Sellers find out what it cost at closing. That is far too late.
About 7 per cent of the price leaves before you do, and the settlement statement is the first time most people see it itemised. So here it is instead, on the front page, before there is a listing agreement to sign — starting with my own fee.
A $615,000 sale in Santa Fe
A seller’s net sheet, with nothing left off it.
The shaded row is mine. It is 2.5% and it is negotiable, which is why it is first rather than buried.
| Comes off the price | Goes to | On $615,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Sale price | You | $615,000 |
| Listing commission2.5%This is my fee, and it is negotiable. It is the first line rather than the last because it is the one you are entitled to argue about. | Me | −$15,375 |
| Buyer's agent compensation2.5%Increasingly negotiated between the buyer and their own agent rather than paid by you. We will decide what, if anything, you offer before the listing goes live. | The buyer's broker | −$15,375 |
| Title insurance, owner's policy0.55%Customary for the seller here. Rates are filed with the state, so this one does not vary between companies. | Title company | −$3,383 |
| Escrow and closing feesSplit with the buyer in most contracts here. This is your half. | Title company | −$950 |
| Transfer and recordingDeed recording and the release of your existing mortgage. | County | −$240 |
| Prorated property taxYour share of the year up to closing. Varies enormously with the date; this is a mid-year figure. | County | −$1,850 |
| Repairs after inspectionThe line everybody forgets. Almost every deal has one, and $2,000 to $6,000 is the usual range. | Contractors | −$3,500 |
| Staging, photography, cleaningI pay the photography. Staging and the deep clean are yours, and both are optional in a way the photography is not. | Vendors | −$1,400 |
| Home warranty for the buyerOften asked for and often worth conceding. Sometimes worth refusing, and I will say which. | Warranty company | −$650 |
| Total costs | About 7% of the price | −$42,723 |
| You walk away with | Before any mortgage payoff | $572,277 |
Typical for Santa Fe rather than a quotation — your taxes, your repairs, and what a buyer asks for will move it. You will get this sheet with your own numbers on it after the walk-through, and the settlement statement should match it within a few hundred dollars. Every line, explained.
Six steps, and I am at all of them.
Every showing, every negotiation, every phone call. It is the reason for the dozen-clients-a-year ceiling, and the reason I will occasionally tell you I am full.
Selling, in full01A walk-through, before anything
Free, about an hour
I go through the house and tell you what to fix, what to leave, and what to on no account spend money on. Most people are told to do less than they expected.
02A price, and the net sheet
Within three days
A pricing opinion with the comparable sales behind it, and the net sheet showing what you would actually walk away with. Before a listing agreement exists.
03Preparation
Two to four weeks
Repairs, the deep clean, photography. This is the part that moves the price, and it is mostly your contractors rather than mine.
04On the market
Median around six weeks here
Showings are me, not an assistant. You get a note after every one, including the unflattering ones.
05Under contract
Thirty to forty-five days
Inspection, appraisal, and the repair negotiation. This is where deals die and where having somebody who answers the phone matters.
06Closing
One afternoon
The settlement statement should match the net sheet you saw at the start, within a few hundred dollars. If it does not, I got something wrong and I will say so.
There are no rankings on this site, no volume figures, and no badge claiming I am in anybody’s top one per cent.
I have not verified those numbers and neither has anybody who prints them. What I can show you is the arithmetic of your own sale, which is the only figure that was ever going to matter to you.
Or ring (505) 555-0125.
