The primary reason that people choose to put up their home for sale in Markham without the aid of a real estate agent is to avoid the fees that come with it. However, when you're going the For Sale By Owner, or FSBO, route, there are still fees that come attached to the process. Make sure you know what they are and factor them in to your sale price, because you may be surprised to find you're not saving much money at all in the grand scheme of things.

Agent Fees

You may be able to avoid paying your own agent by selling the home yourself, but if your buyer was brought to you by a Mississauga real estate agent, you still have to pay that agent's fees, which are about half of the total amount you would normally pay for agent representation. This is generally between 2.5% and 3.5% of the selling price of the house, which means you will be several thousand dollars short of your expected net value for the home sale.

Lawyer Fees

There's no getting around the fact that you need a real estate lawyer to look over any contracts you sign with the seller. Whether that includes contracts between you and a real estate agent or just offers and sale contracts directly exchanged between you and the buyer, your Toronto condo for sale can end up costing you thousands in these type of fees. To get a lawyer to write or read over your contracts, you're looking at in the neighborhood of $200 an hour for his or her services.

Recording Fees

When Brampton homes for sale change hands between you and the buyer, the government needs to register the change of ownership. Before they will do this they need to take their cut of the sale, too, which can be as much as 1.5% of the price of the home. There may also be other taxes and fees payable to the government, such as the remainder of your property taxes, utility fees, and the cost of any inspections or surveys that need to be done before the buyer will be satisfied.

Mortgage Fees

Did you know that in many places, you are traditionally expected to pay the fees that are associated with the buyer getting a mortgage to buy your house? It's true! Some real estate agents in Toronto are advising their clients to state in the contract that these types of closing fees are the buyer's responsibility, but unless you're smart enough to put that in your contract, you could end up paying another 1.5% of the sale price.