gregorygarver.com

[SELL2K_com]

I bought this house in 2002 for 100K. I refinanced twice so now my current mortgage is 134K. . . Got rid of carnotes, credit card bills etc. So in December 2006 the house appraised at 189K and in April 2007 - I invested 9k in hardwood/laminate floors and then the house appraised at 210KWhat could I put the house on the market for? I have to pay my ex-husand $25K when the house is sold. Should I wait???What does an agent get for commission????????

[6600]

Commission is negotiable, but in these days, it takes SO long to sell a home most will require 6%. As far as what you can put the house on the market for, it all depends on how much inventory is on the market and how much values have dropped. You need an EXPERIENCED local realtor to help you with that. Good luck. By the way, appraisals don't mean much in this quickly changing market, so don't put much into that. Your house is ONLY worth what a ready, willing and able buyer will pay for it based on your competition.

[jond]

First, remember that you rarely get full value on any remodeling job, and that an appraisal is not the same thing as a market analysis.Appraisers have several ways to compute the value of a house, but a market analysis simply comes up with an amount that an agent believes he or she can get for it in the current market.Depending on your location, the house could sell for even less than it was worth in 2006, or could sell for more than the 2007 appraisal.Interview three agents (from three different agencies). Have each do a market analysis giving you a range of prices from "I want it sold NOW!" (low price), a competitive current price (mid range price), and the "I want top dollar and I'm willing to wait" (high price).Most of the time the three agent prices will be close to each other, but if one is significantly higher than the other two, be a bit wary. Some agents like to "buy the listing", giving you an inflated price, then talk you down later once the property is on the market.Commissions are negotiable, but be prepared to get less service for less commission. I normally start at six percent, but if I believe that the property will sell quickly and easily, I'll normally come down to five.By the way, I don't actually get that whole commission. The broker gets some, and the agent for the buyer gets some as well.Most of the time the listing agent doesn't actually bring the buyer. The listing agent's job is to market your property. In my town, there are over 600 agents. I (and you) want all of them to know about your house, and bring their buyers.When agents brag about how often they sell their own listings, what they're really telling you is that they do a lousy job of marketing, and are trying to keep the whole commission.This works great for them, not so good for you. If I sell your house for $190K and keep the whole six percent, I make more than if someone else brings a buyer at $210K.As to the question "should I wait?" That's a question only you can answer, but in most areas, this is a slow market, and right now is a slow time of year in any market.

[NoahM]

Why would you need to pay your husband $25K? First you need to have your home appraised and then you would need to pay him 1/2 of the appreciation. You might get away not owing him any money if your home is upside down (less than 134K). I depends on your state that your getting divorced, some states consider community property so all his and your Credit Card bills will be split down the middle.