If you are selling a home in New York, there are a number of important things you’ll need to know and do in order to avoid some of the most common mistakes.
In this article, I am going to cover some of the more important aspects that you’ll need to keep in mind and do in order to carry out a successful real estate transaction in New York.
Whether you are selling your first home, or you’re an experienced real estate investor, New York real estate has many loopholes that you could fall victim to.
At Piccinnini Law we specialize in both seller and buyer representation, assisting you to make the entire real estate transactional process smooth. Protecting you and your assets against some of the most prevalent errors made by sellers, that in the long run save you time, money, and grey hair.
Also read: Things That Can Go Wrong During a Real Estate Transaction & How to Avoid Them
6 Things You Should Do When Selling Your Home or Property in New York
1. Inspect Your Home Prior to Selling It.
One of the first steps of buying a home is conducting a home inspection on the property, done by a certified home inspector.
Home inspectors have a thorough list of points that they look at to ensure the home has no major unknown defects that could cause trouble for the buyer after the sale.
Should the home inspection result in any unknown issues, the buyer will have an opportunity to reduce the agreed-upon asking price, or back out of the sale entirely.
Conducting an inspection prior to listing your home or property, will give you a chance to fix those issues, and will help you sell the house at the price you want to sell it for.
2. Work With a Broker.
If you’ve ever purchased a home then you’ll know how hard real estate brokers work to sell a home. Not only that, but you’ll recall that there was a lot of paperwork involved.
If you’re looking at selling a home but are hesitant to work with a broker because they’ll get a commission on the sale, keep in mind that putting a home on the market without a broker could result in it staying on the market for longer.
Brokers work with you to list and show the home and they find you potential buyers. They also handle a lot of the contractual agreements and paperwork that are involved in the New York real estate transactional process.
Not only will a real estate broker speed up the sale of your home, but they will help make the sale smooth.
3. Ask For a Quote from Your Title Company
When selling a home, you or your broker will be working with a title company, who at the close will have a certain title and closing fees. These fees differ depending on the value of your home.
When listing your home, it’s good to have a general idea of what the title and closing fees will end up being so you can take that into consideration when setting the price.
4. Hire an Experienced Real Estate Attorney
Selling a property is connected to a lot of legal paperwork, as well as important behind-the-scenes work. An experienced real estate attorney will help ensure the entire real estate transactional process goes smoothly and will look out for your best interest.
From gathering and filling out the required contracts and paperwork, to deeds, surveys, certificates of occupancy and/or completion, and title insurance policies, a real estate attorney will help ensure you and your property are safeguarded throughout the entire process.
Also Read: 10 Reasons You Should Hire a Real Estate Attorney
5. Resolve Your Mortgage
Prior to selling closing on the sale of your home in New York, you will have had to order pay off your mortgage. All mortgage resolution papers payoffs will need to be presented at the closing, to show that the proceeds from the sale of the home has no mortgage against it can pay off the current mortgage(s).
6. Cancel Utilities and Insurance
While this is a minor point, you should ensure all utility and insurance accounts connected to your property are closed out so that there is no overlap between you selling the home and the new buyer moving in and setting up his new accounts.
This includes gas, water, electricity, oil, cable TV, internet, and home insurance.
7. Do a Final Walk-Through and Remove Your Belongings
When potential buyers view your home, fixtures, furniture, and appliances that are in the home or attached to the structure of the home, such as a TV refrigerator, chandelier, or boiler, will be considered part of the sale.
Prior to selling your home, do a walk-through to ensure you remove any furniture or non-fixtures that are not part of the contract. or appliances such as TVs, washer, driers, and anything else that you do not want to sell along with the home.
Note that having a TV, a washer, and a drier, along with all kitchen appliances will make your home easier to sell.
If you are still living in your home when potential buyers are viewing it, be sure to be specific as to what is being sold as part of the contract.
I hope that this article has helped you by giving you some basic information and insights into what you will need to do to prepare your home for sale. If you have any further questions or want to discuss our representing you in your transactional process, please give us a call at (516) 500 2110.
Also Read: How to Sell a Home in New York
Annie Justice
Senior Editor
Piccinnini Law
(516) 500-2110
