Short answer: FastCashAnyHome buys houses, condos and land in San Antonio for cash, as-is. There are no repairs, no showings, and no fees or commissions charged to you, and it’s a cash sale with no bank loan or appraisal on your side. You get an initial cash offer, confirmed after a quick walkthrough, and closing takes 30 days or less. Call or text 267-388-0347.
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San Antonio has two city rules that catch sellers off guard, and both are about the outside of the house: an empty house may have to be registered, and in 32 historic districts the City reviews exterior work. Then there’s Bexar County’s own foreclosure and tax calendar. Here’s how each one affects a sale, with the official source for every part.
An empty house in San Antonio may have to be registered with the City
If the house has been sitting empty, start here. The City of San Antonio runs a Vacant Building Program, and its definition is broad: “A vacant building is a building, structure or house where all lawful activity has ceased, or reasonably appears to have ceased for 30 days.” It covers the building, not empty lots (City of San Antonio, Vacant Buildings: Eligibility & Program Area).
The program doesn’t cover every block, but the map got a lot bigger on January 1, 2024. It now takes in the downtown Central Business District plus a half-mile around it, every historic district plus a half-mile around each, a half-mile around active military bases, Port SA and Brooks, the Eastpoint and Choice neighborhoods, the City’s tax increment zones, and a 1,000-foot ring around open schools and childcare centers that hold a state license. Put that together and a great many houses inside the city are in it.
What registration involves, per the City’s own page (Register a Vacant Building):
- Registration is due within 90 days after the City sends a Notice to Register Vacant Building.
- The owner files a trespass authorization, posts “No Trespass” placards, and provides a floor plan and proof of insurance if there is any.
- A Plan of Action (timeline for fixing violations, maintenance, rehab plan, future use) has to be updated every 6 months.
- Renewal paperwork and fees are due January 31 every year.
For an heir in another state, or a landlord between tenants, that’s a lot of paperwork for a house nobody’s using. If you’ve received the notice, keep it; a buyer will want to see it, and the registration status goes into the price conversation. Questions go to the program at 210-207-7244. Our guide to selling a vacant house covers insurance and upkeep while it sits.
In San Antonio’s historic districts, the City signs off on exterior work
San Antonio has 32 locally designated historic districts, from Leon Springs (3 parcels) to the Mission Historic District, which runs about seven miles along the city’s south side (Office of Historic Preservation, Historic Districts). King William, Monte Vista, Dignowity Hill, Tobin Hill, Lavaca, Government Hill and Woodlawn Lake are on that list.
In those districts, the Office of Historic Preservation reviews “exterior modifications and repairs,” along with demolitions, and “All proposed work must be approved through a Certificate of Appropriateness … before work can begin.” Most requests are approved by staff; bigger ones go to the Historic and Design Review Commission at a public hearing (OHP, About Design Review).
For a seller, that changes the repair math. A new roof, replacement windows or a porch rebuild on a house in one of those districts means paperwork and design choices before a contractor starts, which is time a seller on a deadline may not have. And because the vacant-building map includes a half-mile buffer around every historic district, an empty house near one of them can be caught by both programs at once.
We buy historic-district houses as they are. The approvals become our job after closing, not yours before it.
San Antonio, by the numbers
San Antonio is more of an owners’ town than the other big Texas cities. In the Census Bureau’s 2024 American Community Survey, 51.9% of occupied homes in the City of San Antonio are lived in by their owners, compared with 40.9% in Houston and 42.2% in Dallas. More than half its housing units (58.1%) are single-family detached houses (ACS 2024 1-year, San Antonio city, tables B25003 and B25024).
The median value of an owner-occupied San Antonio home is $260,900, the lowest of the three, against $301,200 in Houston and $340,400 in Dallas (table B25077). The median house in the city was built in 1986, but 18.2% of the city’s housing went up in 1959 or earlier, while across Bexar County a quarter of all housing (25.5%) is from 2010 or later (table B25034).
That split is the San Antonio market in a sentence: older, owner-held houses near the center, and a ring of newer subdivisions farther out. A lower price point also means a repair bill eats a bigger share of what the house is worth. A $30,000 foundation-and-roof job matters more on a $200,000 house than on a $400,000 one, and that’s often where a cash sale starts to make sense.
