For the majority of people looking to sell their homes the first thing they do is turn to a realtor. Realtors may be the obvious choice, however, there are other options out there that may work to your advantage. By selling your home yourself or turning to a local real estate investor may allow you to put more money back in your pocket. In this article, we will cover some of the costs associated with a traditional listing so you can decide if hiring a realtor is your best choice.
Pre-Listing Costs
Before you decided to list your home on the market, browse through the homes in that are currently listed for sale in your area. You can find homes on Zillow.com, Realtor.com or Redfin.com. Find out how much others are asking for their homes that are similar in size and location to yours. Does your home compare in size, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, the year your home was built, the age of appliances, the condition of the roof, air conditioner and furnace? You need to look at your home from the buyer’s point of view as they will want to get the most for their money. That may mean that you will need to upgrade and make repairs to your home to be competitive with other homes for sale. House that don’t sell quickly lose interest to prospective buyers and it if doesn’t sell fast, people believe that something is wrong with it. Your best bet is to place your house on the market that wows potential buyers and is a good value.
Realtor Fees
Realtors don’t work for free. Most realtors work very hard and are deserving of what you pay them. However, be aware that there are a few who don’t. While every contract varies, when you sell with a realtor you will commit to pay their commission, which works out to be around 6% of your home’s sale price. If you should sell your home on your own to someone that you already know you will still need to pay the realtor’s commission. In addition, you may find that your realtor will charge you for administrative costs, listing fees, listing sites, marketing, a photographer and more. Be sure that you know exactly what is included In your realtor’s agreement as these agreements vary greatly.
When You Close on your House
When it is time to close on the sale of your house, in addition to the realtor’s commission, you will also have to pay for the closing costs. This can usually be estimated to be about 2% of the final sale price. Closing costs include deed recording, taxes, appraisal fees, title search, credit checks and more. In addition to your expenses, your buyer may have problems obtaining funding from the bank to pay for your house, which may delay your ability to get paid when you expected. If you choose to sell your house to Stained Glass Homes in Tucson, we can bypass all of these expenses and delays.
Time is of the Essence
Listing your house can be a gamble. There are no guarantees like how much you will get for your home or when you will be able to close on it. This will make it very difficult to plan ahead and move on with your life. While you are in the process of selling your house, you will still need to pay for insurance, taxes, and monthly utilities and upkeep. A realtor can make a recommendation as to how much you may get for your house, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that you will get it. When you sell your home to Stained Glass Homes, you will know the exact amount you will get for your home and what day you will get paid before you sign anything. We try to make the process as easy and upfront as possible
Before you hire a realtor, give us a call or send us a message, find out how we are able to help you. Call us at (520) 200-3334!