You want to sell your house and you’re looking forward to putting some money in your pocket. But did you realize that selling your house may mean you have to PAY money? In this blog post, we break down what are the different fees paid to agents versus paid to investors…
It’s true… selling your house can sometimes mean that you have to pay. (This isn’t always the case but it often is.) We want you to know about the different fees you have to pay because this information may help you decide whether to work with an agent or sell your house directly to an investor.
Agent Fees
An agent is a salesperson who will try to find a buyer for your house. In order to do this, they will list your house in a listing service and use various marketing efforts to try and find a buyer.
So you’ll end up having to pay some fees to the agent. Those fees usually include a commission if they can sell the house (this is the highest amount of money you’ll have to pay and it’s often about 6% of the sale price of the house, or about $6,000 for a $100,000).
In addition to the commission, there may be other fees you have to pay as well. These might include different advertising fees or other costs associated with selling your house. For example, there might be a fee to list your house on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), which is a database of properties for sale that agents use to find homes for their clients. There might also be a fee to the agent’s brokerage, which is the company the agent works for. This fee is usually a percentage of the commission and helps cover the costs of running the brokerage, such as office space and staff salaries.
There might also be other fees, such as a fee to get a sign in front of your house or a fee for the title company, which handles the legal transfer of the property from you to the buyer… the list goes on and on. You can ask the agent about these and they should tell you about these fees upfront so you know what to expect.
Investor Fees
This is the part that surprises most house sellers: for most investors, there are rarely any fees to cover. Investors will usually take care of all fees associated with selling. Plus, unlike agents, investors don’t charge a commission because they’re not listing your house on the market. However, you might still be responsible for closing costs, although this varies depending on the investor, so it’s important to clarify this upfront.
In our company’s case, at Beacon Realty Investments we cover all closing costs for our clients. This is a significant benefit, as closing costs can add up quickly when listing a property. We ensure that there are absolutely zero extra costs or hidden fees for you to worry about.
The One “Fee” You May Not Be Thinking Of
There’s one more cost (“fee”) that you might not be thinking of: when you work with an agent, they’ll get you to fix up your house, which can be a significant expense. Additionally, you’ll have to continue paying bills and taxes for as long as it takes the agent to find a buyer. So although this isn’t a fee to the agent, it’s a cost you’ll have to pay because of the agent… yet when you sell the house to an investor, they buy quickly so you end up saving these costs as well.
In our company’s case, our CEO, who handles all transactions, is also a licensed New Jersey Realtor. This means he is a professional, knowledgeable, and experienced in this field, which is incredibly beneficial to our seller clients. With his expertise, you can trust that your transaction will be handled with the highest level of professionalism and efficiency, saving you both time and money.
So, what’s right for you? It depends on how much you’re willing to pay and how quickly you need to sell.
If you want to go over this topic – what are the different fees paid to agents versus paid to investors – in more detail or confirm that we won’t charge you any fees if you sell your house to us, then please get in touch and, we’ll be happy to walk you through it.