Are you looking to sell your home and want to know how much it will cost? You’ll find that the fees when selling a house get extensive. You may end up paying thousands out of the home sale profits.
For instance, real estate agent commission costs are 6 percent of the home’s sale price and closing costs reach 0.8 percent of the final sale price in California. You may also need to cover the fees of a home inspection, landscaping work to improve curb appeal, and costs of home improvements.
And don’t forget about the moving costs either. You will need to cover the costs of property taxes until you complete the sale. Essentially, the fees when selling a house end up tremendous.
To learn more about the various costs required when selling your home, read on. Now, let’s get started!
Consider Closing Costs and Real Estate Commissions
Does the seller pay closing costs when selling a house in Wisconsin? Usually, the seller does cover closing costs, specifically the realtor fees of the seller’s agent along with the buyer’s realtor. The commission fees are 5 to 6 percent of the final home sale price.
For example, the average cost of commission fees for a house with a $300,000 purchase price is up to $18,000 in total. However, you can try to sell the home without the help of a real estate agent and save on commission costs.
Yet, a realtor can provide you with much-needed help to meet all regulatory requirements in the real estate transaction. The paperwork needed to sell a house by owner is also rather extensive.
The seller’s closing costs also include:
- The capital gains tax, the local transfer tax for changing a title, and property taxes
- The title search and title insurance for the home buyer
- Homeowners association fees until the home sale is final
- Real estate attorney fees
- The rest of the mortgage balance
- The total cost of home repairs
- Moving costs of a moving company
The capital gains tax is only paid if you’ve made a profit of more than $250,000 on your home. As the seller, you will need to cover property taxes until completing the sale.
Did you pay property taxes recently? Then you won’t need to cover much at all. However, if it’s been almost a year since you’ve paid property taxes, you may have to pay several thousand dollars. You will also pay a local transfer tax to change the title from one owner to another.
Sometimes, the seller pays for a separate title policy for the new homeowner, which is about $1,000 on average. You’ll also need to cover HOA fees until the sale is final and the fees of your real estate attorney upon closing.
For the mortgage payoff, you will need to check with your mortgage company to get the latest balance and any interest charges left for the payoff amount. Lastly, don’t forget to budget for home renovations and your moving costs.
You can reduce your costs for home improvement projects while raising your house’s value. That includes painting your kitchen, bedroom, and living room walls while improving lighting in the house.
You will also want to clean the residence, replace faucets and showerheads, and complete a few cosmetic repairs. In addition, you should pursue DIY home improvement projects if you can. That way, you won’t need to pay for a contractor as much. These are the cheapest ways to increase home value.
You, as the seller, may also want to pay for optional selling costs like a home warranty and home staging fees. Sometimes, home sellers also cover a portion of the buyer’s closing costs as part of seller concessions. Paying for part of the buyer’s closing costs usually adds up to 2 to 5 percent of the final home selling price.
Consider Mortgage Rates and Property Tax
The closing costs for the seller include payi the balance on the mortgage with interest rates. With interest rates rising on mortgage loans today, the seller’s market may eventually become a buyer’s market.
As such, sellers may need to entice buyers by providing seller concessions, such as covering some or all of their closing costs.
Essentially, on closing day, you are responsible for paying off the rest of your mortgage balance. However, a real estate attorney can ensure that all of the payments get made to whoever needs them. With so many costs and people to pay, you will need an attorney to ensure your mortgage is paid off.
On closing day, anything you still owe for the mortgage will get subtracted from your total home price. You will need to contact your lender to find out the payoff amount. You will need to pay the entire interest rate up to the day you pay off your loan in full.
You will also need to cover the costs of property taxes up until the ownership of the house changes hands on closing day. Other taxes you may have to pay include transfer taxes and capital gains tax or federal income tax.
Those who make a large enough profit from their home sale will have to face a capital gains tax. Yet, you can avoid paying a portion of that tax from your home sale if you owned the home for a minimum of two years and you resided there for at least two out of the last five years.
If you meet the requirements, you can exclude up to $250,000 of the home sale price from getting taxed when filing taxes individually or up to $500,000 when filing a joint tax return with your spouse.
To find out the general closing costs you will need to cover as the seller, we suggest looking through the Seller Closing Cost Calculator. Here, you will see what your mortgage payoff amounts to and how much you will pay in escrow, real estate commission fees, accrued interest, and property tax.
Consider the Hidden Costs
There are numerous hidden costs you will also need to consider when selling your house. For instance, you will need to cover the home inspection fee, the transfer fee, and the transfer tax when changing the title of your house to the new homeowner.
Also, you will need to pay the recording fees. What are recording fees, you ask? Recording fees are essentially charges that state and local government agencies make to register a home’s ownership transfer. Other common hidden fees are escrow fees, which are paid to the title company or the escrow company.
You may have also forgotten about the home warranty costs and home inspection fees. Another cost you may not have thought of includes the contract fees of your brokerage firm and real estate agent.
Yet, the biggest cost is usually the mortgage payoff for your lender. If you pay off your 15-year or 30-year mortgage early, you may also have to cover a prepayment penalty. That penalty is a fee some lenders may charge you if you pay off your entire mortgage or part of it early.
Usually, buyers agree to the penalty during their closing. However, not all mortgage companies have a prepayment penalty, so you will need to ask your particular lender to find out.
Don’t forget the details behind moving costs either, which may include renting a van or hiring movers along with any new storage containers you may buy. If you have a homeowner’s association, make sure to cover all HOA fees until you’ve completed the closing.
Lastly, you may want to provide seller concessions and cover some of the closing costs of the buyer. That way, you can entice a potential buyer to put down a good offer.
Are you looking to sell your house quickly? What is the soonest time you can sell your house after purchasing it? You’ll find that the average time it typically takes to sell a house in the current seller’s market is about 60 days.
However, if that amount of time is too long for you, then consider seeking out a cash home buyer or real estate investor. Since cash buyers do not need a mortgage loan, they can complete a home sale in only a couple of weeks.
Cash buyers also purchase properties in their as-is conditions, so you won’t need to spend money or time on renovations. Contact us today for more information.
Conclusion
The fees when selling a house involve various closing costs and realtor commission fees including those of the buyer’s agent. While the buyer pays a down payment, some closing costs, and various other fees, the seller takes on costs for renovations, home staging, property taxes, the mortgage balance, and more.
You may also need to cover a transfer fee and transfer tax along with a capital gains tax. Further, the seller needs to pay for a title search and title insurance for the home buyer. Don’t forget about HOA fees, attorney fees, and moving costs.
