NH real estate commission rates

Many of you are thinking to sell your home in New Hampshire or Massachusetts and want to know “what am I going to have to pay for NH real estate commission rates?”. You’re maybe thinking do I have enough equity to even make this happen? What other closing costs will I take on as a seller. So, I am going to go over this, so you know exactly what to expect.

Only thing I am going to add before we get started is this. If you hire a great New Hampshire Realtor or real estate professional (there is a difference and I will explain in a different blog) and they can get you top dollar for your home through marketing, experience, bring you a ready willing and able buyer and get the deal to a closing table in a timely fashion that meets your needs, then is it really about the commission rate you pay or is it about your net? Your take home? 

I am going to throw out a quick statistic because we like facts, Right? In 2016 a study had shown that Realtors or Real Estate Professionals sold homes for more money than For Sale By Owners and they didn't just sell them for higher, real estate agents sold homes for as little as 13% more and as high as 22% more. Crazy right! So, lets talk about that even if the commission is on a high at 6% then wouldn’t you want to put the other 7-16% in your pocket? Not to mention that the National Association of Realtors has tons of statistics explaining which categories during the home selling process home owners directly had difficulty with.

Ok, enough for statistics, I will get to the meat and potatoes of all the For Sale by Owner stats in a different blog.

So here we go. What costs will you incur as a NH Home Seller?

NH Real estate commission rates are negotiable and this goes for every market nationwide. There is no set rate among real estate professionals or realtors. Like everything else in real estate, commission rates are always what you and your agent decide for your market and for the work that your agent will do. Our market here in NH for residential home sales ranges between 4-6% and you may see an occasional 7% in the New Hampshire real estate market, but overall this is the ball park you should plan for. The NH real estate commission rate may also fluctuate depending on the market we are in, if it is a Sellers’ Market or if it is a Buyers’ Market. Also to note that when we speak of the commission rate that is the total. A portion of the commission rate, should and will be offered to a buyers agent to bring a ready willing able buyer. On our NH listing agreement there will be a section on page 1 asking you how much of this fee would you like to be offered to a buyers agent. So for example if you and your agent agrees on a commission rate of 5% then you can say you want 2.5% offered to a co-broke or a facilitator and your listing agent would give the other 2.5% to their brokering office. These negotiations are things that upon hiring your real estate agent should be discussed.

Another closing costs associated is the New Hampshire State Tax Stamps. These will be split 50/50  between buyer and seller and each side pays $7.50 per $1000. This is based and determined on the selling the price. So, in total the state of NH says it is $15 per $1000 and again it is split $7.50 and $7.50 so each party is absorbing 50% of the costs.

Next you will have your deed preparation fee. This can  range from $75 up to $400 depending on the closing    office or title company that the buyer or buyer’s lender selects. This fee is to do exactly that and prepare the deed for the buyer to sign so you can deed the home over.

Discharge and recording fees, this is usually a small fee, all together totaling no more than $200 -$400 depending on how many mortgages/notes you hold on  the home. This fee is for the title company to get your old mortgage discharged, meaning to obtain and file a  release and have it filed with the county you live in. This way that mortgage note or notes you have held are no longer going to show against the house.

If you have outstanding debts then that would also come off your bottom line, or in some cases the buyer  may have asked for repairs during the sale process and maybe you and your agent arranged for the contractor to bill to escrow in trade to have the repairs  done.

Over all there could be other costs based on back due bills, such as water bills, taxes, sewer, etc., but again as for the fees associated with the sale these are your biggest ones.

Hope this info helps and if you ever need to consult a Real Estate Agent NH. Please contact us we are here to give friendly advice.