Fix it, list it, or sell as is?

Good to know first: you don't need to do any of this to ask us for a number, and a title company handles the closing paperwork. This page is here if you want the background.

Get these first

• Written repair quotes from a contractor or two
• Any local agent's price opinion, both fixed up and as it sits
• The agent's commission, in writing
• Closing cost estimates from a title company
• Your monthly carrying costs: taxes, insurance, utilities, and the interest part of any loan payment
• A payoff figure for any mortgage, plus any liens or unpaid city or tax charges
• Any written offer you've received

Only count the interest on your loan as a carrying cost. Principal you pay down comes back to you as a smaller payoff, so it isn't lost money.

The worksheet

This adds and subtracts what you typed. Nothing is sent or saved. Enter the payoff and lien figures the same on all three routes. For a fire or other insurance settlement, get what you'd keep on each route from your adjuster, because it can differ. If you don't know yet, your totals aren't finished.

What a total can't tell you

• Overruns. Old houses hold surprises behind the walls. Ask your contractor what a realistic worst case looks like.
• Your time. Are you able to manage a repair job and a listing, or would that wreck the next few months?
• Falling through. A loan-backed buyer may run into appraisal rules. A listing price isn't money until someone closes.
• Who gets paid first. Liens, unpaid fees, or city charges come out too. A title company can tell you what's on record.

When selling directly is probably the wrong call

Get more than one number

Whichever way you lean, talk to at least one agent and at least one other buyer. Check that any buyer closes through a title company you can call yourself, and that nobody asks you for money up front. Wisconsin requires a buyer planning to assign the contract to tell you in writing. Show any contract to an attorney if you have doubts. A real buyer won't object to that.

What goes into our number

Northland As-Is Home Buyers looks at recent nearby sales, the condition of the house, and what the repairs would take, then explains that math along with a written offer. There's no agent commission and no listing fee on a direct sale to us, and the title company lays out the standard closing costs in writing before you sign.