Knowing how to prepare your house for sale starts with understanding what buyers are looking for. If your home isn’t in pristine condition, potential buyers will pass you by. If you’re considering selling your home, we’ve rounded up a few tips on how to prepare your home sale – that will help get it sold quickly.

When you want to move, there’s nothing worse than sitting on the market for months with showing after showing. From selling quickly to an investor, to painting and landscaping, this guide has everything you need to know about how to sell your house.

1. Skip the Local Real Estate Market

Listing your home on the traditional real estate market is a lot of work. You need to keep your home in perfect condition at all times. You also need to do a lot of work ahead of time to prep it for sale.

With iBuyer, you receive a personalized home evaluation and get matched with qualified home buyers. Buyers range from national iBuyers to local iBuyers, investors, or consumers looking to buy directly and close quickly.

You can skip the hassle of holding open houses and showings. There’s no need to bring a bunch of people through your home. Sell your house without hundreds of people coming into it.

2. Purge, Donate or Sell

Showing your home on the traditional market means you need to get rid of a few things. Potential buyers like to see homes that are neutral and open. If you have too many furnishings, clothes, and toys obstructing buyers from viewing your home it’s time to do some purging.

Start by going through your house and thinking about what you’d like to donate, throw away, recycle, or sell. Divide everything into piles and go through your stuff. The more you can get rid of the less you’ll have to pack and move later.

Selling some of your big-ticket items will also give you a little extra money you can use for your move. Anything that’s in good condition can be donated to a charity.

3. How to Prepare a House to Sell by Decluttering

Clutter accumulates. If you have mail and homework on your dining room table, it’s time to clean things up. Homebuyers want to imagine themselves living in your home. If all they see is clutter, they will walk right out.

Go through your house and remove any trash or clutter you see on surfaces or the floor. This is one less thing you’ll have to do before you move. This is also a good time to remove any souvenirs and personal collections from your walls or shelves.

While a few decorative items are fine, too many are distracting. The cleaner your home looks the better it shows. People want to see windows and architectural details – buyers don’t want to see your clutter.

Decluttering helps to neutralize and freshen up your home. Your home will look more updated as well. A neutral and show-ready home gives buyers the feeling that your home is well cared for and maintained.

4. Give Each Room a Purpose

When you’re selling your home, it helps to show buyers how they can use each room. Give each room a purpose through staging. Even if you don’t pay for professional staging, you can stage your home using your own furniture.

Move things around and rearrange to help make each room shine. If your kitchen table is also your office, declutter and show it off as a kitchen table again. A guest room that doubles as a mudroom, storage facility, and wrapping station should be turned back into a guest room.

You want potential buyers to see the potential of each room. If they see you don’t know what to do with a space, they won’t know what to do with it either. This helps you get the highest price for your home. 

If staging isn’t in the budget, you can buy inexpensive decorative items or furniture to help your home show better. Rugs, drapes, bedding, and towels are all inexpensive ways to stage a room with fresh updates.

5. How To Prepare Your Home for Sale With Curb Appeal

Your front door is the first chance you have to impress buyers. Make a good first impression with the right curb appeal. Re-facing your home might not be in your budget but a few small updates will have a big impact.

Start by cleaning up the landscaping in the front of your home. You can also paint shutters, replace your garage door, or paint your front door.

Weather permitting, plant some new flowers or put inexpensive potted plants near the door. Cozy logs and evergreen branches are great if you’re selling in the winter. A new welcome mat will help give your entryway a fresh look regardless of the weather.

Small changes in the front yard and entryway help to give buyers a good feeling as they walk in. Make buyers feel welcome instead of wanting to turn around.

6. Don’t Forget the Outdoors

When you’re selling a home, the outside is just as important as the inside. Don’t forget the backyard when you’re working on curb appeal. Pick up the landscaping and remove anything dead or unsightly.

Give mulch a fresh topcoat or replace some gravel if anything looks worn down. Wash your patio furniture and stage the outside as if you’re hosting a BBQ. Give buyers a sense of how they can use the outdoor space.

If you have a great deck or patio, you’ll want to show it off to buyers. Outdoor living adds tons of square footage to your home. Make your yard a selling feature by highlighting its beauty.

