What to do when you sell your home.
Assuming you’ve been following your real estate agent’s advice about staging and preparing your home for sale, there should be a good amount of money in escrow when you sell. When the sellers agree to have the funds held until the sale is completed, the real estate agent representing them holds it. If you go through an escrow company, they will take care of transferring the funds to your bank account or providing a check.
Completion of the sale
Suppose everything went according to plan, and you completed the sale of your home within a reasonable timeframe. If the sale took longer than expected to end or something went wrong (such as a dispute with the buyer), you may need to reach out to the escrow company to find out what happened and whether they can refund your money. In that case, the escrow company should have received notification of the sale and sent you a refund for any funds held in escrow.
Escrow balance refund
Escrow in a short sale
When a homeowner sells their home, they must provide the previous owner(s) of the house with an escrow account. That is the amount of money deposited into an account and held by the seller until the buyer has received all sales payments (taxes, fees, and repairs). If you follow a short-sale, the outstanding mortgage balance, you might have to forfeit your claim to any excess escrow account refunds.
Selling Your House: Tips to ensure a smooth process.
Prepare all the paperwork.
Get professional photography of your home.
You want to sell your house as soon as possible and for the most money. It’s time to hire a professional photographer to help make your home look its best. You know a good presentation is essential, so stage your home and clean it up. With the right photos, you’ll be able to attract buyers and get the price you want.
Create an accurate marketing strategy.
When you have to sell a house fast, you want to do so quickly and at the highest price. Therefore, having a solid marketing strategy is crucial.
Negotiate early and often.
What To Do When Selling Your Home: Escrow Concerns Answered
- The money in your escrow account is generally protected from loss if you sell your home. The real estate firms typically handle the money transfer to the new owner and any related closing charges.
- If your sale includes a loan or mortgage, the lender may take possession of the funds in your escrow account and release them to the buyer on completion of the sale.
- An escrow account happens in connection with an exchange of property or money. The person selling provides the escrow account with cash or property, and the person buying provides a guarantee that they will pay the seller after the deal completion.
- After the sale, a buyer or seller's lender gets the money in the escrow account.
- You may have some residual rights to access the funds in your escrow account after the sale is complete.
- When you sell your house, the escrow account typically holds a percentage of the sale price to cover any outstanding mortgage or other obligations on the property.
- You should contact your lender or real estate agent if you have any questions about what will happen to your escrow account after you sell your house.
- The escrow account will be closed when you sell your house and will complete any pending transactions. That means they will release the money to pay for property taxes and homeowners' insurance. If there are any questions or concerns, one should address them as soon as possible so that nothing unexpected happens during closing. You may need to contact your lender or real estate agent to ensure they handle everything correctly.
- If the sale of your home does not go through as planned due to a shortage in the escrow account, your lender may require you to pay the shortfall before he releases his claim on the home's title. That protects you from having two liens on one property - one from the buyer and one from the lender.
Conclusion
When you sell your house, you pay out the buyer and the seller from the escrow account. At the outset, an amount is set aside in an escrow account to hold reserves. This money covers any costs associated with the sale, such as taxes, inspections, and attorney fees. After paying these costs, the remaining funds in the escrow account go to the buyer and seller.
Selling a house is our specialty, so we can help you with purchasing or selling needs. It can be a significant choice to sell your home, but it doesn’t have to be complicated. You can sell your home quickly after listing it on the market with the help of a professional real estate agent.