Price goes up, you sell. Price is right, you buy. Sounds simple, but there's more to it. There are closing costs involved on both sides, and this is something that your realtor should go over with you.
SELLERS:
In a nutshell, the average expense to sell a home is about 2% of the sales price. So on an $800k sales price, you're looking at about $16k in escrow fees. This comes in the form of transfer taxes, escrow company fees, doc fees, etc. Then there's the agency commissions. So while you might think there's $200k in profits to be made, remember that anywhere from 2-8% will be shaved off in fees.
BUYERS:
For buyers who are getting a loan, closing costs are about 3% on an $800k purchase price. You're looking at $24k approximately. Most of these are loan and title insurance fees, and these are IN ADDITION to the purchase price. So if you have barely enough to put down on a place, know that you're going to need at least a 3-4% buffer due to these closing costs. Cash purchases cut out the loan and title insurance fees so suddenly you're only needing about .05-1% in closing costs.