7. What To Do To Prepare House for Sale That Needs Small Updates?

Just because you aren’t renovating your entire home doesn’t mean you can’t do a few small updates. Making small changes will help give your home a more updated appearance. This is especially important in high-end real estate markets. 

In the kitchen, consider painting or staining your cabinets. A new countertop will also help to update the room. New hardware and lighting fixtures modernize the space without breaking the bank.

In the bathrooms, you can replace mirrors, towels, rugs, and shower curtains to freshen up the room. New rugs in the main living areas or even new lamps help to update your décor.

New bedding and towels also help your home show better. Remember that anything you buy to update your home will come with you when you move. These small investments are also things you can use in your new home.

8. Re-Paint

One small update that is easy to do yourself is to re-paint. The paint will give each room a fresh, new feel. Paint is also fairly inexpensive when you compare it to a kitchen remodel. When you’re choosing paint colors, stick to neutrals.

Light and bright colors help to make your home feel larger. They will also help make your home feel clean and fresh. A new coat of paint helps to remove fingerprints, crayons, and dirt from walls.

In the bedrooms, neutrals or light cool colors help to set a relaxing tone. You can also paint a vanity cabinet in a bathroom or cabinets in the kitchen to freshen things up. Toning down loud colors or kid’s rooms will help neutralize the home, so it appeals to more buyers.

9. Deep Clean

When you’re selling your home, you’ll want to give it a good deep clean. Consider hiring professionals to clean carpets, windows, appliances, and floors. A deep clean also helps to make your home feel more updated.

If you go with the do-it-yourself route, give yourself a few days to get everything cleaned. While cleaning could take a weekend, purging and de-cluttering can start weeks or even months before you list your home.

Giving your house a nice deep clean will help it feel fresh and new. Clean windows also help to let more natural light in. This is one must-do item that will feel great coming off your to-do list.

How to Prepare Your House for Sale 101

Understanding how to prepare your house for sale could be the difference between it sitting on the market and it being sold. The simplest way to get your home ready to sell is to skip the hassle altogether. With iBuyer, you’re connected with companies and investors who are qualified and ready to buy your home as-is.

If you’re ready to kick-off the process, submit your address to get connected with iBuyer professionals. You’ll be one step closer to selling your home and moving on.

The post 9 Steps To Prepare Your House for Sale appeared first on iBuyer Blog.

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Tax debt can produce immense stress, especially when compounded with interest and penalty fees. If this issue festers enough, then you’ve got a nearly permanent burden.

This isn’t a problem you want looming over your head. The prospect of creditors knocking on your doors to collect is enough to haunt you for years, and not just financially.

But if you’re a homeowner with a tax lien, you have an advantage — specifically, your house. Liquidating this major asset can cover your losses if you want to use the equity from selling your home to pay off your debt.

Read on for a guide that will walk you through what a tax lien is, how to resolve it by selling a house, and actionable tips you can take to start lifting your burden today.

What Is a Tax Lien?

Liens are filed to gain possession of another person’s property and are not discharged until the debtor pays their debt. They’re filed either voluntarily or involuntarily, so liens aren’t always disciplinary in nature.

For example, a mortgage lien is filed in agreement with the homeowner so that they can live in the property while paying it off. There are consequences if the debt is not honored, but this particular lien is not initially posed as a punishment.

A tax lien is filed by governmental agencies to ensure that a debtor’s tax debt is fully paid. This lien is imposed involuntarily. This can result from a failure to pay taxes such as income or property taxes.

Until you have paid off your lien, you do not have the right to sell the seized property on your own accord. If you do not know how to start selling your home despite having a tax lien, you cannot receive the equity necessary to pay off your lien.

Types of Tax Liens

Tax liens can be filed for numerous reasons. Most commonly, they’re filed if you owe any taxes past the payment deadline. Here are three types of tax liens relevant for your case:

• Property tax liens are filed for unpaid property taxes owed to the county or city.
• Federal tax liens are filed for unpaid income taxes owed to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
• Judgment liens are ruled by the court for unfulfilled contractual obligations, giving the right to take possession of a debtor’s property to the creditor.

Different liens operate by their own penalties and rules. These can vary even further depending on the debtor’s state of residence. Understanding your specific lien can help you navigate the process of selling your home and paying off your lien.

