Seller questions, answered plainly.

Most sellers spend somewhere around 7 to 10 percent of the sale price, all in. Commission is the largest piece, and it is always negotiable. The rest is your share of closing costs: clearing title, prorated property taxes, any repairs agreed after inspection, and any concessions. You get a line-by-line net sheet from me before you sign anything.

In Louisiana the buyer usually chooses the title company or closing attorney and pays for the title policy, survey, and loan fees. The seller typically covers any title clean-up, prorated taxes, and the mortgage payoff. It is all negotiable in the purchase agreement, and everyone signs at the act of sale in front of a notary.

If the house has been your primary home for two of the last five years, federal law generally lets you exclude up to $250,000 of gain, or $500,000 for a married couple filing jointly. Rentals, second homes, and inherited houses follow different rules. This one is for your accountant, not your agent.

Late January through May is when most buyers are out, with a lift once Carnival ends. Parade weeks can make showings hard on the Uptown routes. Late summer is hot and slow, and fall brings a smaller second window from October into early December. The best month is usually the one your house is truly ready.

Selling first gives you a firm budget and a stronger offer, though you may need somewhere to land for a month or two. Buying first means one move, but you carry two houses for a while or make an offer contingent on your sale, which sellers like less. We look at your numbers and choose the one you can live with.

We work on your terms, but about two weeks from signing to launch is the strongest runway, because it gives film, photography and copy the time to do their best work. From there, anywhere from a few days to a few months on the market depending on price and condition, then roughly 30 to 45 days to close with a financed buyer. Cash can close sooner.

It is normal, especially in an older house. The buyer sends a list of requests, and you can repair, offer a credit, adjust the price, or decline some items. We get real quotes from people who know old houses, so we negotiate from numbers instead of nerves. Most sales survive this stage.

No, and it usually goes better when you are not. Showings are booked through a scheduling service, you approve the times, and buyers relax when they can talk freely. Pets, work hours, and small children all get built into the schedule.

Tell me as early as you can and we will talk it through. The listing agreement spells out how a withdrawal works, and I walk you through that before you sign it. Once you accept an offer, stepping back is much harder, so doubts are worth raising before then.

It is a percentage of the sale price, agreed in writing before anything goes live, and it is negotiable. What it pays for is laid out on the Marketing pages. You will hear the number in our first conversation, not after three meetings.

Me, and Liz Wallace, my licensed assistant. I handle pricing, strategy, marketing, and negotiation. Liz keeps the schedule, the paperwork, and the vendors moving. You can reach either of us directly, and nobody hands you off to a call center.

Yes. I work all over New Orleans and the surrounding parishes, from Algiers to the lakefront and out into Jefferson Parish. The neighborhood guides here are simply the ones I have written so far. Wherever the house is, the same marketing, care, and attention come with it.