If you are thinking about listing your house in Omaha, make sure you are prepared for these hidden and often unexpected costs! There are many additional costs to watch out for and ways to save your hard-earned money!
Selling a house in Omaha can get extremely expensive quickly when you hire a local real estate agent and list the house on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). Right off the bat, a real estate agent is going to want 6 or 7% of the cost of the home just to list and sell it. On a $200,000 home that is $14,000 right off the top to the real estate agent before additional closing costs, additional broker fees, staging and miscellaneous curb appeal expenses, painting, cleaning, title fees, escrow fees, mortgage fees and on and on. When selling with a traditional real estate agent your closing costs will add you to thousands of dollars. And we haven’t even talked about the costs associated with holding a house while it is up for sale. Mortgage payment, interest, utilities, property insurance, taxes, basic maintenance and upkeep. You get the idea, it all adds up. A smart seller will consider all of these costs before spending a dime to really evaluate if the expenses are worth it.
In some cases, selling your Omaha house to a direct buyer can be the better choice. When selling your house to a real estate investor you will have no closing costs and you can close on your schedule. In most instances, closing can happen in as little as 7 days. No need to update or clean out your house. Take what you want and leave the rest. There will be no holding costs because you will be selling fast and not waiting a worrying how long it will take to sell your house. Give Harter Investments a call today at 402-939-6556 to find out if listing or a direct sale will be the best choice for your situation.
If you do opt to list your Omaha, Lincoln, Council Bluffs or surrounding area house, watch out for the costs listed below!
Closing Costs
People know closing costs are out there, but they are not always sure what to expect. In fact, the numbers vary from house to house. Closing costs will include things like origination charges, transfer costs, inspection fees, broker fees, copy fees (that is correct) and more. Most homeowners will pay anywhere from 4-7% of their final sale price just in closing costs. If your house is $200,000, you will need to pay anywhere between $8,000 and $14,000. Add that on to the $14,000 commission you would pay a real estate agent for listing your house and the additional costs and you can see it get very expensive fast to sell your house. And this is not the full list of expenses.
Agent Fees
Real Estate Agent commissions will typically cost you around 6 or 7% of the final sale price of the house. As we mentioned earlier on a $200,000 home that is $14,000 right off the top to the real estate agent before additional closing costs, additional broker fees, staging and miscellaneous curb appeal expenses, painting, cleaning, title fees, escrow fees, mortgage fees and on and on. Not to mention, many agents will have administrative expenses that they will tack on top of that. This includes things like copies, printed materials, sandwiches for an open house, listing services, etc. Some agents take care of it all, while others will charge you for everything under the sun. If you decide to list your house with a real estate agent make sure and find out ALL of the costs associated with selling your home, be sure to review the agreement before you sign. You could find yourself spending far more than expected. Not all real estate agents or brokers are the same.
Staging & Curb Appeal
Getting a house ready for photos, showings and open houses can get expensive quickly. All of your personal belongings should be put away in order to achieve the greatest effect. Removing family pictures, nick nacks, the clutter can help people imagine themselves living in your home easier. In this case, it doesn’t mean stashing everything in the closet… people are going to look there too. Some homeowners will find themselves paying for a storage space which can add up if your house does not sell quickly while their house is listed, keeping only their necessities at the house with them. This makes for easy clean-up and an easier move when the time comes.
You’ll need to make sure the yard is in tip-top shape and looks amazing to anyone passing by. It can take some work and some out of pocket cash to get things where they need to be. Not to mention the continuous upkeep while your house is listed. Curb appeal is a huge influencer for people getting ready to buy. Don’t miss out on a potential buyer because your yard looks messy.
Painting
Painting is one of the first things many homeowners will do before listing their house. It is a relatively simple upgrade, that can have a big impact on the appearance of the house. Most people will opt to hire a professional to handle it as painting the whole house can be quite an undertaking. Others will choose only to do certain rooms to be mindful of costs. Repainting your entire house can ultimately set you back thousands. the first repair you will be told to make. It sounds easy enough, but after you consider the costs of repainting the entire home, you could be looking at a few thousand dollars and that is only the interior. If needing to paint the exterior depending on the condition you can probably times 3 or 4 of the interior cost.
Cleaning
Sure, you can do a pretty good job cleaning your house. But do you really want to scrub the walls, baseboards, and the dreaded oven? Many people hire professional cleaners, who will specialize in {‘move-out” cleanings. They will take care of everything from top to bottom so you can spend your time elsewhere. If you are not replacing the carpets, it is a good idea to pay to have them professionally cleaned.
Mortage Fees
Some lenders will charge you if you are paying the mortgage off early. Check with your lender for pre-payment penalties and other costs you will incur when paying off the mortgage. You will likely have to pay recording fees, which will usually run around $75.
Title & Escrow Fees
When listing your house in Omaha, you will also need to consider the cost of title insurance as well as a fee to the person holding escrow. This is typically a fee paid to the attorney who distributes funds to each party at closing.
In summary, there are many things to consider when selling your home. If you do not want to incur the added costs of using a real estate agent and broker, additional closing costs, all the other associated costs, time lost having your home on the market, multiple open houses, people tramping through your home, dealing with multiple people that you do not know if they qualify for the loan or not, etc. etc. Call Harter Investments at 402-939-6556, we will help you figure out what is best for you. We are local and care about our community and doing the right thing for our customers.
