One of the first questions sellers ask me is:
“If I sell my house for this much, how much am I actually going to walk away with?”
And that is the right question because the sales price and the amount that ends up in your bank account are two very different numbers.
There are expenses that get paid at closing before you receive your proceeds. Some are pretty standard. Others depend completely on your home, your mortgage, and what was negotiated in the contract.
Here’s what Knoxville sellers need to know.
Your Mortgage Payoff
If you still have a mortgage on the home, that loan gets paid off at closing. The title company the day of closing will send your payoff to your lender to pay off the mortgage. The title company will request an official payoff from your lender so don't be surprised when the title company request your mortgage information, which can include interest and other amounts due through the closing date. If you have a second mortgage or home equity line, that may need to be paid off as well.
This is especially important with an inherited property or divorce. Many times when I have a client that is divorcing or has inherited a property I will request a title search right away that we will know if there are any liens on the property. I’ve seen plenty of situations where someone has a general idea of what is owed on a house, but once we start digging into the paperwork, there is another loan or lien that needs to be addressed.
Real Estate Commissions
Real estate commissions are another expense that may be paid from the seller's proceeds at closing. Commission amounts are negotiable and should be clearly explained before you ever sign a listing agreement. Depending on the transaction, there may also be compensation offered to a buyer's agent as part of the negotiations. The important thing is knowing exactly what you've agreed to and how it affects your bottom line.
Title and Closing Expenses
There are costs involved with actually getting the property from your name into the buyer’s name. Depending on the transaction, these can include title work, settlement or closing fees, document preparation, recording fees, and other expenses associated with the closing. Some costs are customary for the seller. Others can be negotiated between the buyer and seller.
Property Taxes
Property taxes are typically prorated through the date of closing. In simple terms, you are responsible for your portion of the taxes for the time you owned the home. The closing company handles the calculations and shows everything on your final settlement statement.
HOA Fees
If your home is in an HOA, there may be additional costs. These could include unpaid dues, transfer fees, resale documents, or other HOA-related charges.
And yes, HOA surprises have a way of showing up at exactly the wrong time especially with inherited properties. I recently had a seller who was selling an inherited property and had no idea $14,000 was due to the HOA for unpaid monthly dues. This is another reason I like to get this information early.
Buyer Closing Cost Assistance
Sometimes a seller agrees to help with some of the buyer's closing expenses. This is negotiated as part of the offer. It doesn't necessarily mean it is a bad deal.
Here’s the thing...
I look at the whole offer.
Price matters, but so do the seller's closing expenses, repairs, financing, appraisal risk, contingencies, and everything else the buyer is asking for.
A higher offer isn't automatically the better offer if the seller is giving a bunch of it back. We will look at all the terms of the contract.
Inspection Repairs or Credits
Then we have the inspection. A buyer may ask the seller to make repairs, provide a credit, or adjust other terms after the home inspection.
This is another potential selling expense, but it is also negotiable. My job is to help you look at what they're asking for and decide what actually makes sense.
Not every inspection item needs to turn into a seller expense.
Probate, Divorce and Inherited Homes Can Have Additional Expenses
This is where things can get a little more complicated. If you're selling an inherited home in Knoxville, there may be estate expenses, attorney fees, liens, cleanout costs, repairs, maintenance, or other expenses that need to be handled.
If you're selling because of a divorce, we also need to understand mortgages, liens, agreed-upon expenses, and how the proceeds are supposed to be distributed.
If you're downsizing after living in the same home for decades, you may be dealing with cleanout costs, moving expenses, estate sale companies, repairs, or simply figuring out what needs to be done before the house goes on the market.
These aren't always traditional "closing costs," but they absolutely matter when we're figuring out what selling the house is really going to cost.
This Is Why I Prepare a Seller Net Sheet
Before one of my sellers accepts an offer, I want them to have a pretty good idea of what they're walking away with.
Not just:
“The offer is $___.”
I want to look at the bigger picture. What do you owe? What expenses are coming out? What is the buyer asking you to pay? Are there repairs or credits?
And most importantly...
What should you actually expect to walk away with at closing?
That number matters.
Especially if you're selling because of a divorce, settling an estate, helping a parent move into assisted living, downsizing, or trying to figure out what comes next.
Sometimes selling a house isn't simply about selling a house.
There is a whole life decision happening behind it.
And knowing the numbers upfront makes that decision a whole lot easier.
