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Raleigh North Carolina Real Estate Agent: What Does Listing For Sale by Owner Truly Cost?

Are you thinking about listing your home For Sale By Owner? If you are, don't forget to consider the true costs of taking this route.

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If you’re considering listing For Sale By Owner (or FSBO), I’ve got some key information on the true cost of selling.
First, ask yourself what kind of back payments there will be. Any back payments or taxes that aren’t paid up by the time of closing will be deducted at that time.
Also, be aware that there are certain loan programs out there that don’t allow sellers to list their home more quickly than the loan was expected to be paid off. Make a call to your lender and find out if you’ll be subject to any prepayment penalties before you list.
What about carrying costs? On my team, we pride ourselves in selling as quickly as possible. However, some FSBO sellers may find their listing sitting on the market for weeks or even months. If this happens to be the case, you’ll need to factor in the carrying costs. These costs are what you will need to pay to hold your listing on the market.
These holding costs can include mortgage payments, taxes, routine maintenance, and more, so be careful.

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Is it truly going to benefit you to go it alone?
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Next, don’t forget about closing costs. Many sellers, especially FSBO sellers, don’t realize that closing costs are going to be deducted from their bottom line. Listing your home on the market doesn’t happen for free. You will also need to think about the costs of preparing your home for the market.
Think about what you’ll need to do to get your home ready for listing. How much is it going to cost you to make sure your home looks as good as possible? Depending on the condition of your home, this can be very costly.
If you are a FSBO seller, you’re going to have to outsource a lot of costs at closing. Take your bottom line into account. Is it truly going to benefit you to go it alone?
If you have any other questions, would like more information, or want to learn how we could help you sell your home quickly and for top dollar, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.