Penalties

The IRS releases federal tax liens 30 days after they are fully paid. Otherwise, they expire after ten years. The expiration date for city/county property tax or judgment liens depends on the jurisdiction and can climb up to twenty years. The IRS can also refile liens and in some states, creditors can renew judgment liens.

The longer you do not pay back your lien, the more interest you will accrue. The longer the debtor cannot pay their total back, the more penalty fees they will incur on top of their existing debt balance.

If the debtor continually fails to pay their debt, their creditor can press criminal charges that can result in imprisonment. In some cases, the IRS will offer voluntary programs that offer different payment options and avoid imposing criminal charges onto the debtor.

Guide to Selling a House With a Tax Lien

Although the initial terms of a tax lien prevent debtors from selling their home, there are ways to dispute the lien or otherwise navigate around it.

Obtain and Present a Certificate of Discharge

To release your property from a lien, request a certificate of discharge from the IRS. Although this will not entirely resolve your lien, a certificate of discharge will allow you to sell your property and use the equity that you received from the sale to pay off your lien.

Before you close your sale, present the certificate of discharge. The closing attorney will transfer the funds from the closing to your creditor to officially resolve the lien. Your creditor will then file for the lien’s release.

Sell Your House As-Is

Although renovations and minor maintenance repairs can boost a property’s value, sell your house as-is. Renovations are costly. They can prolong and complicate the process of selling a house with a lien.

During the time it takes to freshen up your entire house with a coat of paint, you could incur another month of interest and penalty fees. Depending on the state of the real estate market, you could find yourself waiting for some time before your house is sold.

For the sake of time, forget retiling your floors and sell your house as-is ASAP. Get your cash quickly so that you can free yourself of your debt in a timely manner.

If you think your home is in too poor of a condition to sell as-is, don’t worry. At iBuyer, we have a guide meant to help you sell your house, even if it has some cosmetic or maintenance issues.

Dispute Liens That You Don’t Need to Pay

If your lien was filed in error for whatever reason (most commonly because it was meant to be filed in someone else’s name), dispute it ASAP. Or you might’ve paid it off already, and still see that the lien has not been officially resolved.

Hire tax experts to handle these matters strategically. The IRS will most likely not even consider your dispute unless a tax advisor is mediating the conversation. If your situation requires legal assistance, then add a tax attorney to your team so that they can efficiently request a lien appeal and handle other legal matters.

Wait for Your Lien to Expire

Although you could wait out your lien’s expiration date, you are more likely to face harsh consequences by attempting to do so. As mentioned above, liens could be refiled and creditors typically do not allow the lien to expire before coming to collect. When they do, it’s usually because the debt balance is relatively low.

So if you’re waiting for your lien to expire, understand that you’re gambling with the government and your financial record. Use other available options to settle your lien and lower your chances of facing serious consequences.

Potential Issues That May Arise

If you wish to embark on this process, recognize potential pitfalls that can stunt your ability to sell your house and resolve your lien.

Lien Debt Costing More Than Property

If the equity you would receive from your sale still doesn’t cover your tax debt, first pay off enough of your debt to lower your lien. Do this before you file for discharge. You won’t be able to sell your house to pay off your lien until it is sufficiently lowered.

You cannot make a partial payment for a tax lien with your property, since your lien was filed against your property to ensure that your debt is paid fully. If you cannot conceivably lower your lien enough to sell your house, then you’ll most likely have to file for bankruptcy. Your house is probably your largest asset and if it can’t pay off your debt, then you don’t have many other options.

After filing for bankruptcy, the lien on your property will remain, rendering you unable to sell or auction it. But your creditors will get paid, easing the burden of your debt. Make sure you understand your options before committing to a bankruptcy filing.

Lien Discoverability

Although you may feel embarrassed about having a lien on your record, you could complicate things by not disclosing your tax liens to the people working with you to sell your house, whether that be an attorney or real estate agent.

Even if you try to prevent disclosure of your lien, tax liens are discoverable through a title search. Tax liens can complicate the process of selling a home, so make sure that you are transparent to your real estate agent and/or attorney about your situation.

They can help zero in on lien-specific issues and provide expertise that smooth out the entire process. You could also acquire the help of a real estate agent or attorney that specializes in tax liens.

Handle Your Tax Lien Today

Though detaching from your home may be a difficult choice, you don’t want debt to continue attaching itself to you. Selling a house for cash can mean the difference between financial freedom and distress. If you avoid dealing with your lien, you could end up in even more trouble in just a few years to come.

