How Much Does It Cost To Sell A House In Raleigh, NC

When we think about selling, we often focus on the large lump sum we expect to receive from the payout.

However, it may come as a surprise that selling a house involves several upfront costs. In many cases, you have to spend money before seeing any return. The cost of selling a house in Raleigh can vary widely depending on factors like your home’s condition, its location, and how you decide to sell it. 

In this article, we’ll break down the initial investments you should expect to make and explore different methods of home sale from the most expensive to the least. 

What You Need To Know Before Selling in Raleigh 

Right now, Raleigh is still a seller’s market following last year’s trend, making it a great time to sell your home. A seller’s market means there are fewer homes available than there are buyers looking, giving you leverage during negotiations and increasing your chances of getting top dollar for your home. 

Homes also tend to sell more quickly in a seller’s market. Currently, the average time a house stays on the market in Raleigh is about 30 days, and the best time to sell is typically during warmer months, from March to June, when families are preparing for the upcoming school year. 

As of April 2025, the median sale price for homes in Raleigh is $457,154, which is a 6.3% increase since last year. However, keep in mind that getting the best value for your home still depends on the strategies you use during the selling process.  

That said, if you’ve decided to sell, be prepared to navigate the home-selling process, which we divided into three distinct stages, each with its own specific costs: preparing your home for sale, going through closing, and handling post-sale matters. If you’re looking to skip the hassle, you can also sell your home for cash in Raleigh or nearby cities for a faster, more streamlined experience.

1. Pre-Sale Costs: What to Expect Before Listing Your Home

How long a home stays on the market varies on several factors, many of which are determined during the pre-sale preparation. Homes tend to stay on the market longer when sellers don’t take pre-sale preparation seriously, such as implementing effective marketing strategies or setting the right price. Investing effort into this stage can significantly reduce your home’s time in the market and help you drive up your home’s final sale price. 

Pre-listing Inspection 

Depending on your goal for the sale, you may choose to get a pre-listing inspection. The cost of this inspection depends on your home’s size and location, but in Raleigh, it usually ranges from $300- $500. 

A pre-listing inspection is a proactive step that a seller can take. While not required, it’s a smart move if you’re uncertain about your home’s condition or suspect there may be repairs or issues that could delay your sale. Having a fully examined home also assures potential buyers of its quality. 

Keep in mind that any issues uncovered during a pre-listing inspection must legally be disclosed to the buyer. 

Make Repairs 

Unless you’re a house flipper, most homes aren’t exactly move-in ready. This is especially true in older homes, as many homeowners either overlook maintenance or aren’t aware of the warning signs before issues balloon into something requiring extensive repairs.

Repairs aren’t mandatory to sell a home, but they can significantly boost its value and appeal to potential buyers. A well-maintained home attracts more buyers and may help them see the property’s potential.

Repair costs vary widely depending on what is needed. Some may only cost a few hundred dollars, while others could run into the thousands.

Common repairs include:

• Painting: $1,000-$3,000 

• Landscaping: $3,000-$15,000

• HVAC Systems: $130 – $3,000

• Roof repair: $175 and $6,500

House Clean-up 

Depending on the size of your home and the extent of the mess, it may be worthwhile to hire professional cleaners. In Raleigh, professional cleaning services typically cost between $200 and $500, depending on the scope of the job. 

A clean home is a valuable one. No buyer wants to attend an open house or showing in a dirty space; it raises red flags about the home’s condition and how well it’s been maintained.  

Of course, if you’ve consistently taken good care of your home and already do regular cleaning, you may be able to save some money by doing the cleaning and decluttering yourself. And if you’re looking to avoid the prep work altogether, you can sell your home for cash in Durham or nearby cities for a quicker, hassle-free sale.

Staging the Home 

After repairs and cleaning, the next important step is staging your home. Staging is a valuable process for sellers; it provides them with the opportunity to highlight the most attractive features of the property. For example, if your home has a well-maintained, traditional tiled kitchen, you’ll want to make sure that the space is especially clean, well-lit, and styled to draw attention. 

The cost of staging depends on how far you take it. For instance, whether you will rent furniture or hire a professional stager. On average, staging in Raleigh costs around $1,800 but can range from $600 to $4,000. This may be heavy in the pockets but a NAR study found that proper staging raises the home value by up to 10%. 

Marketing the Sale 

Good marketing can make or break the sale of your property. Low-quality photos, advertising on the wrong platform, unappealing description, or illegible signage can all lead to an empty open house. 

