Double closing vs. assignment

[Jeff Fairchild]

When do you want to to assign and when do you want to double close?

I've heard that double closings are difficult, is this true? Do certain title companies not like them?

What else is there to know?

[Ryan Webber]

Assigning and double closing each have their own advantages and disadvantages.

With an assignment, the seller takes your place in the contract. You sign a contract with the seller that has your name with "and/or assigns" as the buyer. You then would sign an assignment of contract with your buyer, which specifies how much your assignment fee is. With an assignment the buyer will know exactly how much you are making on the deal. The seller will also know that you are selling it to someone else and will know who it is and how much you made on the deal. With an assignment you won't pay any closing costs out of your assignment fee. You will know exactly how much you're making.

With a double closing, you sign a contract with the seller, and then you sign a separate contract between you and the buyer with the same closing date as the first contract. You will pay closing costs when you buy it, and you will pay closing costs when you sell it. Many times, the seller will not know that you are reselling it and will not know how much or to who you are selling it to. The same is true for your buyer. A double closing has more anonymity and privacy, but you will pay for it with closing costs.

If you are planning on wholesaling you need to find an investor friendly title company that will do both assignments and double closings. When you find one ask what their procedures are and find out what they require in the process of the seller, the buyer, and you.

I've heard some teachings on the basis that if you are making more than 7K then you should double close. Now this depends on your market. If you are dealing with 200K houses then that number might be 15K or 20K. If you are dealing with 30K houses then you might want to take that number down to 4K or 5K. I personally double close 90-95% of my stuff just to keep everything private and save everyone's feelings in the deal.