Foreclosure in Bexar County
Texas forecloses most home loans by a trustee’s auction instead of a lawsuit. Before a notice of sale can go out on a house the owner lives in, the servicer must give at least 20 days to cure the default, and then the notice has to be posted and filed at least 21 days before the sale (Tex. Prop. Code 51.002).
In Bexar County, the County Clerk says the sale “is conducted on the first Tuesday of every month between the hours of 10:00 AM and 4:00 PM” on “the west side of the Bexar County Courthouse located at 100 Dolorosa,” or wherever the Commissioners Court designates. When the first Tuesday is New Year’s Day or the Fourth of July, the sale moves to Wednesday. Anyone can look up scheduled sales on the County Clerk’s GIS foreclosure map at maps.bexar.org/foreclosures, which the Clerk updates “twice a month; the first Friday after the auction and approximately 18 days prior to the sale” (Bexar County Clerk, Foreclosure FAQs).
So if a notice has been posted on your street, it’s likely already on that map, and so are the dates. Check them.
A fast sale may help some homeowners avoid a completed foreclosure, but timing matters. If a sale date is already scheduled, contact your lender, an attorney or a HUD-approved housing counselor right away, the same day you speak with any buyer. A sale only helps if it closes before the auction, with the lender’s payoff taken from the price. Our guide to selling a house in foreclosure lays out the general options.
Bexar County tax foreclosures, and the redemption window
The Bexar County Clerk also answers the question homeowners ask after a tax foreclosure: “Redemption period for properties identified as agricultural use or homestead properties is two years. Redemption period for all other properties is six months. The redemption period begins on the date the deed is recorded” (Bexar County Clerk, Foreclosure FAQs).
Redeeming isn’t cheap. State law adds a premium on top of the buyer’s bid and costs: 25% in the first year for a homestead, 50% in the second (Tex. Tax Code 34.21). Before it gets that far, owners who are 65 or older, disabled, or qualifying disabled veterans can file an affidavit with the appraisal district to defer the tax on a homestead they live in (Tex. Tax Code 33.06). That’s worth a phone call before anyone talks about selling.
When selling is the answer, the past-due taxes are paid from the sale price at closing, like any other lien.
This page is for general information only and is not legal, tax, or financial advice. Anyone dealing with foreclosure, probate, liens, back taxes, a vacant-building notice, or a legal deadline should consider speaking with a qualified attorney, tax professional, or housing counselor before making a decision.
An inherited house in San Antonio
Bexar County’s probate system is “divided into three separate courts with each Probate Court headed by an elected judge,” at the county courthouse, 100 Dolorosa. Among other things the courts probate wills and declare “the heirs of deceased persons who die without a will” (Bexar County, Probate Courts).
That second job matters for older San Antonio houses. When a house has passed down without a will, sometimes more than once, the family may need the court to declare who the heirs are before anyone can sell. For a smaller estate without a will, Texas also allows a court-approved small-estate affidavit: the estate outside the homestead must be $75,000 or less, and if the homestead is the only real estate, the recorded affidavit can pass its title (Tex. Est. Code ch. 205). Which route fits is a question for a probate attorney.
Two things work in an estate’s favor. An executor or administrator selling during the estate is exempt from the Texas Seller’s Disclosure Notice (Tex. Prop. Code 5.008). And we can make an initial offer while the court part is still underway, so the sale is ready when the paperwork is. If the inherited house is also empty and inside the program map, add the vacant-building registration to the list.
Where in and around San Antonio we buy
Inside the city limits, the questions start with the two City programs: is the house in a historic district, and is it empty inside the vacant-building map? Near downtown, around King William, Dignowity Hill or Tobin Hill, the answer to the first is often yes. Out in the newer subdivisions beyond Loop 1604, it’s usually no, and the conversation is about roofs, foundations and what the next buyer’s lender will want.
A few addresses that look like San Antonio aren’t. Alamo Heights, Olmos Park, Terrell Hills, Castle Hills and Leon Valley are their own small cities surrounded by San Antonio, and so are Schertz, Converse and Universal City to the northeast. The City of San Antonio’s programs are City ordinances, so we check which city’s rules apply before we price anything. All of them are in Bexar County or close to it, so the foreclosure and probate steps above still mostly hold.
