Closing costs can be overwhelming

Q. I was able to sell my house, but not at my expected price. The sales price was negotiated to $182,000, but with the real estate agents commission of about $11,000, closing costs of $5,000 and the termite inspection ($150) and a home warranty ($600), I only ended up with about $165,000.

Im wondering if the termite inspection was necessary in Georgia. I had an inspection done last year, and no infestation was found. Other potential buyers had an inspection, and while that inspection had come out fine, I couldnt get a copy of the report.

With this fee and other costs (for the lawyer, etc.) I wound up with much less than I need to live, including purchasing health insurance, which I cant really afford. (I have a back fracture and a pinched nerve and a lot of pain.)

If you have any information regarding termite inspection requirements, I would appreciate it. Im so sick of being a home seller!

Its always hard to deal with financial issues when you have health difficulties as well.

Most home sellers find that they never get as much from the sale as they expected. It was only during the real estate boom years that sellers were only too happy to pay closing costs when they were making so much money on the sale of their homes.

One of the most frequented pages on Ilyces website (ThinkGlink.com) is the one that lists seller closing costs. It is quite expensive to buy and sell real estate. In some parts of the country, municipalities have additional transfer fees and mortgage recording taxes that can truly increase the cost of either selling or buying a home.

Of all of the costs of sale you listed, the largest was the real estate commission, which probably came in at around 6 percent. While expensive, that was very necessary.

Your real estate agent did what he was supposed to do. He found a buyer for your home. While it is quite common to see a commission of 6 percent, some sellers find agents willing to handle a listing for 5 percent. At the same time, some real estate companies are shifting the burden and cost of listing a home from the company to the seller. These companies charge a fixed, non-refundable fee for "listing" the home.

This fee is in addition to the commission, and it can approach $500. However, having gotten this fee, the listing company is more willing to take a slightly lower commission for the sale of the home. If you change companies, dont sell the home or decide to take the home off the market, the listing company keeps the fee.

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Closing costs can be overwhelming