One of the most nerve-wracking things about handling your own home sale is the paperwork. You might find yourself constantly wondering if you have the right documents needed for selling your own home and if you've filled them out correctly. The good news is that it isn't difficult to do yourself. It's certainly advisable to hire a real estate lawyer to look over your purchase agreement before you finalize the sale, but you should be able to prepare all of the necessary documents yourself. Don't listen to your husband's second cousin, the realtor - you can do it yourself!

The Seller's Disclosure

A good place to start your document preparation is with the seller's disclosure. This is basically a list of all the fixtures in your home. You only need to check boxes indicating the status of the item. For each line, you will indicate if the item is available and operable, not available (either you never had one, or you're taking it with you), or available but not operable. If you're unsure whether or not something works, check with a professional. It is in your best interest to be as honest as possible.

For example, if you are leaving your refrigerator, which you know is in working order, you would mark "yes" next to refrigerator. If you do not have a pool, you can mark that row with a "no." If you have a water softener, but it doesn't work, you'll have to indicate that it is available, but not in working condition. It is up to you to decide if you want to have anything repaired before you sell. Use your discretion as to what would be important to buyers. A malfunctioning hot tub might be negligible, but a broken furnace could be a big turn-off. You'll need to give your seller's disclosure to any interested buyer, so get a stack of copies made once you've filled it out.

Lead-Based Paint Disclosure

This is another form that you must give to any interested buyers, so have plenty of copies on hand. The lead-based paint disclosure form is much simpler than the seller's disclosure. If your home was built after 1978, all you need to do is sign a form attesting that your home is newer than the cut-off date. If your house is older than that, you need to disclose any knowledge that you have of lead-based paint. If you've had your home checked for lead previously, you'll need to indicate where the lead was found. Make copies of your test results, if you have them.

If your home was built prior to 1978, but you've never checked for lead and have no idea if there is any, then that's all the information that you can give. As long as you are honest about your knowledge, you have no obligation to search out lead-based paint in your home. The buyer has the right to request a lead test if they want. Whether they pay or you pay is a bargaining chip that you can use in negotiations of the final sale. Your only legal obligation is to provide any knowledge that you have regarding lead-based paint in your home.

Providing Buyers With What They Need

Make sure that you do a little research about documentation particular to your area that might be required.   A real estate lawyer will probably tell you this information for free, and possibly even give you copies of the documents. You can also download a copy of all the documents needed for selling your own home by state here.  Once you have all the legal disclosures, you'll want to gather any other pertinent documents, such as property surveys, homeowner's association regulations, soil tests, water rights, or anything else that you might have on hand. You don't have a legal obligation to give people who tour your home anything in addition to the necessary disclosures, but it's up to you to decide what is a selling point.

A good idea is to prepare packets ahead of time, so that buyers can pick them up when they view your home. You'll probably want to create an information sheet that details the finer points of your property, such as the square footage. Include pictures, floor-plans, or any other touches that you think will influence people to buy your home. Make sure that you enclose your necessary disclosures and your contact information so that the buyers can get back to you when they want to write an offer. Remember that you're marketing your home. The more buyers know about your home, the easier it is for them to make a decision!