Sellers
Selling your house? Authentic Title & Law Practice will work with you and the buyer to make the selling of your home a pleasant experience. Our title agent will contact you, following our receipt of the negotiated Purchase Agreement from the buyer. The title agent will ask you some personal background information. This information will be used to complete an Abstract of Title. Additionally, we will need the name of your mortgage company, if you have one, and your new forwarding address.
In Louisiana, the seller is typically responsible for the following:
- Real estate commission, normally 6% of the sale price
- Payoff of any outstanding mortgages or home equity lines of credit. Your mortgage or loan payoff can be a little higher than the remaining balance on your loan, because of the prorated interest. In certain situations, you may have a prepayment penalty for paying off the loan before the end of the term. If you have a home equity line of credit, this must also be paid at time of settlement.
- Pay or clear any liens, judgements and unpaid homeowner’s association dues against the property.
- Seller is responsible for pro-rated taxes, condo dues and/or homeowner’s association dues, if applicable. In some parishes or counties, you pay a transfer tax or recording fee. These taxes are imposed by your local or state government to transfer the title.
- We will communicate to the seller any title issues that we may find in the title search that require curative services.
- Any other issues that require services to your house before closing can be negotiated within the purchase agreement, like termite inspection or repairing certain items.
- Any title fees that may be applicable
This is not an all inclusive list, but gives you a good idea of what is typically required from the seller.
For more information on selling your home, please see our Educational Videos.