Get a cash offer for a fire-damaged house.
Kitchen fire, attic fire, total loss. Enter the address and see a real cash number. We buy as-is, smoke damage and all.
The fire is out. The decisions are just starting.
Fire damage ranges from a one-room kitchen fire with smoke throughout to a total-loss rebuild. Each one prices differently and each one has an insurance wrinkle. Most sellers we talk to have a claim open and are deciding whether to rebuild with the insurance payout or take the payout plus a cash sale and walk away.
Insurance pays either actual cash value (ACV) or replacement cost value (RCV). RCV policies pay more but release the replacement portion only as the work is done. If you sell before rebuilding, you typically get the ACV portion — the scrap value, essentially. Read the policy.
On the house side: a lender with a mortgage has a say. Most mortgages require repairs with insurance proceeds if the damage is partial. Total losses can go either way. Your mortgage servicer's loss-draft department is the first call.
Your stage sets your buyer pool and your offer range.
What a cash buyer actually pays here.
Fire-damaged cash offers price off post-rebuild ARV, not current condition. A buyer projects what the house is worth once fully restored, subtracts the rebuild cost (usually $80–$180 per square foot for a full gut, depending on scope), subtracts holding costs and margin, and lands at a number. That number is usually 55–70% of post-rebuild ARV, lower than the typical 65–75% because the rebuild risk is higher.
Example: $320,000 post-rebuild ARV on a 1,600 sq ft house in Cleveland, OH, $160,000 in confirmed rebuild scope, kitchen fire with smoke damage throughout. The math lands at $320,000 × 0.62 = $198,400, minus $160,000 rebuild, for a cash offer around $38,000 — plus whatever insurance check the seller already has in hand and keeps.
The insurance interplay matters. If you have a paid-out RCV policy with $200k already wired and you haven't rebuilt, most buyers expect the claim proceeds to stay with you and will price the offer assuming the house is unrepaired. Bring the policy and any claim documents to the walkthrough.[1]
Cash vs. listing — here's how long each takes.
Speed depends on insurance and the mortgage. If the claim is closed and the lender has released loss-draft funds, we close in 14–30 days. If the claim is still open, we can wait on the check or close before and adjust at the closing table. Tell us where the claim stands.
With work before listing, photos, time on market, and inspection risk. On a tight timeline, a listing usually doesn't close in time — you'd want cash or a hybrid strategy.
When cash is NOT the right move on a fire-damaged house.
If the fire was partial (one room, contained) and insurance is paying RCV, rebuilding usually nets more than selling. The contractor is hired, the materials are ordered, you end up with a house that's worth more than the pre-fire ARV in 4–6 months. Most cash sales on partial damage leave money on the table.
If the structure is sound and the damage is primarily smoke, specialist cleaning (ozone, thermal fogging) plus cosmetic repair costs under $40k and restores the house. Not a cash-sale scenario unless you have other reasons to exit.
And if you're underwater on the mortgage, a cash sale post-fire can't complete without the lender's approval on the short sale. Call your mortgage servicer before any buyer.
Cash offer · List with agent · Rebuild with insurance.
The questions homeowners ask us first.
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