If you’re a first-time home seller, you’ve likely been asking this question since the start of the process: “How much money will I walk away with after selling my home?” Of course, the answer will depend on your home’s specific conditions and the current state of the housing market in Raleigh. However, it’s still extremely important for home sellers like you to know the expenses you should expect at the end of your home-selling journey.

At EmpowerHome Team, we’ve had the wonderful opportunity to guide hundreds of families through the process of selling a home, and we’ve often found that our clients are amazed by the expenses other realtors won’t warn them about. The sad truth is that there is a lot of information for first-time home buyers, but virtually none for home sellers. So today, we’re going to prepare you for the three unexpected expenses you’re likely to face as a first-time home seller!

Unexpected Mortgage Payment

The first expense you might encounter isn’t technically a charge, but it’s still something that surprises a lot of people. Sellers will be looking at their online statements and find that their principal balance is a number like $350,000, but when the title company calls you, they say you owe $352,000! Many homeowners will argue and say, “No I owe $350,000! I’m looking at it right here online!” So what’s really going on here? Where did the extra $2,000 come from?

Well, when you bought your house, you actually skipped a month’s worth of mortgage payments! Many people don’t remember, but everyone skips a month in mortgage payments because mortgages are paid in arrears. This means you pay your mortgage this month for the time you lived in your home in the previous month.

Remaining Balance Owed

Now that you know what the required amount of principal and interest payments is, you’ll need to add them to the second unexpected expense you’ll be expected to pay when it comes time to sell: the remaining balance you owe on your mortgage. The combined total of these expenses will be on the settlement statement when you go to close.

Don’t forget: you need to pay these expenses in order for the lien on your property to be released!

Prorated Taxes

The third expense that often surprises first-time home sellers are Prorated Taxes. Since they’re paid at closing, these can be a little confusing to understand.

Here’s an example of how these will work: Let’s say you’re closing in September, and you have paid 15 days worth of taxes, and the buyer is going to pay the taxes in December for the time that you owned the home from June through September. This means you’re going to owe the buyer that money because they are paying it on your behalf!

Right now, you’re probably asking, “Haven’t I already paid the taxes in my mortgage payment?” And actually, the answer is “Yes!” Even though you’re paying it on your settlement statement, you’re actually going to get a check back from your mortgage company—typically between 30 and 60 days after you close—for the additional money that is being held in your escrow account.

More Unexpected Charges

If you want to know the rest of the charges you could face when you sell your home, register for our FREE Home Seller Workshop! This webinar will tell you EVERYTHING you need to know about selling your home—including helpful and PROVEN tips on how to sell FASTER and for MORE!

The Seller Workshop will cover:

  • Professional Staging Tips
  • How to ATTRACT the Right Buyers to Your Home
  • How the Selling Process Works From Start to Finish
  • And So Much More!

If you don’t want to be caught off guard by surprise expenses, then don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity to learn the ins-and-outs of the process! Become the confident seller you want to be, and learn how you can get the most money possible for your home! This webinar will be hosted every 4th Tuesday, so it’s never too late to sign up! You can reserve your spot here: EmpowerHomeworkshop.com

At EmpowerHome Team, we recognize that every house is different. So if you’re thinking about selling, you’ll want advice that’s specifically tailored to your home. Want to know who your ideal buyers are? Or how to better prepare your home for the market? Call 919-444-8363 for a FREE Home Assessment. Our Team will visit your home and evaluate how best to get it sold FAST and for the MOST MONEY possible in the current market!