Visit our homepage today and submit your home address. At iBuyer, we understand how complicated selling your home can be. We even offer a way to sell your home online, which results in a much speedier sale than traditional means. We’ll walk you further down this process with expert real-estate service that specifically serves cases like yours.

The post How to Sell My House With a Tax Lien appeared first on iBuyer Blog.

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According to a survey of 45 states and Washington D.C., there are roughly about 782,000 divorces every year.

If you are considering filing for divorce or in the process of a divorce, you may be wondering how does divorce affect taxes? What changes about your filing status? How do you sell your home quickly and efficiently after a divorce?

We have answered all your major questions regarding divorce and taxes. Here is the complete guide on everything you need to know about how divorce affects your taxes and your home. 

How Does Divorce Affect Your Annual Tax Filing Status?

One of the most important things to understand about taxes after a divorce is that the timeline is what determines your tax filing status.

If you file for divorce in the summer for example, but the divorce is not finalized until the following calendar year, then you are still considered married for the entire year in which you filed. 

If your divorce is finalized in December for example, then you will be considered unmarried for that entire calendar year. 

You may be able to file as a “head of household” instead of filing as “single”. If you are a “head of household” then you are taxed at a lower tax rate for your income with a higher standard deduction. 

To be eligible for this status you must pay over half the costs for a qualifying child or dependent and be unmarried. If your divorce is not final, then you must be separated for at least six months, as well as meet the other requirements. 

How Does Divorce Affect Your Taxes?

You traditionally receive many tax breaks when you file as a married couple. However, once you are divorced, you become ineligible to receive those tax breaks. 

There are certain things that may benefit you, such as filing as a “head of household” as mentioned earlier. 

Without the added benefit of a joint income, your total income will decrease. This will most likely place you into a lower tax bracket.  

Which Parent Can Claim the Children as Dependents After a Divorce?

There are many tax benefits to receive with claiming dependents. But after a divorce, who gets to reap these benefits?

Any children are filed on a single joint tax filing when you are married. When your divorce is finalized, only one parent is allowed to claim the child or children on their tax return. 

Typically, the parent who gets to claim the child as a dependent is the one who is considered the residential or custodial parent. This is the parent with whom the child spends more than half the year. 

It is critical to remember that a child cannot be claimed as a dependent on two separate tax returns. You will most certainly get in trouble with the IRS if you do this. 

But just because you claim a child as a dependent on your tax return does not mean that the other parent can never claim the child on a future tax return. There are exceptions to this rule. 

Parents can agree to switch years where they claim a child as a dependent. In these years, they must file as a head of household and make sure those requirements are met. 

If both parents agree to this, they should use the IRS Form 8332 to file their dependency claim. 

In this way, they can gain the tax benefits of claiming a dependent on their tax returns. 

Can You Deduct Any Alimony Payments or Child Support?

Prior to 2018, payers of alimony could deduct the payments from their overall income. This enabled them to be taxed at a lower rate. 

That changed in 2018 when a new tax law took effect. This new tax law called the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) made it so that individuals receiving alimony payments no longer have to pay any income tax on that alimony.

The person making the alimony payments can no longer deduct any alimony payments from their overall income. This benefits the one receiving the alimony. 

The same thing rings true for child support. The individual making child support payments cannot deduct it from their income. The person receiving child support payments will not be taxed on it. 

If you are the person making the child support payments and are also the custodial parent, then you can claim the child as a dependent on your tax return. 

If you receive child support payments but the child does not stay with you for more than half the year then you cannot claim the child as a dependent. 

Tax laws have a way of being revised, altered, or changed completely as the years go by. It is also important to check with a tax professional about what the latest tax laws are regarding child support and alimony payments.

How Do You Deduct Legal Fees After Filing Your Taxes After a Divorce?

Legal fees in any sort of divorce proceedings can get costly very quickly. You may be wondering if there is any way you could deduct these expensive legal fees from your annual tax filing. 

As a general rule of thumb, you are not allowed to deduct any personal legal fees when you are filing your taxes. This means that you cannot deduct your legal fees related to your divorce come tax season.

This includes any personal advice you received from a lawyer about a divorce that cannot be deducted from your tax filings. The IRS can be extremely strict when it comes to legal fee deductions. 

