People always say that a house is a great investment, however they often skip the fact that there are many expenses associated with buying, maintaining, and selling it! Making the decision to sell kicks off a series of expenses that continue up until closing day.
It’s helpful to get a handle on the numbers before jumping into the sales process so you know how much cash you’ll need to come up with and how much you can expect to walk away with at the end of the process.
Start by taking a realistic inventory of all the recurring expenses to hold your property while it’s on the market. Holding costs, such as your mortgage, taxes, insurance, maintenance, and the costs to relocate before the sale of a primary residence can add up quickly while you are waiting for your house to sell. For example, if your costs to hold the property add up to $2,500 a month, and it takes three months to sell, your holding costs for the sale of your house are going to be $7,500.
Depending on the condition of your property, especially if it’s an older home you’ll need to consider the probability of covering unexpected repairs. By understanding your holding costs, you can fully understand what you can expect to profit (or lose) from the sale of your house; read on as we explore how to calculate your holding costs when selling your house in Tampa.
Mortgage, Taxes, and Insurance
While there’s no guaranteed closing date when you list a property for sale on the Tampa real estate market, an agent can provide you with the average days on the market for similar properties.
Since the most significant drains on your profits tend to be monthly or annual expenses, the math isn’t too difficult. Add up your monthly payments for your mortgages, taxes, insurance, utilities, HOA dues, and any services you use to keep the house maintained and multiply by the estimated time until closing. That gives you an idea of the base costs of holding the house until sale.
Keep in mind that you’ll also need to account for moving your personal possessions into storage while the house is listed, staging it, having a professional photograph the house, marketing fees of getting the listing online, and a realtor commission. A professional inspection is also highly recommended so you can make repairs to any issues uncovered up-front, rather than waiting for a buyer to find it and potentially lose the sale.
If this all adds up to more than you can or want to lay out, consider selling to You Pay Zero Tampa! Selling to us lets you skip all of the costs detailed above AND skip the waiting for a retail buyer to close. The professional investors at You Pay Zero Tampa will provide a detailed comparison of what you could profit by listing vs. a direct sale so you can make the best decision for your situation.
Utilities
Real Estate Agents highly recommend leaving the utilities on during the listing. Buyers looove to flip on lights, run the water, and fiddle with the thermostat when viewing a home. Their inspector will also need the utilities on so all of the systems can be tested.
It’s also standard practice to leave them on for a few days after closing to give the buyer time to switch the utilities to their name, so you’ll need to account for this expense to accurately calculate your holding costs when selling your house in Tampa.
Maintenance
When your property is for sale, you’re competing with all of the other listings on the market. When the market is hot and houses are hard to get, sellers can get away with a slightly messy front yard. However, in a changing, cooling market like we’re seeing, qualified buyers are getting harder to come buy and have more options. Therefore, curb appeal is essential. If the front of your home already looks great – calculate the cost of maintaining it. If its not the most appealing house on your street, plan to upgrade it & calculate your costs accordingly.
Travel
Suppose you need to travel to care for a property. You may pay airfare, lodging or other transportation costs or a management fee for someone to care for the property if you cannot travel. In that case, this is another cost you’ll need to calculate for an accurate picture of your holding costs when selling your house in Tampa.
Repairs
Unexpected repair costs are always possible and should be another factor in calculating your holding costs when selling your house in Tampa. While you may have prepped and made necessary repairs to put your house on the market and attain a fair price, a professional inspection can help uncover hidden problems before the sale. Armed with this information, you can decide whether to invest the time and money in repairs or disclose the issues to potential buyers and address any resulting contingencies during negotiations. Typically, buyers have an unrealistic opinion of the expenses and demand completing the repairs or that the seller completes the repairs before closing. Professional investors like those at You Pay Zero Tampa buy houses as-is for cash. The professional investors at You Pay Zero Tampa will take on the risks of making any repairs.
The professional investors at You Pay Zero Tampa can help you calculate your holding costs when selling your house in Tampa without obligation. The professional investors at You Pay Zero Tampa and the entire team work to make the process simple and easy for sellers. At You Pay Zero Tampa, we want you to feel good about working with us long after closing and agree our offer was fair. Don’t forget to ask about our current investment property inventory at You Pay Zero Tampa. Call You Pay Zero Tampa at (813) 686-5404.