Know all the costs you can incur when selling your home the traditional way?
Sure, you probably know about closing costs and the commission for the real estate agent (typically 3 – 6%). But from low appraisals to staging your home, there are actually quite a bit of hidden costs when selling the traditional way.
Here are three biggest ones you definitely want to be aware of.
- Seller Concessions
Seller concessions are when the home buyer asks the seller to help pay for costs associated with their purchase. It could be contributing towards their mortgage application fees or closing costs, or providing down payment assistance. This is definitely one of the most expensive costs of selling a home.
- Holding Costs
The typical timeline when selling a house through a real estate agent is three months to a year.
During this time, you still have to pay mortgage payments, property taxes, insurance, HOA fees, and utilities. After a while, the costs get hefty. And it’s money that could’ve been used for things like another house or medical payments.
- Repairs
Whether it’s your real estate agent, a prospective buyer, or the lender, chances are good someone will ask you to make repairs to your home during the selling process. This is where there can be a lot of surprises, and the costs can get steep.
If there’s a busted pipe or a leak somewhere in the house, that can cause water damage and/or mold, which can get very costly. Foundation that’s sinking or has a crack in it is also super-expensive to fix and makes it nearly impossible to sell the home. Just fixing the air conditioning alone can cost thousands of dollars.
If you’re not in a hurry to sell and have a house that you know for certain needs very few repairs, it may be worth going the traditional route and listing with an agent.
But if you’re looking for another option, it may make sense to sell your home to a real estate investor. They buy your house for cash as-is, and once they give you a price that’s it. There are no question marks or wild cards.
There are also no closing costs and they handle all the repairs for you. Plus, they can typically close in 7 – 30 days and tend to be flexible on your move-out date. That makes it a quick, painless process that puts cash in your pocket.
Want more information on how selling your home for cash works? Click here to learn more about the process.