There are certain ways around this rule, however. If you can prove that your ex-spouse is purposely increasing the length of time of the divorce proceeding to raise your fees, you could potentially get them deducted. You would need to seek a judge’s approval. 

Another way to be eligible to deduct legal fees associated with divorce is in the event there were any transfers of property. 

It is recommended that you ask your divorce lawyer to break down what could be and could not be considered as tax deductions from the beginning. This will help keep your deductions organized when it comes time to file your taxes. 

What Happens to Your Retirement Funds After a Divorce?

Retirement funds are very important investments that many people spend a lifetime building. Often times, these accounts, like 401(k)s and Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs), are in one person’s name. 

However, these retirement accounts are considered as marital property in any divorce proceeding. Barring any prenuptial agreements, you are entitled to up t half of any of these retirement accounts.

However, the taxes made on these retirement funds can also change dramatically after a divorce. 

If you pull any funds out of a 401K before the age of 59 and a half, then you will have to pay a ten percent tax on any withdrawn funds. You can avoid this penalty by getting a Qualified Domestic Relations Order. 

A Qualified Domestic Relations Order is an order given by a judge following a divorce proceeding if you choose to get one. 

Another way to avoid any retirement fund related taxes following a divorce is simple. You can rollover any retirement funds to a new account through direct transfer. 

If you do not roll over these funds in a direct transfer, you will be taxed at the ten percent rate because it will be considered a withdrawal. 

How to Handle the Selling Your Home After a Divorce

A home is often one of the most valuable assets a couple filing for divorce has. It is common after a divorce to want to move out and sell the home you and your ex-spouse were sharing.

Wanting to downsize is a common reason. Going from a joint income to a single income can be the reason. Or, it might be required in the divorce proceedings to sell the house. 

Some couples who end up divorcing own more than one home. The need to downsize is especially compelling if this is the case. 

There are some helpful websites and platforms that can help you sell your home quickly following a divorce. They can give you an accurate home valuation estimate that can better prepare you to sell your home fast. 

If you plan on selling your home after a divorce, faster is better. The quicker you complete the sale, the less you have to pay in listing fees and double the rent or mortgage payments. 

What to Know About Paying Capital Gains Tax After Selling a Home During Divorce 

Capital gains tax is the tax you must pay on income that comes from non-inventory assets. These assets are most commonly real estate and stocks. 

When many people decide to sell their home, they can potentially be hit with a big tax bill on the sale of their home. If you are going through a divorce proceeding, it is right to be worried about this possibility.

However, you should know that there are ways to avoid paying the capital gains tax if you sell your house following a divorce. 

You can receive a $250,000 exclusion when selling your home following a divorce. If you and your spouse sell the home together before the divorce is finalized, you can receive an exclusion of up to $500,000.

Because it is nearly double, there is a benefit to selling your home fast while the divorce proceedings are still going on.

Those who are selling their home and getting a divorce should definitely look into ways on how to sell a home fast so they do not miss out on this significant tax advantage. 

if you purchase another home right away, some of that capital gains tax can be rolled over into the payment of another home. 

When it comes to the overall process of selling and buying real estate during divorce, sometimes quicker really is better. 

Seek Professional Advice on Taxes After Divorce

Ultimately, it is important to seek professional advice from either an accountant or divorce attorney regarding your taxes following a divorce. 

There are so many nuances and caveats when it comes to filing status, capital gains tax, retirement funds, and more. A professional can help guide you in the right direction when it comes to taxes so that you come out in a sound financial position. 

Consulting with a tax professional can also help you avoid any penalties or fees associated with filing incorrectly or falsely claiming a child as a dependent.

Another professional you should consult with is a home buying professional. These experts can help you sell your home within the time frame needed in order to capitalize on the capital gains tax benefit. 

Learn More About How Divorce Affects Your Taxes Today

Taxes can be a difficult subject to navigate but can be especially tricky after a divorce. But how does divorce affect taxes that much really? As you have learned, there are so many things you have to be aware of when it comes to taxes after divorce. 

It is especially to be mindful of taxes following a divorce to avoid any penalties or fines from the IRS. 

If you or a friend have recently gone through a divorce and need more information about anything from tax filings to selling your home, we are here for you. 

