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{{Dial-A-Law TOC|expanded = housing}}
Selling your a home is one of the biggest financial transactions of your lifedecision most people make. You should know several things Learn what to consider before putting up the “For Sale” sign goes up on , and the steps involved in selling your lawnhome.
==Before you sell: what is your home worth and what should it sell for in today’s market?Key things to consider==One way to find out is to get a professional appraisal. This will give you a value for your home based on what comparable homes in your area have sold for and what it would cost to replace your home. The charge will vary with the appraiser, but is often between $200 and $750.
{| class="wikitable"|align=Should you have a lawyer?=="left"|'''Tip'''Selling and buying a house is complicated and Under the potential for disaster is great—one mistake could cost a lot, or result [http://canlii.ca/t/84n1 law in months or years of stressful litigation. FurtherBC], there are many possible types of real estate fraud and agents must be licensed. You can use the [http://online.recbc.ca/licensee-search licensee search] from the Real Estate Council of BC to see if an agent is currently licensed.|} ===What to protect yourself consider in signing a “listing agreement”===If you should hire a lawyer. Likewisereal estate agent, you should consult a lawyer before you will be asked to sign a “'''listing agreement with '''”. This is a realtor to ensure contract between you and your real estate agent, setting out the terms being sought by the realtor are accurate, fair, and legalfor selling your home.
==Do you have to pay the commission even if the agent doesn’t sell your house?==The real estate agent’s duties depend on who they are acting for====Normally, your agent is entitled to a commission when a buyer—who is ready, willing, All real estate agents must act honestly and able to buy your house—signs an offer to purchase, with reasonable care and you accept itskill in performing their work. Sometimes, even if the transaction falls through, depending on the listing agreement, you may still have to pay a commission. You may They also have to pay the commission if you sell the house yourself while the listing agreement is active, or even after the listing agreement has expired–if the agent had previously shown the house to the buyer or was the effective cause of the sale. For these reasons, it is helpful to consult a lawyer during the process of selling your homeother duties that depend on who they are acting for.
Before you sign an offerpracticing dual agency under this exception, discuss with your a real estate agent anything in it that you don’t like must make a disclosure to both parties to the transaction. The disclosure must inform them of the duties and write in your own terms instead. It then goes back to responsibilities of the potential buyer as your counteroffer (considered agent to be a new offer altogether) and becomes the contract of purchase clients, and sale if the buyer acceptsrisks associated with a dual agency relationship.
==Which things in the house are included in ==The agent typically gets paid after the sale?of your home====When someone buys your house, all the things that are “fixtures” go along with itIn BC, unless you and the buyer agree otherwise. The defining a fixture real estate agent’s pay (or '''commission''') can be difficult: generally, a fixture is anything that’s attached to the house to the point where its removal would damage the house flat fee or require repair. The bathroom sink is an obvious example. As objects like chandeliers are sometimes items that home owners are interested in taking with them following a percentage of the sale price of their the home, it is important that these fixtures are explicitly excluded from the contract of purchase and sale. Better yet, before you put the house up for sale, replace the chandelier with a simple, inexpensive replacement. The washer, dryer, fridge, and stove aren’t fixtures, but you may be able to use them as bargaining tools if the buyer wants them.
As well, the “subject to” clause should be specific. Don’t accept a general clauseseller, such as “subject you pay this commission to buyer obtaining satisfactory financingyour agent.” If Your agent then shares it with the buyer changes his or her mind, all buyer’s agent. The commission is typically deducted from the buyer must do to get out sale proceeds of the deal is to say he or she couldn’t get satisfactory financing. Instead, put details in the clause about home at the interest rate, time the principal amount, monthly payments and so on, as well as the deadline for when the buyer must remove the clause. Again, a lawyer who practices real estate law can be helpful in this processsale is completed.
==Tax and the capital gains tax exemption=If you have a mortgage on your home===If you have a '''mortgage''' on your home is your principal residence, you don’t have will need to pay tax on any profit (capital gain) you make when you sell it. You should see a lawyer about whether deal with the principal-residence tax exemption applies to youmortgage in some way in selling your home.
[updated October 2017]
'''The above was last reviewed for legal accuracy by [https://www.ganapathico.com/our-team/nathan-ganapathi/ Nathan Ganapathi ] and [https://www.ganapathico.com/our-team/anna-kurt/ Anna Kurt], and edited by John BloisGanapathi Law Group.'''
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