COST OF SELLING REAL ESTATE

Selling a house is undoubtedly a major life event. But, while the idea of new beginnings should leave sellers excited for their next chapter, moving can sometimes be a challenging and emotional process.

This is, in part, caused by the unavoidable and seemingly hidden costs of selling a house. To make your journey less stressful, understanding these costs before beginning the process is essential. This way, you are not blindsided by any extra or unexpected expenses.

Maintenance costs

Before selling a property, it is very important to make sure that your house is in the best possible condition. This often means performing maintenance tasks both inside and outside of the home.

Taking the time to ensure that maintenance issues have been attended to does cost money. However, this is an important step in the process of selling a house and therefore achieving the best possible sale price.

A house that appears run-down will struggle to sell. To overcome this, you will have to fix such things as plumbing issues that have left water marks on the roof. In addition, fresh coats of paint will need to be applied to cracked and marked walls.

Maintenance might also encompass having pools and tennis courts professionally cleaned. Sellers may even need to clean roofs and gutters. A real estate agent will advise you on what maintenance works are crucial and what can be left for the new owners.

Legal costs

There are legal costs associated with selling. Namely, engaging a conveyancer or solicitor to legally transfer ownership of the home from the seller to the buyer. The conveyancer or solicitor helps sellers manage everything from the sales contract to other legal fees.

Licensed conveyancers and solicitors will charge for this work, but it's always worth getting a quote in advance as these charges do vary.

Agent's commission

When it comes to selling a house, the agent's commission makes up a key component of the overall cost of selling. A real estate agent is hired to provide their industry expertise and exclusive contacts to help you sell your home.

Depending on the real estate agent you engage, sellers can enter into several commission methods. Agents may ask for a flat fee or operate on a tiered commission. These methods will be discussed and agreed upon before any contracts are signed.

Marketing costs

In most real estate agencies, marketing costs are separate from an agent’s commission. Modern-day, marketing campaigns encompass both digital and print media in order to be successful.

Digital marketing can include:

Digital brochures
Real estate portal listings
Social media posts
Professional photography
Drone footage

Print marketing can involve:

Signage
Property brochures
Newspaper and magazine advertisements
Professional copywriting

While there are many marketing techniques, the agent will not employ every single one. Instead, marketing campaigns will be tailored to your specific property, location and target buyers. Marketing can cost anywhere between hundreds and thousands of dollars.

However Realty HQ has an 'advertise now pay later' plan that you can use to create the marketing plan you really want and pay for it after the sale of your property.

Moving fees

Moving costs can easily be forgotten. However they will almost always be incurred, and can be a fixed or hourly rate

Staging your property

Before putting your house on the market, your real estate agent may recommend property staging, especially if the house is vacant. Whilst it is another cost, it can help buyers to see the property furnished and, if the budget allows, is a recommended selling tactic.

Strata and/or council fees

When selling a property, there may be outstanding council rates and / or strata fees that require payment. This will be taken care of by your lawyer who will provide you with a statement of what has been paid and to whom on settlement day.

Completing your house sale with Realty HQ

Selling a home marks a major life transition. With so many emotions and feelings of stress tied into the moving process, look for a real estate agency that will help make this transition as seamless as possible.

While the moving process and the associated costs may seem overwhelming, Realty HQ can help break down the many components of selling a home, helping to take the stress out of moving.

Whether you are preparing to sell or looking for more information, Realty HQ is waiting to assist you. We offer you experience alongside excellent market knowledge to make the selling process as smooth as possible.