The City Notices Everything — and the Fines Don’t Stop
Maybe it started with an overgrown lot. Maybe a neighbor called in the junk in the yard, or the city spotted a structure that looks unsafe, or someone reported work done without a permit. Whatever the trigger, you now have a citation — and in most Texas cities, code violation fines accrue daily. Every day the violation stays open is another day of fines stacking up.
This is a situation that gets worse on its own. Daily fines can grow into amounts that rival the value of the property itself, and unpaid fines typically become liens attached to the house. In the worst cases — severe structural damage, health hazards, abandoned and open properties — a city can move toward condemnation or a demolition order. At that point, you’re not just fighting fines; you’re fighting to keep the house standing.
The worst thing you can do is nothing. The second-worst is spending money you don’t have trying to fix everything to the city’s satisfaction before you sell — because that’s exactly where traditional selling breaks down.
Your Real Options for Selling
List with a real estate agent. For a house in good shape, listing reaches the most buyers. But a house with open code violations is close to unsellable on the open market: retail buyers can’t get conventional financing on properties with structural problems or unresolved city violations, and most agents won’t take the listing. Even if you find a buyer, their lender is likely to be the one who says no.
Sell it yourself (FSBO). No commission, but the only buyers who can purchase a violation-heavy house are the ones who don’t need a lender. Marketing the house yourself and screening buyers takes time — time during which the fines keep accruing.
Sell for cash to an as-is buyer. This is the channel that actually works for code-violation properties. A cash buyer purchases the house exactly as it sits — open violations, fines, and all — and deals with the city after closing. There’s no lender requiring violations be cleared before funding, no agent needing the house presentable, and no demand that you bring anything up to code first.
Why a Cash Sale Fits a Code-Violation Situation
Speed and certainty. Every day you wait is another day of fines, so a sale that closes quickly — and actually closes — matters more than squeezing out a top-of-market price you’ll never get anyway.
A cash buyer takes the violations with the property. You don’t remediate anything, don’t pull permits, don’t negotiate with the code enforcement officer. Those responsibilities transfer to the buyer at closing — they’ve handled it before.
There’s also no financing contingency. Lenders are the single biggest obstacle in violation-heavy sales, because they won’t fund a loan on a house the city has flagged. Cash eliminates that obstacle entirely.
And critically: once you sell, the daily fines stop. Whatever is owed up to the closing date is settled from the sale proceeds; after that, the city is no longer your problem. We help sellers in San Antonio, Houston, and across Texas.
Our 3-Step Process
Step 1: Tell us about the house. Call 737-252-3840 or fill out the form on this page. Tell us about the citations and the condition of the property — the more honest, the better, because it helps us move fast.
Step 2: Get a fair, no-obligation cash offer within 24 hours. We’ll make you a fair cash offer within 24 hours. No repairs required, no cleanout, no fees. No pressure, no obligation — if the numbers don’t work, you walk away.
Step 3: Pick your closing day and get paid. You choose the closing date. We close through a title company, any outstanding city fines and liens are settled from the proceeds, and you move on. The violations become the buyer’s responsibility at closing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I sell a house with open code violations?
Yes. You can sell a house with unresolved citations. The violations transfer with the property, and the buyer takes over responsibility for dealing with the city after closing. There’s no requirement that violations be cleared before a sale closes.
Do the fines transfer to the buyer?
Unpaid fines are usually attached to the property as liens, so they’re settled from the sale proceeds at closing — you don’t pay them out of pocket separately. From the closing date forward, any new fines are the buyer’s responsibility, not yours. (Our liens page explains how this works in more detail.)
What if the city is threatening demolition?
Don’t wait. If you’ve received a condemnation or demolition notice, the timeline is real and the consequences are permanent. Call us immediately — we buy houses in exactly this situation, and a fast sale can stop the process before the city acts. The sooner we hear from you, the more options you have.
I got a citation — how fast can we move?
We make a fair cash offer within 24 hours of hearing from you, and you pick the closing date. If the situation is urgent — daily fines accruing, a hearing coming up, demolition on the table — tell us when you call and we’ll prioritize speed. Every day counts.
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Stop the Fines From Growing
Call 737-252-3840 now for a fair cash offer within 24 hours — no obligation, and you pick the closing date. We buy houses as-is with open violations anywhere in Texas, and the fines stop the day you sell.