Question 1

Do I need a real estate license to wholesale in Houston?

Accepted Answer

Not if you follow Texas Occupations Code section 1101.0045. That statute lets an unlicensed person acquire an option or an interest in a contract to purchase real property and then sell the option or assign the contract, on two conditions: you don't use the option or contract to engage in real estate brokerage, and you disclose the nature of your equitable interest in writing. Since SB 1577 took effect on January 1, 2024, that written disclosure runs to the seller as well as to the buyer. Failing to disclose as required means you are engaging in real estate brokerage without a license, a Class A misdemeanor under section 1101.351. We're a lender, not your counsel. Have a Texas real estate attorney review your contract and your disclosure language before you use them.

Question 2

Why do Houston wholesalers double close instead of assigning?

Accepted Answer

Two reasons, and neither is a workaround for the disclosure rule. First, plenty of A-side contracts simply bar assignment, including HUD deals, some REO sellers and some builders, so the only way to move the property is to buy it and resell it. Second, a double close keeps the assignment fee and the A-to-B price off the B-to-C settlement statement. Our transactional funding covers that first leg and is repaid out of the simultaneous resale, up to 100% of the purchase price. What a double close does not do is cure a written-disclosure failure under section 1101.0045. We have no authority saying it does, and you should not build a deal on the assumption. Ask your attorney which structure your contract actually supports.

Question 3

How does the Harris County foreclosure calendar shape my deal flow?

Accepted Answer

Texas forecloses without going to court, and the sales all land on one day a month. Under Texas Property Code section 51.002, notice of sale has to be given at least 21 days before the sale date, and sales run on the first Tuesday of the month at the county courthouse between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., moving to the first Wednesday when the first Tuesday falls on January 1 or July 4. Harris County is a first-Tuesday auction market of real scale, and the short notice period means distressed inventory recycles fast. Practically, the 21-day window is the lead time you get to line up an end buyer and confirm funding against a date that does not move. Bring us the deal inside that window, not the night before.

Question 4

How should I pick a title company for a Houston double close?

Accepted Answer

On execution, because the price is fixed by the state. Texas title insurance rates are promulgated by the Texas Department of Insurance, so every licensed title company charges the same basic premium. The current table took effect March 1, 2026, and under it a policy above $100,000 runs $780 plus 0.00494 per dollar over $100,000, which works out to roughly $1,274 on a $200,000 policy and about $2,262 on a $400,000 policy. Confirm the exact figure with your title company. Texas also closes through title companies rather than attorneys, so the escrow officer is the single most important vendor on a back-to-back deal. Not every shop will run two closings in a day off the same file. Ask before you go under contract, not the week of your close.

Question 5

How much end-buyer risk should I price into a Houston wholesale deal?

Accepted Answer

More than the spread on paper suggests. As of mid-2026 the Houston metro was running about 5.2 months of inventory with days on market near 52, and a Q2 2026 median price of $345,200, down 1.2% year over year. If your B-to-C buyer is a flipper, their own exit is slower and thinner than it looks: ATTOM put Houston's typical gross flip margin at 7.2% in the first quarter of 2026, the fifth-smallest among large U.S. metros against a 25.4% national figure. On a double close that risk sits with you, because our funding is repaid from the simultaneous resale. Get the end buyer's proof of funds and their lender's timeline in hand before you commit to a closing date.

Question 6

What Houston-specific diligence blows up a wholesale contract late?

Accepted Answer

Deed restrictions and the floodplain, in that order. Houston is the largest U.S. city with no conventional zoning, so what actually controls what your end buyer can build is the recorded deed restrictions on that lot plus Chapter 42 of the Code of Ordinances, which sets platting, minimum lot size and building lines. Neighbors can lock a block down through Special Minimum Lot Size and Special Minimum Building Line designations, and those prevail over the citywide minimums, so a townhouse pro forma can die on a title commitment. The second one is Chapter 19: new construction and substantial improvements in the 500-year floodplain must sit 2 feet above the 500-year base flood elevation, and "substantial improvement" includes expanding a footprint by 33% or more. Pull the restrictions and the floodplain determination during your option period. A B-side buyer who finds either one after signing is a buyer who walks.

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