We Buy Houses in Lake Worth Beach for Cash

Wood-frame cottages and what inspections turn up

Much of the older city, near downtown and the Lake Worth Lagoon, was built from the 1920s through the 1950s, and a large share of those homes are wood-frame bungalows and cottages rather than the concrete block houses common elsewhere in South Florida. Many sit raised on piers above a crawl space.

Inspectors and insurers look hard at these homes. Common findings include termite damage and wood rot in sills, floor framing, and siding; older wiring; cast iron or galvanized pipes; and roofs that no longer pass a four-point inspection. None of that has to be fixed before you sell to us. We have been buying as-is properties for more than ten years, and older frame houses like these are routine for us.

Lake Worth neighborhoods where we buy houses

Most of the city's land sits in ZIP code 33460, which lies almost entirely inside the city limits, and a western strip falls in 33461. That second ZIP also spreads across Palm Springs and unincorporated land, so a 33461 address may or may not be in the city itself.

As cash home buyers in Lake Worth, we look at property in every one of the city's neighborhoods, including these:

• College Park and the neighborhoods north of downtown
• The blocks around Lake and Lucerne Avenues downtown, including Old Lucerne and the Northeast and Southeast Lucerne districts
• South Palm Park, Bryant Park, and other streets near the lagoon
• Parrot Cove, Mango Groves, and Royal Poinciana
• Tropical Ridge, Whispering Palms, Eden Place, and Vernon Heights
• Neighborhoods west of Dixie Highway toward I-95

Selling as-is in a Lake Worth Beach historic district

The city has six local historic districts: College Park, Old Lucerne, Northeast Lucerne, Southeast Lucerne, South Palm Park, and the Old Town commercial core downtown. For a property inside one, the city requires a Certificate of Appropriateness before exterior work begins and before a building permit can be issued.

So if you were planning new windows, siding, or a roof before listing, expect a design review on top of the permit. Selling the house as-is skips that step for you, because whoever buys it takes on the approvals. Our guide to selling a house as-is in Florida covers what you still need to disclose, and there is more on selling a Florida house that needs repairs if the list of work is long.

Behind on the mortgage? Sell your Lake Worth house fast, before the sale date

Every mortgage foreclosure in Florida has to go through a court, and in Palm Beach County that court is the circuit court of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, which covers only this county. Nothing is auctioned until a judge enters a final judgment, which usually directs the Clerk of the Circuit Court to sell the property 20 to 35 days later. Palm Beach County holds those sales online.

That gap between the first missed payments and the sale date is when a pre-foreclosure sale works. If we close first, the lender is paid from the proceeds, the case ends, and any equity left over goes to you rather than to an auction bidder. Send us the case number, plus the sale date once the judgment sets one, and we will tell you plainly whether the timing works. For your options at each point, see selling a house facing foreclosure in Florida, and for the full court sequence from lis pendens to certificate of title, how foreclosure works in Florida.

Duplexes, back cottages, and extra units

Lake Worth Beach has many duplexes, small apartment buildings, and lots with a second cottage or garage apartment behind the main house. Some of those extra units were built with permits and are legal. Others were added or converted later without approval, and they can complicate an appraisal or a lender's review.

We look at what is on the lot, what the city's records show, and what it would take to legalize or remove any unpermitted unit. We can buy with tenants in place in any of them.

A city that runs its own power company

Unlike most of Palm Beach County, Lake Worth Beach operates its own electric utility, along with water and sewer service. When you sell, the utility accounts are closed out with the city rather than with an outside power company.

If there is an unpaid balance on a property's utility account, the title company will usually find it during the municipal lien search, and it can typically be paid from your proceeds at closing.

Cottages that may sell better on the market

Lake Worth Beach cottages that have had their wiring, plumbing, and roof updated have a following among buyers who want the character of the older neighborhoods. If yours has had that work, listing it may bring more than we would pay. Our sister brokerage, BreakThru Realty, lists homes in Lake Worth Beach.

Lake Worth, Lake Worth Beach, or neither

The city changed its name from Lake Worth to Lake Worth Beach in 2019. Your deed, an old survey, or your insurance papers may still use the old name. That is not a problem, because the legal description on the deed is what identifies the property.

Many homes with a Lake Worth mailing address, especially west of the city, are actually in unincorporated Palm Beach County or a neighboring municipality. Which government handles your permits and code cases depends on where the property really sits, and we confirm that early.

Frequently asked questions