You want to sell a house.
That sounds simple enough, but do you know the cost to sell a house?
If you’re scratching your head, don’t worry. Keep reading to learn all about selling your house and making a profit while you’re at it!
The Fees
The first thing to take into account is home selling fees. The most important ones are the real estate commission, property repairs, and closing costs. If you want to speed up the home selling process, there are many more fees such as the staging and inspection costs.
You must account for the mortgage and utilities too. You must pay off your mortgage when selling your home, but the amount you owe may be larger than the amount listed on your last statement. As for the utilities, you will find the home selling process to be difficult when prospective buyers examine a home without proper lighting or running water.
Landscaping is another important factor in selling your home. A well-kept lawn will increase the value of your home and help reduce selling costs. So don’t be afraid to hire a gardener.
Estimating the Costs
15% of the sale price is the average cost to sell a house. The real estate commission makes up the largest portion of the cost, being 5% to 6% of the house’s sale price. Closing costs will form 3% of the overall cost and major repairs discovered by yourself or by an inspector can be 15%.
The optional costs such as staging, inspections, and landscaping vary greatly. Investing in these costs, especially staging, can increase the value of your home.
Make sure you have everything in writing. This will help you keep track of costs while ensuring their accuracy.
After negotiating the rate with your real estate agent, make sure the agreement and rate are put in writing. Also, file all financial documents for timely and convenient retrieval.
Calculating the Cost to Sell a House
Once you have all the fees recorded, it’s time to calculate the overall cost.
Sound overwhelming? It doesn’t have to be!
Use a Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets spreadsheet to keep track of your fees. That way you can easily keep track of changing costs and use the built-in calculator to quickly make your estimates. Making notes on graph paper is also helpful if you are uncomfortable with computers.
So how much does it cost to sell a home? There are many free tools online that can help you answer that question!
Once you’ve worked out the cost of every possible fee, you can use this calculator to find out the overall cost.
Sell Now
Don’t wait, now is the time to sell your house fast!
The cost to sell a house doesn’t have to be a mystery, and by following these tips you can minimize that cost while increasing your property’s value.
So get out your calculator and graph paper and start counting!
And when you take a break, feel free to check out our other informative and practical articles.