Create an account here at iBuyer for cash offers so you can sell your home fast following a divorce. We can help give you a home valuation and make it easy to get a cash offer for your home. 

The post How Does Divorce Affect Taxes? appeared first on iBuyer Blog.

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Selling your home can be a pretty stressful process in some cases. In an ideal world, you would recognize the appreciated value of your home, decide that you’d like to move elsewhere with a little extra money in your pocket, put your house on the market, and it would sell immediately. 

That’s the way it’s often portrayed, but the reality is that sometimes it’s a little different. The process of getting your home listed, working with a realtor, and actually accepting an offer can be time-consuming and costly. 

We’re here to help you explore a few of your options. Luckily, there are ways to make the process smooth and effortless. 

We’ll explore a number of options, also answering the question “how much does it cost to sell a house?”

Let’s get started:

How Much Does It Cost To Sell a House?

The answer to this question is probably about as complicated as the answer to “how long does it take to get a job,” or, “is parenting right for me?”

The cost of selling your home is dependent on a number of factors. There’s a lot that goes into preparing your home so that you can get the most value at closing, finding the right people to work with in order to list your home, closing costs, the costs of moving, and everything else along the way. 

Selling your house is, in principle, moving your entire life along to a new phase. Not to mention all of the red tape and paperwork that goes along with the process. 

Before you rest your head on the pillow of your new home, there are a lot of expenses that have to take place. 

Those expenses will vary depending on your situation, but there are some trends in expenses that you can expect. We’re going to take a look at three different ways that you could potentially sell your home. 

All three come with different pros and cons. Let’s get started.

Selling a Home with iBuyer

iBuyer is a service that helps you get your home exposed to the market of potential buyers in your area. Additionally, iBuyer seeks to make the process of selling your home as easy as it possibly can be. 

The first benefit of iBuyer is an algorithm that helps you get a clear idea of how much potential buyers are likely to pay for your home. This estimate is based on a great deal of historical information from previous purchases and home values in your area. 

When you get an estimate that makes sense and seems right to you, we send that estimate along with information about your home out to a network of interested buyers. Those buyers will then examine your listing and bid against each other to purchase your home. 

This is an excellent way to increase the sale value of your home because it forces individuals to bid higher and higher until there is someone at the end who offers to pay more than anyone else. In this way, you receive the highest possible amount for your home based on consumer demand. 

If you should accept an offer, iBuyer helps work with you to take the following steps and wind up closing on your sale. 

This process is extremely affordable in comparison to other methods that we’ll discuss next. 

Selling By Yourself

Selling a home by yourself is another option that might be able to save you a little money. 

When you decide to sell your home on your own, you don’t need to adhere to the closing costs and commissions that real estate agents charge. This is an excellent way to sell a home if you’re familiar with a person who is interested in buying your home from you before you list it. 

For example, your best friend wants to buy your home and you’re ready to move, it wouldn’t make much sense to pay someone to market and sell the home for you. 

You’ll also save money if the buyer doesn’t have an agent that needs to be paid commissions. It’s also beneficial to sell your home on your own in some instances because you can dictate the terms of the sale and you don’t have to adhere to the opinions or ideas of the real estate agent they’re working with. 

At the same time, going through the process by yourself has some pitfalls. 

Negative Aspects of Selling Yourself

The first factor that stands out as a negative is the fact that most first-time sellers don’t know the legalities or the standard process of selling a home. There are certain things that need to get done to transfer a home to another person legally. 

Additionally, it’s difficult to find potential buyers if you don’t work through some kind of service. If you know of a person that wants to buy your home, this negative factor doesn’t apply to you. 

If, on the other hand, you just want to sell the home by yourself, there are a couple of things to keep in mind. 

First, the listing spaces that many homebuyers browse on are sometimes accessible only to licensed agents. Second, you might not get as much value from the sale as you would if you worked with a service like iBuyer. 

It’s tough to know how much to list your home for, even with a decent appraisal. There are various market factors that influence how people buy homes, what will work, and what will not. First-time sellers also tend to be inexperienced in the way of negotiation, and that can wind up hurting you.

You should also be aware that you’ll still have to pay the buyer’s agent’s commission fees. So, at the end of the day, you might wind up saving money on commissions and closing costs, but the total value of your home might not stack up at the sale price. 

