Guides for selling your home
Selling on your own? These guides cover what buyers want to see, what they’ll ask, and how to answer with proof.
Home maintenance records template for selling your house
A simple template for documenting your home's systems, repairs and warranties before you sell, with what to fill in for each item.
How to answer buyer questions when you sell your house yourself
The questions buyers ask a for-sale-by-owner seller, how to answer each one honestly, and the proof that makes the answer stick.
How to find out how old your roof is before you sell
Where to look for the year your roof was put on when you have no invoice, and how to show buyers the age with proof.
How to find the age of a water heater, furnace or AC from its serial number
Where to find the label on a water heater, furnace or AC unit, how to get the manufacture date from it, and what to do when you can't.
How to keep your home's records safe from a fire or flood
The house records worth keeping before a disaster, how to keep them current, and where to store them so they outlast the house.
How to look up past permits for your house before you sell
How to find permits for work done on your house by address, what open or missing permits mean for a sale, and how to show permits to buyers.
How to prove what was done to your house after a fire or flood
After a disaster, your insurer and the IRS may ask what your house had and what you put into it. Here's how to rebuild that history, even with the paper gone.
How to show improvements to an appraiser when you sell by owner
What to prepare, how to hand it to the appraiser, and what an appraiser can and can't take into account when you've improved your home.
How to transfer a roof, window or product warranty to the buyer
How to find your warranty, check whether it transfers, take the usual steps, and hand the buyer what they need, when you sell without an agent.
Should you get a pre-listing inspection when you sell by owner?
What a pre-listing inspection is, the pros and cons for a seller with no agent, what to do with what it finds, and how to share the report with buyers.
What records buyers want when you sell your house yourself
The repair, maintenance and warranty records buyers ask for when there's no agent, how to find them, and how to hand them over in one place.
What to do when the buyer's inspection finds problems and you have no agent
How to read a buyer's inspection report, tell real defects from routine notes, choose between repair, credit, price cut or saying no, and answer findings with your records.
What to do when you lost the receipts for work on your house before selling
How to rebuild proof of repairs and upgrades when the receipts are gone, from bank statements and email to contractor copies, and how to write it up honestly.
What to give the buyer at closing when you sell your house yourself
A checklist of what to hand a buyer at or after closing when there's no agent: keys, remotes, codes, manuals, warranties, records and contacts.