I am not sure where to put this, I only found this site this week and love it! I am selling my house "For sale by owner" and am looking for a way to put it on MLS myself. I have seen a few different sites that have a flat fee to list it on MLS but I am not sure if they are good or not. Does anyone have any advise?

We only bought our house a year and a half ago but my husband just got a great job about 2.5 hours away so we wouldnt make any money if we went with a agent.

I have one other question does anyone know if you have to pay all your capital gains on a house if you move because of a job relocation?

Thanks!

As far as I know, you can roll-over your capital gains into your new house as long as the new house is the same cost of the one you sold or higher. Even then, there is an exclusion with a pretty high limit so you don't have to pay capital gains except for any amount over that limit. You can look at the irs.gov website for more information. As it is, we got some pretty hefty gains out of our last house and never paid any taxes on the money. Then again, if you're not going with a real estate agent because you don't have enough equity in the home, you probably don't have anything to worry about.

As far as MLS listing services, you'll have to shop around. Try doing web searches for other homes for sale in your area to see which services pop up the most. In my area, forsalebyowner.com is used frequently but that may not be the case in your area.

You can negotiate the commission with real estate agents, you know. It may be worth your while to use one, not just to get the exposure on your listing, but to help you through the sale, inspection and closing process. When we purchased our house, the previous owners were selling as a 'for sale by owner'. Their house sat on the market for THREE YEARS before we came along. We had a real estate agent and if we hadn't I'm not sure we'd be in this house today. The previous owners knew nothing of what they had to do to get the house sold. Thank goodness for our real estate agent because without her I would have told the previous owners to forget the whole thing many times over. If time is of the essense for you, you may want to talk to a few agents.

__________________
"I've been rich and I've been poor but independently wealthy is where it is at."

As far as I know, if you move for work (and can prove it) for a job over 50 miles away, there is no capital gains tax due. Also, if you move before the two years you normally have to stay in a house, I believe (but am not 100% certain) that capital gains tax is prorated, so you would pay approximately 25% of the normal capital gains because you had been in the house for 75% of the two years. In your case, the job will most probably be enough to be able to skip out on capital gains tax because it is over 50 miles. You should be able to look this up on IRS.gov.

If your house is not listed in MLS (mulitple listing service), it will take longer to sell. Agents will not work on selling your house if they won't get a commission. You will most likely make a little more by selling the alternate way, but it will most likely take longer to sell the house. So, you may ultimately lose if you have to pay rent in a new place for a longer length of time while waiting for your house to sell. Evaluate your area. In most areas in the US, house sales have slowed/dropped, but there are still a few "hot" markets where property is still selling. Find out how many days, weeks, months the average house in your area and price range is taking to sell right now. Speaking with a couple of realtors doesn't mean you have a contract with one. Good luck.

Look at irs.gov and find Publication 523, Selling your home. There is indeed an exclusion if you sell because of a job over 50 miles away. In your situation, it would probably be best for you to consult with an accountant regarding your tax situation with selling your house. You will then have peace of mind.

You only avoid paying capital gains if you've lived in your house for at least two years. Any less, and there's no way around it. Sorry.

I know you may think you are saving money by doing this yourself....but in the long run it may cost you a pretty penny. Real Estate agents can and will negotiate their commission...it may be worth the time to try and find someone that you can afford. They will take care of most if not all that you need to do.....and other agents will be interested in showing your home to their clients since they have something to gain out of it. Just a thought.