Selling your home can be a very expensive exercise.

The costs vary depending upon the property’s market value, repairs and maintenance required, the amount of marketing you do, and the real estate agent’s commission. However, it all adds up very quickly and feels like the costs never end!

In Victoria, you can expect to pay*:

• • $2,000 - $20,000 in marketing fees

• • 1.6% - 2.5% (Melbourne) or 2.5% - 3.5% (regional) in real estate agent’s commission

• • $700 - $1300 in conveyancer/solicitor fees

• • $100 - $1,500 in lender fees (Early exit and mortgage discharge fees)
  • $2000 - $8000 in styling or staging fees

On top of that, you may need to invest in renovations, landscaping, and painting to make your property look top-notch.

Tips for keeping your property selling costs down

The number one key to save money when selling your home is to limit the time spent on the market. There are a few actions you can take to ensure your property is snapped up as soon as possible.

Find an experienced real estate agent

It’s so important to find the right person to sell your house. You need someone who has the expertise and skills to attract the right people and sell your property quickly.

Ask your family and friends for recommendations. Remember, while some agents have cheaper upfront fees and lower commissions, they might be unable to bring in the top dollars. Finding an experienced agent who works at a higher rate might bring in 10 times the profit, therefore making it very worthwhile in the long run.

Become familiar with the competition

Your agent will be armed with knowledge about the competition. The selling price for your home needs to be aligned with the other properties in your area. They will analyse and compare prices of homes sold in the past few months compared with those currently on the market. Are prices going up or down? Your agent will make sure you don’t price yourself out of the market. Otherwise, you’ll end up disappointed when you don’t receive offers at the desired level.

Your agent will also advise on how other properties for sale in the area are being presented. They will suggest tactics that you can apply to create more interest, whether this involves straightforward renovations, de-cluttering, or homely decor touches. Either way, these tactics can make all the difference when selling your home.

Choose an off-market selling tactic

Another way to save money when selling your home is to take an off-market approach. Rather than listing in the traditional way across multiple real estate channels in both digital and print, you can come onboard with an off-market database, like Listing Loop.

With Listing Loop, we have a ‘no sale, no charge’ advertising model. So you don’t have to invest in a massive marketing budget.

You could even trial Listing Loop through your real estate agent for a period of time and see what interest your property attracts without the pressure. If it doesn’t sell off-market, you can then consider embarking on a marketing program.

We're here to help

We're always happy to help with all the dramas and stressors of house buying and selling.

And if you're particularly tired of house-hunting, we've even partnered with buyer advocates who can check out homes for you and organise sales assessments and negotiations.

Our off-market and pre-market marketplace gives you VIP access to properties so you can get in first.

Just sign up at Listing Loop or download our app.

* Some data sourced from Which Real Estate Agent