Have you recently sold a house?

[BeachLove]

I'm looking at possibly selling my home to move to a different state for work. Renting it out would also be fine if needed. So, I've been trying to figure out basic costs of selling a home. What are things I should know about selling?

Homes here have been selling so at least that's a good sign! I've also started to go to open houses and listening to what people are saying. This way I figure I can make sure I have my home in top condition,having the right things done and staged right.

 

[cinderwannabe]

The real estate agent gets a certain percentage of the sale. It will vary depending on where you live. We are selling a home and they are charging 5%. There are also capital gains taxes that will depend on how much you are selling the house for. For a single person you won't have to pay if the sale is under $250,000 and for a couple you won't have to pay if it is under $500,000. There are also lawyers fees. There may be other things involved based on the contract. For the house we are selling now we agreed to pay to have the septic pumped. When we bought our other home, the seller agreed to pay for a $700 water test. Hope this helps and good luck!

 

[Dismom55]

The buyers may ask for certain inspections, in my state the buyer pays for the inspection, but if anything is found the seller pays to fix unless they buyer waives, ie I bought my house last June, since there was a one year warranty, I decided to go with a roof inspection and termite inspection, they found termites outside but not outside, I made the sellers pay for the treatment, they also found one roof tile missing, I just had my son climb up and replace it as a roofer was going to charge $150 and it would have held up the closing and I was tired of waiting. The buyers can ask for a whole house inspection, I just did not as I felt comfortable and I had a relative go over the house with me that I trusted, in addition to the mentioned warranty.

Your state may have some state laws on some inspections that you have to do or some treatments that must be done, some states require termite treatment before any sale can be final. Your realtor will be able to tell you.

Good Luck, our state has a bad record on house sales just now, so that worked for me as a buyer, the house appraised at $40k more than what I paid.

Made it easy to get the financing.

 

[csnkrushin]

In our state the seller also pays for the transfer taxes (state and local) in addition to what the other posters mentioned. Most real estate agents would be willing to tell you the customary fees associated with selling a home in your area.

 

[erincon23]

I can email you a brochure from a realtor's marketing service on preparing your house for sale, if you'd like (if you want it, please PM me, because I may not find your thread again). I work for a realtor, and her biggest thing is to make sure your house is CLEAN. Make basic repairs, repaint if it's been a while, but don't put a lot of money into upgrades or new carpet, unless it's horrible. Make sure your front and back yard look good -- put some flowers in, mow the lawn, put new house numbers on, maybe paint your front door. Have a good friend walk through the house --someone who will be honest, who will tell you if you have any odors, etc. Declutter. Put away family pictures. Clean off your refrigerator doors. Take as much as possible off your kitchen and bathroom counters.

When you have a showing, go away. Don't be home. Take any showing, even if it's 10 minutes from now -- throw things in the dishwasher to get them out of the sink and leave. Be reachable -- if your realtor's office has to wait for you to confirm a showing, you might lose out on a last-minute one -- make sure your cell phone is with you and the office has that number. Take the showing even if your baby's asleep, your other kid's home sick. Make a habit of making the beds every morning and washing the dishes immediately. If you decide to rent, all of this will help you get top dollar for your rental, too.

Check to see if your town has an "exit tax" -- a lot of communities are doing this -- you have to pay a % of your sale to the town as part of your closing. That could be an unexpected cost. If you're moving a certain distance from this residence for a job change or for work, you may be able to deduct some costs on your taxes.