What we do

The Land Contract Store takes the complication, the hassles, and monthly responsibilities out of selling your home on land contract or lease/purchase option. We're based in Ohio, but we coordinate and manage seller-financed home sales across the country.

We help you figure out the financial arrangement that meets your needs. We help you determine if the buyer is qualified to buy your house. We take over collections and payments. We do all of the work that few people want to, or know how to do.

You, as the seller, become only the holder of the note, without the trouble of collections, interest calculations, document preparation and all of the “landlord type” responsibilities.

Through relationships with our lending partners, we can also help you to obtain the bank financing you need to make selling on land contract, and buying your next house, your best financial choice.

And finally, if you want your full payoff as soon as possible, we work with partner banks and lending institutions to help your buyers obtain conventional financing before the end of the term of your contract. The Land Contract Store will also help you find a buyer for the contract itself if you choose to cash out for a lump-sum payment.

STEP I: Preparation & Marketing

We help you prepare for negotiations with buyers, and then help you connect with someone looking for a home they can buy on land contract or lease/purchase option.

At this initial stage, The Land Contract Store develops Rate & Term Scenarios for you, based on your current mortgage payments and/or your desired monthly income, to ensure you will receive a suitable monthly payment during the term of the land contract or lease/purchase option agreement.

The Rate & Term Scenario sheet is vital to determining your starting point in negotiations, and should be in your hands before you begin talks with a potential buyer. Without the Rate & Term Scenario calculations, you could inadvertently agree to a deal which is not in your best financial interest.

Click here to view a sample of the Rate & Term Scenario sheet.

The Land Contract Store also provides online marketing of homes for sale on land contract or lease/purchase option (Click on "Search for Homes" on this website).

STEP II: Processing & Closing:

Once you have a prospective buyer, The Land Contract Store obtains the same information the bank collects when taking a loan application, and provides that information to you. This includes:

The buyer's credit application
The buyer's full (tri-merge) credit report
The buyer's income verification
The buyer's employment verification
The buyer's Debt-to-Income Ratio calculation
- The Debt-to-Income Ratio is a formula used by the banks to determine if a potential buyer is earning enough money to pay for your house and cover their current monthly bills
We then coordinate the preparation & execution of the contract with an attorney

STEP III: Monthly Management

Once you have sold your house on land contract or lease/purchase option, The Land Contract Store will

Collect & process monthly payments from the buyer
Issue monthly payments to the seller
Create and manage escrow accounts for insurance and property taxes and maintain responsibility for payment of insurance and taxes
Send late payment notices to buyers
Make collection calls to delinquent buyers
Provide annual (and on-demand) tax and amortization statements to sellers and buyers
Coordinate forfeiture/foreclosure/eviction proceedings if buyer is in default of the agreement

The Land Contract Store is bonded and insured to ensure the safety of all funds received, dispersed and escrowed.

STEP IV: Exit Strategy

Using our growing relationships with banks, we help your buyers get on track for bank financing as quickly as possible. We can also find a buyer for your land contract if you prefer to cash-out for a lump sum.

Most of our clients want their buyers to obtain bank financing as quickly as possible - before the balloon date and end of the land contract or lease/purchase option agreement. With our partner lending institutions, The Land Contract Store works to get your buyer into a position to qualify for bank financing so you can receive your total payoff at the earliest possible opportunity.

If you prefer to cash-out for a lump sum quickly, we'll find an investor who will buy your land contract. This option is frequently attractive in estate situations where the heirs/survivors want to liquidate as quickly as possible. Note: Land contract note buyers normally pay 65% to 90% of the face value of the land contract, depending in part on the terms of the contract. Be sure to tell your Land Contract Store representative of your intention to sell the note before you begin negotiating with a buyer of the property to ensure the terms will be attractive to a land contract note buyer.