How Much Does It Cost to Sell a Home in Baltimore?

How much does it cost to sell a home in Baltimore? The clearest answer is a seller's net sheet, a one-page estimate that starts with a possible sale price and shows what you'd walk away with after closing costs and your loan payoff.

I'm Eric Figurelle with the Figurelle Team of Cummings & Co. Realtors. I build the net sheet before you list, because nobody likes surprises at settlement.

A net sheet adds up your sale, step by step, so you can see where the money goes. I can build one for your home before you put it on the market.

1. Start with a possible sale price. This is the price we think the home could sell for.

2. Take out an estimate of the closing costs. These are the taxes and fees that come with settlement.

3. Take out what you still owe on the home. That includes your mortgage and any second mortgage or home equity line of credit. Your lender can give you the exact payoff amount for each.

4. What's left is what you'd walk away with. That's the number that matters for your plans.

The sale price you start with comes from the pricing step. Here's how I price a home.

Most sellers ask me the same thing: "What will I actually walk away with?" If you see the numbers early, you can plan around them. You can decide if the timing works, if you need to wait, or if you want to change your plans.

It also helps when we talk about price. When you know what each possible price leaves you with, you can see what a lower or higher offer would mean for your plans, in dollars you'd keep. That makes the talk about your goals, not just a number.

I build it with you. You tell me what you owe on your loan, or we get the payoff amount from your lender, and I fill in the rest. You see it before you list, and we update it when something changes.

• Guessing at what they'll keep. A guess can be off in either direction. The net sheet puts a real estimate in front of you.
• Forgetting the loan payoff. What you owe comes off the top. Ask your lender for the exact amount.
• Leaving out a second mortgage or home equity line of credit. If one is attached to the house, it has to be paid off at settlement too. It's easy to forget, especially if you don't use the line often. Check your records, and ask your lender for each payoff.
• Not planning for Maryland withholding tax if you live out of state. If you're selling a Maryland home from another state, Maryland may require tax to be withheld from your proceeds at settlement. Some sellers are exempt, so ask your tax professional and your title company early. That way it's in the net sheet and not a surprise at the table.
• Running the numbers once. A net sheet isn't one-and-done. We can run it at a few different sale prices and see how each one changes what you keep.
• Planning the next purchase on the sale price. If you're buying too, plan on the net, not the price.

Here's an example. Say a seller picks a possible sale price. We take out the estimated closing costs and the loan payoff, and the number left is lower than they hoped.

That's good to know before listing. They can change the date, change the plan, or decide to wait. If they'd found out at settlement, those choices would be gone.

Things can also change after an offer. For example, the inspection might lead to repairs or a credit. When that happens, we update the sheet, so you always know where you stand.

This is an example, not a real client. Every home is different, so we run the numbers for yours.

If you read Monday's post, you've seen how I find your price range. The net sheet is the next layer. You can also read about Baltimore.

Send me a message, and I'll run a seller's net sheet for your home. Contact me here.

About: Eric Figurelle is a REALTOR® and Team Leader of the Figurelle Team of Cummings & Co. Realtors in Baltimore, MD, helping buyers and sellers across the Baltimore Metro area make clear, well-planned moves, especially sellers managing a transition or a sale from a distance.