October 28, 2019
Additional Costs to Selling a Home
More than half of homeowners who are looking to sell their home are doing so for the first time—so says a report by Zillow and Thumbtack—and as such they are taken by surprise at just how much it costs to do. The cut that will go to the realtor is made clear upfront, generally speaking, so they go into that with open eyes. But it’s the additional costs on the back end that really shock people.
Indeed, according to the report, the “average homeowner spends $20,851 to sell their home”. That’s nationally, of course. There are areas where it costs more, like San Jose, California, where it costs a seller $83,770 on average. This is due to that market’s remarkably high median home value, which comes out to $1.2 million; this in turn raises closing costs (comprising taxes plus commissions) to $76,015.
Meanwhile, when going to market, some professional repairs generally need to be done to make the house more appealing. The average American seller—79 percent of whom undertake such a home improvement project, and sometimes more than one, before listing their home—spends a total of about $6,750. It’s worth doing. It improves the chances of receiving more than the asking price by at least four percent (22 percent of those who make improvements sell for more than asking price, compared to only 16 percent who don’t). Here’s how those average home improvement costs break down, according to the report:
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Exterior painting ($2,600)
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Home staging ($1,805)
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Interior painting ($1,245)
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Local moving ($475)
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Full-service lawn care ($145)
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Carpet cleaning ($140)
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House cleaning ($160)
Among the metropolitan areas with the highest costs associated with selling, our service area of Boston comes in at number six, with an average of around $35,000. Miami, Florida has costs of around $25,000, and Orlando’s are about $23,000.
Still, many find it worthwhile to sell. When you’re looking for a home in Massachusetts, Florida, or Rhode Island, contact us to see how we can help you ensure a full and unproblematic transfer of title. Topouzis & Associates, P.C. does full title searches and checks, and solves problems we encounter. Moreover, we are backed by multiple underwriters, staffed by residential real estate specialists, and ready to help you avoid costly delays and streamline your residential transactions.
