How Much Does It Cost To Sell Your House?

By Chris Seddon

As mortgage brokers, we get a lot of questions about finances. One question in particular that we get a lot is ‘how much will it cost me to sell my house?’. So, we thought we’d write a blog post all about the costs involved to help clear things up for our Nook family! 

We know that when you’re considering putting your house on the market, one of the first things you think about are the costs involved so that you can know exactly where you stand with your budget. So, let’s take a look at what you’ll have to factor in… 

Mortgage Costs

Many people make the mistake of overlooking their mortgage. If you currently have a mortgage on your home, it’s important to think about the following… 

Early repayment costs… 

A lot of lenders charge a fee if you want to pay off your mortgage early. Most of the time you’ll just be able to pay an extra 10% a year if you want to dodge the charge. If your plan is to pay it off fully, you’ll have to budget that in. It can be anything from 1% to 5% of your mortgage so you definitely need to speak to your lender. If you can move your mortgage over to your next property, you can avoid any early repayment fees. 

Can you move your mortgage? 

Many lenders will allow you to ‘port’ your mortgage, which in non-jargon terms means to transfer your mortgage on your current property to the one you’re planning on purchasing. You definitely need to have a chat with your lender about this! 

Is Your Home ‘Sale Ready’? 

An upfront cost that you need to consider is whether you need to make any investments to get your property in the best shape possible for viewings. If you do this properly you’ll most likely get the money back with a higher asking price. Think about your property’s exterior – does your garden need clearing? Are your windows clean? Are there any spots that need painting? It’s also worth considering the inside of the property. Perhaps the walls need another lick of paint, or a cupboard door needs fixing. 

Estate Agent Fees

These are typically the biggest cost that you’ll face when you sell your property so you definitely need to budget them in! They can typically cost from 0.75% to 3%, and the national average is approximately 1.5% so it can cost you quite a bit! For example, if you sell your home for £250,000 you could end up having to pay £3750 in Estate Agent fees! 

Legal Fees 

The boring bits that need to be done – conveyancing fees! There are two types of conveyancing fees: 

Solicitors fees

These costs go straight to the lawyers and is the biggest cost when it comes to conveyancing. 

Deeds and searches 

Your solicitors may need to run additional checks, and they’ll need to get title deeds from the Land Registry. They don’t cost a bomb but these costs do add up so it’s definitely worth factoring them in. 

Those are the main costs that you face when selling your home, but of course you should always have a bit extra put to one side should any nasty unexpected costs crop up! 

If you are considering selling your property, be sure to get in touch with Nook Mortgages to see how we can help!