10 Expenses You Must Consider When Selling Your Fort Collins Home

Selling a home in Fort Collins, CO area can be expensive.  If you think you are going to walk away with a certain amount of money after closing on your house you may be in for a surprise.  There are many expenses that will come up during the process of selling your home.  Most people just figure in the sales commissions and closing costs, but there are many more unexpected costs that can happen at all stages of the home selling process.   Knowing what these expenses are and how to plan for them accordingly is the best approach prior to putting your home on the market.

Selling Your Fort Collins House Fast By Listing It

If you are going to be listing your Fort Collins house for sale on the MLS you’ll want to prepare your house for sale first. Your agent will more than likely give you some recommendations on things you should do so the house will show at it’s best.  Besides some basic cleaning and removing any clutter you have have to invest in some updating and or repairs.  This may be something you are not prepared to do but addressing this prior to listing can potentially save you thousands of dollars later.  Besides any updating or repairs staging your house is also an excellent idea, especially if your house is vacant.  Staged homes show very well and regularly bring a higher sales price from prospective buyers.  The average cost for staging a home is typically between $1750-$3500 for a 3 month period.  So what are some other expenses you might incur when preparing a house for sale?

Clean! Clean! Clean!

Nothing shows better to a prospective buyer than a clean home.  You can role up your sleeves yourself and start cleaning or you can hire a professional to get the job done. One of the biggest things to focus on when cleaning is doing whatever you can to eliminate household and pet odors in carpets and fabric.   Those smells linger and can be very pungent.  You should definitely think about hiring a carpet or upholstery cleaning company to make everything fresh.   Some other things you are going to want to do is wash windows, clean appliances, scrub bathrooms, wipe down doors and walls.  Again a fresh clean home is a showing must.   Most folks only focus on cleaning the inside of the home but make sure you spend some time on the exterior as well.

Fresh Paint

There is not better way to freshen up a home than paint.  This is can be a quick and inexpensive way to really spruce up a house.  Painting a house can get rid of odors, make rooms pop and it can really add to the overall curb appeal of a house when you paint the exterior too.  Make sure you choose neutral colors and quality paint.   Neutral colors will help the buyer envision their belongings in house and it will also give a modern and new appearance for in person showings and photographs.

Repairs – Deferred Maintenance

Take sometime to go through your home as if you were a buyer.  Be critical of what you see and take not of things that should be fixed, repaired or updated.  Remember your buyer will be doing the same and in all likely hood they will have a home inspector digging even further.  Fix loose cabinets, leaky faucets, cracked tiles, broken windows, etc.  You want your home to look move-in ready and not like a fixer-upper. When you address these repairs upfront you will be positioned to sell your house for top dollar because it will show at it’s absolute best.

Home Staging

Home staging is the act of preparing a private residence for sale in the real estate marketplace. The goal of staging is to make a home appealing to the highest number of potential buyers, thereby selling a property more swiftly and for more money. Staging techniques focus on improving a property’s appeal by transforming it into a welcoming, attractive product that anyone might want.  Staging is good for any market because making your making sure that your home is in show-ready condition is a must.  Thing like new plants, removing your furniture and general clutter can pay off in a big way.  As part of staging your home for sale, you might need to bring in other decorative items too. For instance if you have a nice front porch, you can highlight it with new outdoor furniture.  In other rooms of your house you can add flowers, pillows, candles, doormats, bedding, and towels – all these items create a show room type house and attractive overall look for your home.  U.S. research states that home staging can reduce a listing’s time on the market by one third to half, and could fetch as much as 6% to 20% more than an empty home or a home not properly staged.

Landscaping

First impressions are everything and if your home shows really well from the outside they can expect that it will show nicely on the inside too.  Nice landscaping and good curb appeal is what will woo a buyer to want to see more.  Keep your lawn mowed, beds mulched, hedges trimmed etc.  If portions of your yard need major work, now is the time to get it done.  Call a local Miami landscaper and have them help you reach the goal of creating a beautiful environment for your yard and land.

Pre-listing Inspections and Repairs

As we discussed in the repairs section addressing issues upfront is key.  That’s why a lot of real estate agents are recommending that their home sellers due pre-listing home inspections.  This gives you the homeowner a lot of leverage because you’ll be able to address any problems that might be present and this will help with allow for a smooth negotiation process with buyers.  The buyers will more than likely still conduct their own home inspection but you’re being proactive in getting this done yourself from the start. It will show a prospective buyer that you have pride of ownership and have cared for home.  That gives them piece of mind that they are making the right decision about your house.

Vacating Your House To Move To A New One

Perhaps you are planning to move to a new house before you sell your current Fort Collins house?  This is very common as job relocation can make this a real possibility.  Whatever the reason is if you are moving to another house before your current one sells then you need to plan for several months, or more, of double household expenses. You will have double utilities, mortgage, insurance, taxes and HOA fees for as long as it takes to close.  Make sure you are prepared to incur these costs so there are no surprises.

Real Estate Commissions

By law there is not set fee for a Real Estate Commissions and commissions are negotiable but if you are selling your home with a real estate agent you will have to pay them.  You the seller are the one who pays the entire sales commission so you need to take that into consideration when selling your home.  This will often be the biggest expense when selling.  Real estate commissions are usually between 5-6% of the sales price of your home.

Closing Costs

A title company, real estate agent and or realtor can help you with what your closing costs might be.  Costs for closing can include attorney fees, title insurance, title transfer fees, homeowner’s association documents and transfer fees, city and county transfer fees, fuel reimbursements, taxes owed and more. Sometimes you might have to also negotiate a credit to the buyer.

Moving Costs

You will be moving so there are moving costs. You might also have storage fees either for excess furniture during the sales process or while waiting for your new home. If you are planning to buy a home after you sell your current home, then you need to plan for temporary living expenses as well.

Selling your Fort Collins home fast can be an expensive proposition

This is the traditional way to sell your home, and it’s been around for decades. This method is right for homeowners who don’t mind spending money on repairs, who don’t mind waiting to sell their house, who want to see if they can get a slightly higher price in the market, and who do don’t mind paying agent commissions. This is the traditional process that has been around for a while. It works for many homeowners, although some homeowners realized that they could bypass the agent’s fees by listing and selling their house without an agent. And that’s through cash home buyers like us, here at NoCo Housing LLC we give you fair cash offer fast.

So, here’s the thing, would you like to avoid paying out for all these expenses and fees? See how fast you can sell your house by calling NoCo Housing LLC . We’ll pay cash for houses in any condition and you don’t pay any commissions. See how it works for you.