It’s important to stand out from the competition and start strong right off the bat. Properties that sit on the market too long often develop a negative stigma, making it harder to sell. 

Marketing costs vary widely depending on the strategies you choose and whether or not you hire a real estate professional. Most agents include marketing expenses in their commission, but this can differ based on who you hire, especially if you’re working with a discount agent, who may only cover some of the costs to offer limited services. Alternatively, working with Fair Cash Offers For Homes can help you avoid these marketing expenses entirely by offering a direct, no-commission cash sale.

2. Closing the Sale: Fees and Selling Costs to Expect

After all the heavy lifting during the preparation stage and patiently waiting through open houses and lengthy negotiations, it’s finally time to close the deal. Here are the expenses you can expect now that you’ve secured the right buyer. 

Attorney Fees

North Carolina is one of the few states that require a real estate attorney to handle the closing of a home sale. The cost of hiring an attorney can range from $150 to $2,000, depending on whether they charge an hourly rate or a flat fee.  

Title Insurance Policy 

Title insurance protects the buyer of potential financial loss due to title disputes or errors made by the title company. The cost is a flat, one-time fee, typically  around 0.5% of the property’s final sale price. 

While sellers are not required to pay for title insurance, it is a common practice in North Carolina. 

Seller Concessions 

Sellers often make concessions to sweeten the deal and help close the sale quicker. These concessions can vary, making it hard to give an estimate but it commonly includes: covering the buyer’s closing costs, paying the full year’s property taxes, or offering credit from the sale proceeds to cover necessary repairs. 

Transfer Taxes 

In North Carolina, if you want to transfer your title to someone else, you would have to pay $1 for every $500 of the property’s value. That means if the property is valued at $457,154, then you’d have to pay $914 in transfer taxes. 

Recording Fees 

In North Carolina, recording fees are charged for officially documenting the transfer of property ownership with the county. 

• General instruments: $26 first 15 pages

• Deeds of trust and mortgages: $64 first 35 pages

• Plats: $21 each sheet

Title Service Fees

Title service fees cover all the costs involved with verifying that the property’s title is clear and can legally be transferred to a new owner.  These services typically cost around 0.24% of the home’s final sale price. That means if your home sells for $457,154, your title service fees would be approximately $1,097. 

3. Post-Sale Costs: What to Expect After Closing 

It doesn’t mean that once you’ve signed on the dotted line and shaken hands, that’s the end of it. You still have some expenses to take into account and finalize to complete the sale. 

Prorated Property Taxes

In North Carolina, the division of property taxes during a home’s sale is straightforward. You’re responsible for paying property taxes for the year you owned the home up until the property is transferred to the buyer, who then pays taxes for the remainder of the year. 

For example, if you lived in the home for the first 6 months of the year, you’d pay property taxes for that time, and the buyer would cover the remaining 6 months. The average property tax rate in North Carolina is 0.73% of the home’s assessed value, though it can vary by county, with a median rate of around 1%. 

Capital Gains Tax 

North Carolina charges a flat rate of 4.25% capital gains tax on any profit made from the sale of your home. However, many homeowners qualify for a federal capital gains tax exclusion. If you’ve lived in the home for at least two of the past five years, you may be able to exclude up to $250,000 in gain if you’re single, or $500,000 if you’re married and filing jointly. 

Moving costs 

Now that you’ve found someone new to care for your home, it’s time to move on and into your new house. 

The costs of moving depend on how much you’re bringing with you and how far you’re going. Hiring professional movers typically ranges  $363 and $3,073, depending on the size of the move and the distance. If you’ve uprooted your entire life to go to the other end of the country, expect to be on the higher end of that range.  

You could always move yourself if you travel light, but don’t forget to factor in the cost of gas and possibly the cost of a storage unit as you get settled in. 

Explore Home Selling Options and Costs 

Flat Fee MLS 

A Flat Fee MLS (Multiple Listing Service) is a platform for homeowners looking to sell their homes independently. By listing and managing your home sale yourself, or going the For Sale By Owner (FSBO) route, you can avoid paying real estate professional commissions, potentially saving thousands. 

As the name suggests, these platforms charge a flat fee, which varies depending on the package you choose. Basic packages, often including seller assistance and marketing tools, typically start around $200, while simple listing-only options can be as low as $90. 

This is way cheaper than hiring a real estate professional. However, by handling the home sale yourself, you’ll do all the heavy lifting, from the initial preparation to the closing. 

Be careful, though, as some MLS platforms include hidden fees that can disrupt your budget.  Be sure to read the reviews and choose a trusted, reputable site. 

