Have you thought about talking to a Realtor? Most of us will take care of the paperwork for a flat fee.

I have done this several times for clients who have done all the negotiations.

If all I have to do is type the contract I'll do it for $Xxx.xx. If someone wants me to coordinate it all, make sure all inspections needed get taken care of, get it into escrow and see it through to closing then I charge $X,xxx.xx.

Don't blow off your local Realtors.

KC

A lawyer will get you from start to finish on your sale, dotting the i's and crossing the t's.

Good luck.

To avoid a conflict of interest, the lawyer may insist that each party should have their own lawyer. Like a divorce.

I'm wondering what kinds of fees to expect from a lawyer.

Really, I was thinking the buyer and I would just go find a lawyer or realtor together.

A kind of, "dude, just make this as-is sale legit... no caveats, etc.".

From the purchase of this house 3 years ago, it seemed to me that the bank was so uptight and the forms were so standardized that I couldn't imagine that there would be the possibility of any slippery problems.

The last house I bought, I didn't go through a realtor, but did hire a lawyer to do a title check and handle the paperwork and closing. This was maybe five years ago, and he charged me around $800.

A lawyer is hired to represent EITHER your interests OR another party's interests. If it was me, I would NOT share a lawyer....ever.

At the very least, you want a lawyer - and preferably one for both of you. The price will depend on where you live, but expect something in the $500-$1000 range.

For my current home, I bought a FSBO with no agents involved on either side. We were buying as is and agreed on a price verbally before anything was put on paper. I downloaded the "standard" purchase agreement in our state. My wife and I say with the seller and went through and filled everything out together. Then, we had a couple of days for each of our lawyers to look over the contract before we signed.

Of course, this was a really simple transaction. We weren't worrying about getting financing, appraisals etc. The seller agreed to a home inspection before we put pen to paper, so it was truly an as-is sale. That may or may not be the case for you.

Thanks... just so you know, I don't have a buyer as I just put my house up on craigslist and zillow a few days ago.

I'm in no rush to sell, and don't really care too much if it sells or not. I'm pretty sure I want a larger home, so I'm thinking that I may as well get the selling out of the way and not have to fool with it when buying time comes.

I waffle on whether I want to move or stay, but if I get a buyer who looks like they want a very fair deal without a bunch of foolishness... why not?

One side effect of putting your house up for sale is that it motivates you to clean out the junk that has accumulated in the house and the garage! The more I clean stuff out, get rid of stuff, etc... the more I like the house again.

I would not want to *have* to sell. That seems totally stressful and, frankly, it is one of the reasons that I am not totally sold on being a home owner in the first place. I sometimes wonder if people recognize the burdens and costs of home ownership that go beyond mortgage concerns.

Thanks, though. It looks like I'll need to get a lawyer and plan on dumping up to 1g on it.

Now, I'm wondering if I should pay the $600 to get a FSBO MLS listing.

Kelton

Depending on what state you are in you could just use a title company.

Depending on what state you are in you could just use a title company.

Title/Escrow companies cannot give advice. They are uninterested 3rd parties. I would get an attorney lined up for the contracts. If you are serious about selling then the MLS is going to give you the most exposure, though you will have to pay the agent that brings the buyer.

I would think you should just get a lawyer and they can handle everything. The buyer would either need to get his own, or skip it.

here on Long Island fees run from $1200-$1600