Preparing Your Home's Documents
Preparing Your Docs Before Listing Your Home
A good practice for a smooth and straightforward selling process in Summit and Park County is having all the essential documents and paperwork for the home prepared before it's listed.​
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Having the home’s paperwork in place will allow quick responses to many of the inquiries buyers may have before an offer is made. It also helps foster a smooth and uneventful selling process once the home has been placed under contract.
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Below is a list of common documents I recommend completing before your home is listed.
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Document List:
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HOA Docs – Login and Password
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Sellers Property Disclosure
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Square Footage Disclosure
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Utility bills for the last 12 months
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Receipts for any significant repairs on the home
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Paperwork for any warranties with the home
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Furniture Inventory or Exclusion List
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Survey (If in possession)
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Single Family Homes - Septic pumped, inspected, and use permit updated
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Manuals for appliances (If in possession)
Notes for the Document List:
HOA Docs - For HOA Docs, the minimum docs to have are the Financials for the last 3 years, Board Meeting Minutes for the previous 3 years, Bylaws, Covenants, and disclosure of any known upcoming assessments. These are typically provided through a login and password on the HOA's website.
Sellers Property Disclosure - It’s important for the Sellers Property Disclosure to be detailed and sincerely filled out. Not stating known defects with the home can lead to serious liability issues down the road or make the inspection process complicated and uncomfortable. Being straightforward from the beginning is always the best strategy.
Receipts for any significant repairs on the home – If there’s been any significant work done on the home, have the receipts and invoices ready for review.
Furniture Inventory or Exclusion List – If the home is to be sold with furnishings, it’s a huge assist to have either an inventory list of what will remain, or an exclusion list of what will be removed. It avoids having to create a list before a contractual deadline, and sometimes potential buyers will want to see the list before they place an offer on the home.
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Utility bills for the last 12 months – while the hard copies of the utility bills are typically not requested, having scanned copies of these ready to go is a good idea. In the least, have all of the utilities bill together for an accurate utility cost for the listing.
Survey (If in possession) – Sometimes, surveys are lost from the home’s paperwork. If you have one, great! However, even if you have a survey, it may be required that a new survey be performed if it’s older, there have been improvements on the property, or if the buyer is requesting a higher level survey than the one in your possession.
Single Family Homes - Septic Pump and Inspection Report - For homes with a septic system, the pump and inspection of the septic should be scheduled before the home is listed.
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The septic pump, inspection, and an updated use permit are a requirement in Summit and Park Counties during the sale of a home. There can be a waiting list for septic companies to complete the work, and it can delay the closing date of the home’s sale if this isn't scheduled soon enough.
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If the septic has been pumped and inspected within one year of the closing date for the home's sale, the seller usually isn’t required to perform the pump and inspection.
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For additional information regarding the paperwork for selling your home, please contact me.
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This information can be downloaded in PDF below.