Seller Financing: An Idea Whose Time Has Come

Updated

Do you want to sell your house but have figured out that buyers are as scarce as snowflakes in the Arizona desert? If you've owned your home for a long while and have equity in it, your best bet might be to offer seller financing.

Seller financing essentially means that you will act as the bank when the bank won't. It's an idea whose time has come because of tighter lending qualifications. According to the National Association of Realtors, there's already been an uptick in the number of homeowners who carry loans for their buyers.

But a couple of measures kicking around in Washington may unintentionally throw a wet blanket over seller financing -- effectively ending a practice that could actually revive the comatose housing market.

Advertisement