases, lot purchase, or commercial building

If you’re using Homeward’s cash offer to buy a new construction home, it will need to qualify based on specifications, price, proposed completion date, and construction progress.

📍Homeward locations

Homeward is currently available in the following markets. Select your local market to find additional cash offer products available near you.

How to evaluate Homeward against alternatives

Before using a service like Homeward, Jessica Wade, a Realtor with eXp Realty in Georgia, says you should "fully understand the terms and how the process looks." Brett Ringelheim, a real estate agent with Compass in New York, agrees — and stresses that "understanding the full picture is most important" because "in real estate you never know what is going to happen." Specifically, look for:

• Fees and commissions. Homeward's Buy Before You Sell FAQ provides some transparency around program costs, but be sure to ask about additional charges that may not be obvious upfront.[20] Multiple reviewers report that repair costs, maintenance fees, and other deductions were significantly higher than initially quoted — and weren't fully itemized until close to closing. Ask for a written breakdown of all potential costs before you sign.
• Agent selection. Unlike some competitors, Homeward lets you choose your own real estate agent for both buying and selling. This is a significant advantage — your choice of agent can greatly impact the outcome of your home sale. Working with an agent who charges lower commission rates can also help offset the cost of using Homeward's program. Wade emphasizes working with "professional full-time real estate agents, especially when dealing with a specific product like this."
• Backup offer price. If you're using Buy Before You Sell, Homeward will purchase your home after 180 days if it doesn't sell — but only at the Equity Unlock amount (typically ~80% of market value) minus typical seller closing costs.[21] One agent who has used the program multiple times notes: "There hasn't always been a second check depending on the market, so I make sure it's clear to clients that the second check is a bonus and not a guarantee like the first." [22]
• Lender flexibility. Homeward doesn't require you to use Homeward Mortgage, but it incentivizes it — you'll get a credit toward your program fee if you do.[23] The freedom to shop for your own lender is worth real money. Say you're purchasing a $500,000 house with a $400,000 mortgage — even a 0.25% interest rate deduction can save you $20,000+ over the life of the loan. Weigh the 1% program credit against what you could save with a more competitive rate elsewhere.
• Timeline. Homeward's 3.5% program fee covers the first 90 days after your new home closes. After that, you'll pay 1% per month for up to three additional months before Homeward steps in to buy your home at 180 days.[24] By comparison, Knock gives you six months interest-free, [25] and Orchard's Move First typically allows 120 days. If your local market is slow, a shorter fee-free window could mean paying significantly more out of pocket.

FAQs

Recommended reading

About our reviews

Our review process includes gathering all verifiable customer reviews from 3rd party sites such as BBB, Google, TrustPilot, and Yelp. In addition to tallying total review counts and average customer ratings, we run all available reviews through AI to identify the most common positive and negative themes mentioned across the entire review set.

Whenever possible, we also talk directly to customers, company reps, and industry professionals (such as real estate agents) who have firsthand experience with the company.

For our Homeward review, we consulted the following sources:

• Darren Robertson, realtor and founder of Northern Virginia Home Pro
• Jessica Wade, Realtor with eXp Realty in Georgia
• Brett Ringelheim, Real Estate Agent with Compass in New York