Cash Home Buyer Companies 

Selling to a cash home buyer means selling your home as-is – no repairs, no cleaning, no staging. And because you’re selling directly to the buyer, there are no marketing costs either. 

Most cash buyers are real estate investors who purchase properties to flip and resell. That’s why your home’s condition doesn’t matter much to them, and in fact, they often seek out fixer-uppers.  

Selling to a cash buyer costs you nothing. They don’t charge commission fees and usually cover all closing costs. Since these investors are betting on the property’s future value, they’re willing to take on the risk in the hope of making a profit down the line. 

Be careful, though, as some cash home buyer companies may charge hidden fees that could take you by surprise. It’s best to work only with well-established and reliable companies in your area.

Home Selling Tips to Maximize Your Profits 

Sell when the market is hot  

If you’re going to go the traditional way or FSBO with a flat fee MLS, then you should always sell when it’s hot – literally! During the warmer months of May and June, between summer break and the start of the school year, are when most buyers are looking. Refrain from putting your house on the market during the holidays as most houses tend to stay longer due to the buzz of the season. 

It’s also best to know if it’s a buyer’s or a seller’s market so you can enter the negotiating table informed. 

Negotiate a good deal 

Always be prepared for back-and-forth negotiation. If you’re in a rush to close the deal, it could put you at a disadvantage and give the buyer the upper hand. 

Take time to understand your potential buyer and their motivation for moving. For example, if they’re interested in your home because of its location, emphasize the safety and community feel; if it’s near a school district, be sure to highlight that; and, if it’s close to amenities, focus on the convenience it offers. 

Enter the negotiation with confidence in what you’re selling and a solid understanding of your home’s strengths. That said, it’s equally important to be flexible – a good deal is one where both parties walk away satisfied. 

Seller concessions are not mandatory 

While seller concessions are common, it’s not required, and you shouldn’t feel obligated to offer them, especially if you’re receiving multiple offers. If covering a buyer’s closing costs or appraisal fee does not align with your goals, you have every right to say no. 

That said, seller concessions can be a useful negotiation tool, so it’s wise to keep an open mind. If making a small concession helps you close a deal quickly or at a higher price, it may be worth considering. 

Just remember: only offer concessions when you feel they genuinely serve your best interests in the sale. 

Don’t make unnecessary repairs

In today’s market, many buyers are open to purchasing fixer-uppers, as shown by a recent survey from the National Association of Realtors (NAR).  This means you don’t need to invest in extensive repairs that don’t align with your budget or timeline.

The truth is, only major repairs–like a new roof, updated plumbing, or structural fixes–tend to significantly increase your home’s value. These can be time-consuming and costly, often taking months and thousands of dollars. 

However, if a potential buyer requests small fixes, like repairing a dent or repainting a wall, it might be worth doing. Taking initiative on minor touch-ups can show good faith and help maintain buyer interest, especially in competitive negotiations. 

Decide which selling method is best for you

Finally, one of the most crucial decisions you’ll make when selling your house is how to sell it and to whom. For many sellers, the biggest cost is the 6% real estate professional commission. So, if your home isn’t expected to sell for a high price, you’re working on a tight timeline, or you don’t have the budget for additional out-of-pocket expenses, it may be worth skipping the agent and selling the home yourself or directly to a cash buyer. 

However, if you’re prepared to invest time and money to get top dollar for your home, working with a top-rated real estate professional is your best bet. Hiring a trusted, experienced agent, rather than a discount one, has been shown to result in higher sale prices and smoother transactions. 

Final Thoughts: Selling Costs in Raleigh, NC

Selling your home may come with more costs than you first thought, but with the right strategy, you can still come out ahead. You can save money by tackling simple tasks yourself, like cleaning or patching nail holes from years of hanging family photos. Choosing a sales method that fits your situation will not only save you money, but also your time and peace of mind. 

Selling your house doesn’t have to be hard or expensive. 

Sell your Raleigh house stress-free and hassle-free, at no additional costs, with us, Fair Cash Offer For Homes.

We buy homes as-is! Worried about making money from your well-loved fixer-upper? We got you covered. To ensure you walk away with cash in hand, we even cover all closing costs. And if you need to move quickly, we can close in as little as 7 days. If speed and convenience are what you’re after, think Fair Cash Offers For Homes: the buyer you can trust. 

Get your no-obligation, fair, competitive, all-cash offer today!

Simply fill out the short form below, and we’ll respond within 24 hours, or contact us now at (919) 551-8506 . We’d love to hear from you! 

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