You might also find that it takes a lot longer to get your home off of the market if you don’t have access to large pools of potential buyers, and your expenses will rack up as the house sits. 

Selling with a Real Estate Agent

Working with an agent is the way that most people go about selling their homes. 

Agents can help you access potential buyers, prepare your home for sale, and work with you on the various things that need to happen for the sale to go through. 

This makes the process simple for you, and the agent takes a lot of the responsibility into their own hands. At the same time, unloading the responsibility on the agent comes at a price. 

Real estate agents will ask for a percentage of the selling price. That usually stacks up to somewhere around 6 percent of your selling price. Depending on your home, that could be anywhere from $6,000 to $100,000.

It all depends on the value of your home. There are additional closing costs and the fee that’s attributed to the buyer’s agent if they have one. 

What About The Other Costs Associated with Selling?

The other costs that come with selling a home are really up to your discretion. This is because they typically have to do with making improvements to the home that will increase its value and help it get off of the market. 

Investing in home improvements is a great way to make a little more money when it comes to closing time. Bathroom and kitchen investments are typically ones that reap the best rewards, although there’s a whole lot that you can do before your appraisal to increase value. 

Those costs will vary depending on the size of the renovation or improvement. It’s important to keep in mind, though, that most of the renovations you make to your home will increase its value. 

Even small adjustments like paint color or the inclusion of a garden can make your home more appealing and help it get off of the market quicker. 

When it comes to the little things, it’s important to remember that appraisals are partially influenced by opinion. The appraiser is aware of different market factors, but their opinion of the home is what determines the last bit of the value. 

So, cleaning up your yard, improving the curb appeal, and arranging your furniture in a way that enhances space can all change your home’s value by thousands of dollars. 

Moving Costs and More

You then have to consider how much property you own, the costs of movers in your area, and what the general expense of transferring those belongings to a new space will be. 

In the grand scheme, though, be sure to weigh the moving expenses against the equity that you gained in the sale of the home. In most cases, the silver lining is that you make money after all is said and done.

Trying to Sell Your Home?

So, how much does it cost to sell a house? It depends on how you handle it. 

We’re here to help you sell your home in the easiest, most cost-effective way possible. Submit your address to get started selling your home. 

The post How Much Does it Cost to Sell a House? appeared first on iBuyer Blog.

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In this episode, I’m going to be talking about home co-investing: what it is, what companies are doing it and how those companies are a little bit different from one another.

So first, what is home co-investing? It’s where a company invests in a home with you, and, it’s not debt. Instead, the company that invests then owns a portion of your house. In other words, they have some equity in your home.

So again, it’s not really a loan because they’re investing in the home with you and then you pay them an agreed upon monthly fee. But again, this isn’t set in stone because it varies depending on which company you’re working with.

So the first one I’m going to go over his Haus.

On their website, they say, “Haus, isn’t a bank or a lender. We’re a co-investor. We share in the equity of your home. And in exchange, you get real-time access to your equity plus discounted monthly payments. Now that’s something different.”

They go on to say, “We’re changing the way people live with a new type of ownership that’s more flexible and affordable than ever. No more waiting to access the equity you own today. It’s waiting for you now in your Haus account.”

And then they continue on.  “When tapping into your equity, you receive your cash within days. You need to maintain a minimum percent of ownership and your payment will adjust based on the amount you’re withdrawing, but we make sure you understand your new adjusted monthly payment before you cash out.”

So essentially what you’re doing is you’re getting…you’re giving them equity in your home in exchange for cash that you can use right now. So in other words, you’re, taking out the portion of the equity in your home.

They go on to say, “Haus makes it simple when you’re ready. We’ll list your home on the MLS. Plus all the major search sites for free. You can use a realtor if you choose, but you’ll be responsible for those costs.

Once you sell you’ll immediately receive payment for your portion of equity minus any applicable selling costs. Haus gets the remainder. ” And just a quick note, the way they spell house is H-A-U-S so it’s like “Haus.” 

The next one I’m going to cover is similar, but you’ll see soon, how it’s different.

It’s called Knock and it deals with swapping your house.

On their website, they say, “Since 2015, our mission has been to empower people to move freely by bringing convenience, certainty, and cost savings to home buying and selling. That’s why we invented the Knock Home Swap.

