Expenses You May Have To Pay When You Sell Your House
The main and largest expense you will have to pay when selling a home is the commission the real estate agency charges. This can be a big chunk of change, but selling a house without an agent is extremely difficult. In addition to paying this, there are other fees you may have to pay, and most of these will be deducted from the proceeds of your sale when you close on the house deal. Here are three other expenses you should expect to pay when you are selling your house.
Mortgage balance and accrued interest
You are probably planning on having to pay off the balance of your mortgage loan on the house, but you should realize that the amount you must pay off will probably be more than the principle balance listed on your last statement. This is because the amount listed does not have the accrued interest figured in. Because of this, the amount you pay at your closing will be more than what you may have expected to pay.
Accrued property taxes
You will also have to pay all the accrued property taxes on your home when you close on the house. Property taxes are paid the year after they accrue, so this means you will not only have to pay the last year's taxes, but you will also have to pay taxes from January 1 to the date of your closing. Depending on how much your taxes are, this could be hundreds or thousands of dollars you are required to pay at your closing.
Title insurance
The other main thing you might have to pay out of your proceeds is the title insurance policy that will be required when you sell your house. This is a fee that is standard when homes sell, but there are times when the buyer will pay it instead of the seller. This will depend on the state you live in and on the agreement you make with the buyer of the house. The buyer of the house will already have a lot of other closing costs to pay, and these can often amount to 2-3% of the total purchase price of the house. To alleviate some of these fees, the seller of a house will often agree to pay the title insurance fees.
If you want to sell your house, it's important to fully know all the costs and fees you will be responsible for when you close on the house. To find out more about closing costs and fees, talk to a real estate agent today.