We buy in all of those places. The question is never whether, only which rules ride along with the deed.
How a sale to us runs
- Call or text 267-388-0347, or use the form. Tell us the address, the shape it’s in, whether anyone lives there, and whether you’ve had any letters from the City about a vacant building or exterior work.
- Get an initial cash offer. We look at what nearby houses sold for, the condition, and what repairs and any City approvals would take, and we walk you through the math. The number is confirmed after a quick walkthrough; if something changes, a person tells you what changed and why.
- Close through a title company. A neutral, third-party title company handles the paperwork and the money. Closing: 30 days or less, with flexible closing dates so you can move on your terms. An heirship or probate case sets its own pace, and we wait for it. We work out closing costs as part of each deal.
- Get paid at closing. No fees or commissions to you. Any mortgage, liens or back taxes are paid from the sale proceeds, as in any sale.
We buy houses with tenants in place, on the leases as written, and we’ll look at a house as-is, including one with fire damage; our guide to selling a fire-damaged house covers that case.
When a cash sale isn’t your best move
- The house is in good shape and you can wait. Listing will usually bring more. Our as-is selling guide shows where that line usually falls.
- You want to keep it. A tax deferral, a payment plan with the taxing units, or renting the house out may beat selling. If you rent it, our guide to selling a rental with tenants is there for later.
- The family can’t agree yet. Heirs who disagree are better off settling that with an attorney first. We can still give you a number to argue about.
If listing would clearly put more money in your pocket, we’ll tell you that.
Curious what a direct sale could look like for your San Antonio house? Call or text 267-388-0347 for a no-obligation cash offer.
Questions San Antonio sellers ask
Do I have to register an empty house with the City of San Antonio?
Possibly. The City’s Vacant Building Program covers buildings where lawful activity has stopped, or seems to have stopped, for 30 days, inside the program area, which since January 1, 2024 includes historic districts, downtown, areas near military bases and a 1,000-foot ring around schools. Registration is due within 90 days of a City notice.
Will you buy a house in a historic district like King William or Monte Vista?
Yes, as-is. Exterior work in San Antonio’s historic districts needs a Certificate of Appropriateness before it starts, and that becomes our task after we buy.
When and where are foreclosure sales in Bexar County?
On the first Tuesday of each month, between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., on the west side of the Bexar County Courthouse at 100 Dolorosa or wherever the Commissioners Court designates. The County Clerk’s GIS foreclosure map lists upcoming sales.
How long do I have after a Bexar County tax foreclosure?
The County Clerk says two years for a homestead or agricultural property and six months for everything else, counted from the date the deed is recorded. Redemption costs the buyer’s bid and costs plus a premium.
Which court handles probate in San Antonio?
The Bexar County Probate Courts, three courts at the courthouse at 100 Dolorosa. They probate wills and declare heirs when someone dies without a will.
Is your first offer final?
It’s an initial cash offer, confirmed after a quick walkthrough. If anything changes, a person explains what changed and why.
Do you charge fees?
No fees or commissions to you. Liens, back taxes or a mortgage are paid from the sale proceeds at closing, and we work out closing costs as part of each deal.
Elsewhere in Texas
The statewide rules, including Texas’s transfer-tax rule and the spouse-signature rule for homesteads, are on Sell My House Fast in Texas. In Houston the big local questions are deed restrictions and flooding; in Dallas it’s the City’s rental registration.
Sources
- City of San Antonio, Vacant Buildings: Eligibility & Program Area, read 2026-10-11
- City of San Antonio, Register a Vacant Building, read 2026-10-11
- City of San Antonio Office of Historic Preservation, Historic Districts, read 2026-10-11
- City of San Antonio Office of Historic Preservation, About Design Review, read 2026-10-11
- Bexar County Clerk, Foreclosure FAQs, read 2026-10-11
- Bexar County, Probate Courts, read 2026-10-11
- Texas Property Code 51.002 and 5.008, read 2026-10-11
- Texas Tax Code 34.21 and 33.06, read 2026-10-11
- Texas Estates Code ch. 205, read 2026-10-11
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 1-year, San Antonio city, read 2026-10-11
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