The Real Estate Blog

I think it's important for a seller to realize that when you close on the house that you are selling, there are certain closing costs that you are responsible for. Yes, I know buyers will ask for the seller to pay for some of the buyer's closing costs, and that varies in every situation. But EVERY seller will have a certain amount of closing costs.  What are those closing costs?

** Deed stamps. This is a county tax that every seller must pay at closing. It equates to $3.71 per $1000 that the house sells for. That is the case in our area-- not the same everywhere!

** Taxes up to date.  If you close in, say, September, you'll be responsible for paying the buyer, at closing, for the amount of your yearly taxes, prorated, from January through September.  If you escrowed taxes, then your lender will be sending you your escrow money back, usually within 6 weeks of closing, so make sure they have your forwarding address.

** Attorney's fees. No, you don't have to pay the attorney for the closing-- that's the buyer's closing cost.  But you do have to pay for the attorney's document preparation, as well as recording fees and copying fees. Every attorney is different, but on average, these fees will cost you between $200 and $250 total.

I hope that helps when you're trying to figure out how much money you will make off of the sale of your house.  I recently heard an experience agent fumble when a seller asked what possible closing costs they would have to pay, as a seller... I thought this would be a good topic to address.  I have a spreadsheet that I can use to come up with how much you'll make off of your sale. Let me know if I can help!