Cash buyer or wholesaler? How to tell who is buying your Texas house

The difference, side by side

	Cash buyer	Wholesaler
Who is on the deed at closing	The company or person who signed with you	Usually someone you’ve never met
Where the money comes from	Its own funds or its own lender, shown with the offer	The end buyer it finds after you sign
What it does after you sign	Inspects, then closes	Markets your contract to investors
What Texas requires	A license holder buying for themselves must say so in writing (22 TAC §535.144)	Written disclosure to you and to any buyer before assigning the contract (§5.0205)
If it can’t close	It should say so plainly	It may cancel during the option period if no investor bites

Wholesaling is legal in Texas. The problem is not knowing which one you signed with. In a 2022 Texas Real Estate Commission survey, title company staff said sellers are often unaware they are selling to someone besides the wholesaler. Dallas–Fort Worth topped TREC’s list of metros where wholesaling deals happened (TREC).

What Texas law makes a wholesaler tell you

• Before assigning your contract or selling an option, the person has to tell you in writing that they intend to assign or sell their interest, and tell every potential buyer in writing that they hold only a contract and not legal title (Property Code §5.0205, in effect since January 1, 2024).
• An unlicensed person may market a contract interest only if they disclose in writing the nature of that interest to you and to any potential buyer. Without that disclosure, Texas treats it as unlicensed brokerage (Occupations Code §1101.0045).
• A licensed agent buying for their own account, or through a company they own more than 10% of, has to disclose in writing that they are licensed and acting for themselves, in the contract or before it (22 TAC §535.144). They also can’t use their expertise to your disadvantage.

Five questions that tell you who you’re dealing with

1. “Whose name will be on the deed at closing?” A cash buyer names itself.
2. “Can I see proof of funds for this offer?” A bank statement or lender letter that matches the price, not a screenshot of someone else’s account.
3. “Why does the contract say ‘and/or assigns’ after your name?” That wording lets the buyer sell your contract. If they plan to, Texas requires the written disclosure first.
4. “How much earnest money, held where?” Real earnest money at a Texas title company you can call. A tiny deposit and a long option period make it cheap for the buyer to walk.
5. “What happens if you can’t find a buyer?” A cash buyer doesn’t need one.

If someone recorded a “memorandum” against your house

Some buyers record a document in the county records claiming they have a contract on your house, which can stop you from selling to anyone else. Since September 1, 2025, a person who files a memorandum that only they signed against a one-to-four family home has to give the county clerk their address and mail you a copy and a notice letter, by certified or registered mail, no later than the day they file it (Property Code §12.020, HB 4063). If they don’t, the filing has no effect on later buyers or lenders. You can record an affidavit for release with your own certificate of mailing, and mail the filer a copy and a letter by certified or registered mail. Buyers and lenders can rely on your affidavit 45 days after your certificate of mailing is recorded, unless the filer records a contradicting affidavit in that time. Talk to a real estate attorney if one shows up on your title.

How RESE buys

When RESE is the buyer, J.D. Thorne buys for his own account or through a company he controls, and you get that in writing before any contract. If we ever bring in a partner buyer instead, we tell you that in writing too. The earnest money goes to a Texas title company named in the contract. How to check us out lists every check, with where to look each one up.

Questions people ask

Is wholesaling illegal in Texas?

No. It’s legal when the written disclosures are made and the wholesaler isn’t using the contract to act as an unlicensed broker. Texas regulates it through Property Code §5.0205 and Occupations Code §1101.0045.

Does a wholesaler get paid out of my price?

The wholesaler’s fee is the gap between your contract price and what the end buyer pays. You don’t pay it directly, but your price is set low enough to leave room for it.

Can I back out if I find out my buyer is a wholesaler?

Read your contract and talk to a real estate attorney. If the disclosures Texas requires weren’t made, say so to the title company before closing.