As the saying goes, it takes money to make money. Accordingly, there are costs involved in selling your house. But sellers may not be aware of the extent of these costs. If, however, you can bring down the inevitable selling costs, you can make more money on the sale. And the first step is becoming aware of and understanding such costs. So let’s see what you can do to avoid the costs of selling your Frankfort house.
What Are the Costs of Selling Your Frankfort House?
The biggest and most common costs of selling your Frankfort house are:
- Agent commission – This fee is negotiated and based on the purchase price that you receive for your home.
- Home repairs – These are often necessary before listing or after inspections turn up issues, and unless you have the needed DIY skills and the time, they can be pretty expensive if you have any major problems.
- Pre-sale inspection – While not required, a pre-sale inspection is definitely a good idea so that you can be aware of problems (and remedy them) before the buyer’s inspection.
- Staging – Staged houses sell faster and for more than unstaged ones, so this is one strategy to consider. Our agents can help you stage your home and put your best foot forward.
- Utilities – If you move out before the sale, you’ll still have to keep the utilities on, especially in severe weather. The utilities also need to be on to allow the buyer and/or the buyer’s inspectors to test the home’s systems like heating and air conditioning and plumbing,etc.
- Mortgage payoff – Not all the home sale proceeds can go into your pocket. Typically, a large portion goes to pay off the mortgage, as well as the associated fees necessary to make the payoff (overnight or wire fees).
- Closing costs and fees – Although closing costs associated with their loan are the buyer’s responsibility, you may elect to pay a portion or all of these costs to sweeten the deal or in order to make a sale. In our area, the seller also generally pays for deed preparation ($75 to $150) and transfer tax (which is $1 for every $1,000 of purchase price–$100,000 home = $100 transfer tax. Other costs include your portion of the property taxes for the year and generally a small fee for the attorney preparing the documents for the closing transaction.
- Capital gains tax – If you do make a profit on the sale of investment property, you may have to contend with capital gains tax. Ask your accountant about this but generally speaking if you have lived in the house as your primary residence for 2 of the last 5 years then you may not have this tax issue.
Obviously, then, the costs of selling your Frankfort house are nothing to sneeze at, and you will be well advised to reduce or avoid those costs when working with one of our experienced agents.
Costs of Selling That Can Be Avoided/Reduced
Some of the costs of selling your Frankfort house are inevitable. There are a few, however, that you can lower or avoid altogether, such as:
HOME-PREPARATION COSTS
If your roof is in terrible shape, you’ll just have to open your wallet and get a new roof or account for it somehow in the list price or contract price. While cosmetic preparation is optional, it can, in fact, garner you a better sale price. And unlike with the roof where you are at the mercy of the roofing contractor’s fee, the costs can be controlled.
First, work with your agent to prioritize all the possible things that you could do to improve your home’s market value and marketability. Then, set a budget and stick to it. We will help you determine which projects will yield a better return on the investment and can help you prioritize the list of possible issues to tackle. Also, we generally have contractors that we can refer to you to help with these repairs and upgrades if you don’t know one or aren’t handy yourself. (Call (502) 352-2650 to discover more about this.)
Contrary to popular opinion, you don’t have to spend a bundle on major bathroom renovations, the real estate pros say. “Most buyers poke their heads in and don’t spend time in the bathroom, so don’t invest too much on yours unless there are major issues. Keep the room extremely clean [and] buy new towels. . . . If the room is a dark color paint it white.
The final aspect of preparation that shouldn’t be neglected is staging. We can help you find a professional stager to help put your best foot forward. Or, at the very least we suggest using ruthless decluttering, listening to your agent and walking through your home as if you were a buyer. Another trick to use is to take a couple pictures of each room and then look at the photos. Do you like what you see? What does your eye immediately go to? If it’s something negative, is it easily fixed?
VARIOUS SELLER FEES
Go over your paperwork with a fine-toothed comb, and don’t hesitate to consult your agent. There are no dumb questions, only unasked questions. “Buried in the paperwork of your offer will be a list of fees the buyer and seller will pay. In addition, a buyer might ask for additional inspection reports or even a seller concession on closing costs.” The thing to keep firmly in mind, though, is that all these costs are negotiable.
Hire an Experienced Local Agent
Although you will have to pay your agent a commission, a good agent can help you avoid many of the costs of selling your Frankfort house (not to mention negotiating a better sale price). According to industry experts, it’s “important to hire a listing agent to help you squeeze every dime possible out of selling your home. Sellers sometimes want to hire agents who charge lower commissions to save money, but that’s the wrong approach. If an experienced agent who offers you more marketing and better service charges 1% more than a competitor but brings you 10 percent more in profit, you’re further ahead.”
Do you truly want to sell for more and avoid the costs of selling your Frankfort house? Find out how our experienced agents can help you do just that.
