Truehold Home Sale-Leaseback Review

After you sell your home, you might not have a new place lined up yet. A leaseback occurs after you sell your home. Truehold leases it back to you for as long as you’d like, with a minimum of six months.

This is appealing to sellers who need more time to move out, and it’s an option for buyers who don’t need to move into their space right away but want to lock in the home or a low mortgage interest rate. 

Truehold specializes in home sale-leasebacks, allowing sellers to sell their homes and then lease them back until they’re ready to leave. Since launching in 2021, Truehold works in 13 Midwestern cities, including Kansas City, St. Louis, and Cincinnati. The company has used sale leasebacks for more than 1,000 people to sell their homes and sign lease agreements to continue living in them.

In this review:

• How to sell your home and rent it back with Truehold
• Pros and cons of a Truehold home-sale leaseback
• What do Truehold’s customers say?
• How do I apply with Truehold?
• Does Truehold have a customer service team?
• Truehold alternatives

How to sell your home and rent it back with Truehold

If you live in an area where Truehold operates, you must own a single-family home valued between $100,000 to $500,000. 

You’ll also need one of the following:

• Sufficient equity in your home to cover at least three years of rent payments 
• A high credit score to prove you’re responsible enough to make rent payments

Once it determines you’re eligible, Truehold executes the purchase of your home in as little as 30 days. The lease agreement begins right after you close on the sale of your home. 

Like a traditional lease agreement, Truehold manages regular maintenance of the home, and you may make small cosmetic updates. You can expect small annual rent increases (which are capped for the first five years), but you’re not obligated to leave your home after a set time. 

Truehold calculates the sale of your home and your rent by using comparable rentals in your area and specific to your neighborhood, the square footage of your home, and amenities. 

You’ll get market value for your home and pay market value for your rent. You’ll be responsible for a 5.5% real estate commission on the home sale.

Pros and cons of a Truehold home-sale leaseback

Pros

• Quick access to cash

  You’ll immediately get a payout for the equity you have in your home, and your only financial obligation is ongoing lease (rental) monthly payments. 

• Minimal fees

  Aside from the 5.5% commission, Truehold charges no other fees for a leaseback.

• Removal of expensive home costs

  You’re no longer on the hook for home maintenance costs, homeowners insurance, property tax, and similar costs.

• Rent as long as you’d like

  As long as you can continue making monthly rent payments, you can stay in your home as long as you’d like. You can move out of your home in as early as six months after your sale-leaseback agreement is signed.

• Fast closing time

  Since there’s no public listing, you won’t have to prepare your home for staging, pictures, open hours, or private viewings. The time from start to close is as little as 30 days, and you can get an all-cash offer on your home in 48 hours.

• Speak with real people

  Whenever you speak with Truehold, you’ll always speak with real people, not an AI chatbot. It employs real estate agents and experts to work with you to determine if a sale-leaseback fits your needs.

Cons

• Lose access to appreciation

  While you’ll get your home’s full value (minus what you still owe) at the sale, you won’t have the chance to build up further equity once you sell. 

• No more tax breaks

  As a renter, you won’t qualify for any state or federal tax credits or deductions for homeowners.

• Potentially high rent payments

  If you live in an area with a high cost of living, your rent payments will often reflect the average rate for your home size and neighborhood. Rent payments could price you out of your leaseback.

• Only available in select cities

  At the time of writing, Truehold only services Akron, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Lexington, Louisville, Oklahoma City, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, and Tulsa.

If you’re unsure whether Truehold is right for your home equity needs, check out our full list of home equity companies.

What do Truehold’s customers say about the company?

Customer ratings can tell you what working with a company is like. While Truehold is still relatively new, its customer reviews give an idea of what you can expect. 

Source	Rating	Number of reviews
Better Business Bureau (BBB)	4.34 out of 5	44
Google	4 out of 5	20

Ratings collected on July 3, 2023.

What customers are happy with:

My experience with Truehold was exceptionally smooth. After making the decision to become more financially secure, I made the decision to go with Truehold’s buy/sell leaseback program. The representatives were very informative and precise about the process. They walked me through each step of the process and told me what to expect, the time it would take to complete each step, and a pretty accurate estimation of the finalization, so there were no surprises. They answered all my questions and addressed all of my concerns adequately no matter how big or small the inquiry.

— Google review

What customers are unhappy with:

I was looking to sell my house and still rent it. I had some major repairs that needed to be done and didn’t want to pay for it. Truehold gave me an offer knowing all the issues(I gave them quotes for repairs). The offer took into account the cost of the repairs and was about $30-40k under market value. I agreed to the price and after inspection they decided to cancel the offer because of the issues that I previously brought to their attention and accepted the offer knowing those were already accounted for. I do believe that the announced turn in the housing market in my area played the bigger role and they used the “issues” as an excuse to back out of the deal. I can not recommend this service to anyone looking to sell their house. Go the traditional route with a quality realtor.

—BBB review

These testimonials can help you decide whether working with Truehold might be right for you.

How do I apply with Truehold?

Truehold has no formal application, but here’s where to start if you’re interested.

Complete the form to ensure your address is eligible with Truehold. Once you get your information toolkit or speak to an advisor, you’ll be directed to the next steps, including a home inspection and appraisal. Remember: Not all homes are eligible, so if your home is valued at less than $100,000 or more than $500,000, or you don’t live in a coverage area, you may want to consider alternatives.

If you and your home are good candidates, you’ll chat with a representative to confirm you understand the cost considerations. For instance, can you afford the potential monthly rent payments and 5.5% real estate commission?

Since everyone’s home circumstances are unique, you’ll connect with an advisor to ensure this is the right option for you and your future.

Does Truehold have a customer service team?

You can speak to a Truehold advisor when you call 314-353-9757. The advisor will review the set criteria for qualifications, including ensuring your address is in an eligible coverage area and your home is within range to sell.

If you’re working with Truehold, you’ll get a dedicated service number to speak to a representative about your pending sale. 

You can also email [email protected] any time, and someone will contact you.

Truehold alternatives

Truehold’s home-sale leaseback isn’t an option for everyone, especially considering its selective coverage area. 

Alternatives include the following:

• Another home-sale leaseback company. Truehold isn’t the only option for home-sale leasebacks. Check out other home-sale leaseback companies we like.
• Reverse mortgage. A reverse mortgage is when you borrow money from your home’s equity to secure a loan. Your home is collateral to secure the loan, and you’ll repay it when you move. This is only available to homeowners who are 62 years and older.
• HELOC. A home equity line of credit (HELOC) allows you to borrow money based on a percentage of how much equity you have in your home.  During the “draw” period, where you take out money against your limit, you must make minimum payments over a set time, often 10 years. Then the repayment period kicks in, which is also a fixed term for a set number of years. 
• Home equity loan. A home equity loan is a lump-sum loan where you can borrow based on your home’s equity. You’ll start immediate repayment and make fixed payments over several years. 

Home equity loans and lines of credit use your home as collateral.

Before you get into a home-sale leaseback, ensure you’re eligible and it’s the right move for you. Compare it to other options and make the best choice for you and your family.