With it, you can move into your new home before selling your old one.” So in other words, they’re saying that you can get rid of your current house, they’ll cover the mortgage, and you can move into the next one and start paying the new mortgage.

They continue on to say, “With the Home Swap, you only pay one mortgage at a time. You’ll pay the mortgage of your new home, immediately building equity, while Knock covers the monthly mortgage payments of your old house.”

Then they go on to say, “For all of the convenience and certainty offered with the Home Swap, Knock charges a 1.25 convenience fee on the purchase of your new home. You can either pay this at closing, or roll this up into your equity advance.

This convenience fee is similar to an origination fee, which many lenders charge. This is just Knock’s fee for the loan and is not inclusive of real estate commissions charged by our agent or closing costs.”

So again, there’s a little catch there that, you know, you have that convenience fee of 1.25%. So as you can see, Knock assumes that you’re moving into a new house, whereas with Haus, that’s not the case.

With Haus, they are simply letting you buy into your current equity. Knock has to deal with moving into a new home before selling your previous home. 

The next one I’m gonna be talking about is called Divvy.

On their website, they say, “Rent your dream home while we help you save for a down payment. You can buy the home from us whenever you’re ready or walk away and cash out your savings.”

They go on to say, “Some call it rent-to-own, but we’re a new kind of real estate company that makes it possible for you to build your wealth while living in your dream home.”

Then they have a series of steps that they have, and again, this is directly off of their website. It says, “One: Apply in minutes. It’s free, fast, and will impact your credit score. Once you qualify, receive a home budget and start shopping.

Two: Choose your dream home. Don’t settle for less. With Divvy, you get to pick the home and we buy it for you.

Three: Rent while you prepare to buy. You’re not in this alone. Rent the home from us and build your savings while we help you get mortgage-ready.” So really, in a nutshell, what they’re saying here is that they’re going to help you pay for the home by buying it first, and then you can basically own it after paying rent if you so choose.

That last part’s important because they don’t hold you to buying the home. You’re able to walk away from it. However, you have zero equity in that home then because you’re renting it the whole time. 

The next one I’m going to be talking about is ZeroDown.

On their website, they say, “Pick the perfect home. We’ll get you the keys with 0% down payment. You pick any home on the market that meets our property guidelines and we’ll buy it with a cash offer, then lease it to you.

You’ll pay us a simple starter cost that covers our services and the premium ZeroDown experience (see simple pricing). Once you get the keys, you’ll have the exclusive option to buy the home from us anytime after 30 days and up to three years.”

So, again, they’re, buying the home. Then they lease it to you and you have the option to buy. Now it says, it continues on and says later on, “Buy it from us at a predictable purchase price. You can purchase the home from us anytime between 30 days and three years after you move in.

The purchase price of the home is fixed at a 2.5% annual increase.” So that means every year it’s going to go up 2.5%. And then they say, you know, you can walk away from it, just like, as you would have a lease, but again, with this, you have zero equity because they’re buying it and they’re simply renting it to you. 

Next, I’m going to be talking about Unison.

They say on their website,  “We help unlock your home’s equity in exchange for a portion of your home’s appreciation when you sell. No extra debt, no interest, no monthly payments. Plus we share in the upside and the downside.” So, what they’re doing is they’re taking the equity in the home that you already own.

They buy it and then they convert part of that equity to cash for you to use. 

And then, finally, Hometap.

It says on their website, “Hometap is a way for homeowners to be paid today for equity they’ve accumulated in their property without getting a loan. We invest alongside homeowners providing cash today and participating in the proceeds at the time of sale.”

Then they go on to say, “What’s the difference between Hometap and a loan? Unlike a lender we received no monthly payments or guaranteed return on the money we’ve invested.

For some, taking an equity investment can be an intelligent way to fund the opportunities and needs that come up in life while eliminating the ‘debt stress’ of increased monthly payments.”

So again, this is, very close to what Unison does. They’re buying into the equity of your home and then give you some of your equity, that you can use for cash. And then they share in the appreciation and depreciation of your home, of course, in the hopes that if the home appreciates, they’re going to make money off of the exchange.

So that’s kind of home co-investing in a nutshell. You can think of this as like home equity financing, equity sharing, there’s many names for it.

The post Home Co-Investing [Podcast Episode 15] appeared first on iBuyer Blog.

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