Free Guide
The New Braunfels Seller's Guide.
Pricing, prep, marketing, and negotiation: everything you need to know to sell well in New Braunfels.
Price It Right
Your price sets the pace.
Pricing is the single most important decision you will make as a seller. A Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) anchors your list price to recent closed sales of similar homes in your neighborhood, not Zestimates, not what your neighbor says, not what you "need." Glen pulls comps from MLS data, adjusts for upgrades, lot size, and condition, and delivers a realistic price range before you ever go live.
The first two to three weeks on market are critical. That is when buyer interest peaks and showing traffic is highest. Homes priced at or near their CMA value in New Braunfels sell in under three weeks. Price 5-10% above market and you can expect to sit for 60 to 90 days, by which point agents and buyers assume something is wrong with the property.
New Braunfels median days on market has shifted. In late 2024, median DOM was around 18 days at a median price of $425K. By 2025-26 that number stretched to 84-108 days as inventory rose and buyers grew more selective. Overpricing in a slower market is the fastest way to become a stale listing. A well-priced home still moves quickly, the key is starting right.
Get Ready
Prep that pays you back.
Not every renovation is worth doing before you list. Focus your budget on the upgrades with the highest return on investment. Fresh interior paint is the single cheapest way to make a home feel new. Refinished hardwood floors recover up to 147% of their cost at resale. Curb appeal, clean landscaping, a painted front door, fresh mulch, sets the tone before a buyer ever walks inside.
Staging works. 29% of listing agents report that staging increased their home's value by 1-10%, and staged homes sell up to 3x faster than vacant or cluttered ones. The rooms that matter most: living room (37% of agents rank it first), primary bedroom (34%), and kitchen (23%). You do not need to stage every room, focus where buyers linger.
In New Braunfels, you are competing with new construction in communities like Veramendi, Vintage Oaks, and Meyer Ranch. Builders deliver move-in-ready product with fresh finishes. Your resale home needs to match that standard. Declutter aggressively, deep clean everything, and fix deferred maintenance before the first showing, not after the inspection report.
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Disclosures, closing costs, commissions, capital gains, and more. One email, instant access, no PDFs.
Maximum Exposure
Marketing that sells.
Professional photography is non-negotiable. Listings with pro photos receive substantially more views and sell faster. Glen's listing plan includes high-resolution photography, drone aerials for acreage and Hill Country views, and 3D virtual tours that let out-of-state buyers walk your home from their phone.
Your listing syndicates to hundreds of sites through MLS. Zillow, Realtor.com, Redfin, Homes.com, and every brokerage feed in the San Antonio-New Braunfels market. On top of syndication, Glen runs targeted digital advertising on social platforms to reach relocation buyers from Austin, San Antonio, Houston, and Dallas, the four metros feeding New Braunfels growth.
The Hill Country aesthetic sells itself when presented correctly. Stone exteriors, mature oaks, river proximity, Gruene Hall walkability, these are lifestyle features that deserve dedicated copy and dedicated visuals. Generic listing descriptions leave money on the table.
Disclosures
What Texas requires you to disclose.
Texas Property Code Section 5.008 requires sellers of previously occupied single-family residences to complete a Seller's Disclosure Notice. This form covers the condition of every major system: roof, foundation, plumbing, HVAC, electrical, appliances, as well as known defects, flooding history, environmental hazards, and HOA obligations.
The disclosure must be delivered to the buyer before a binding contract is executed. If you deliver it late, after the contract is signed, the buyer has the right to terminate within 7 days of receiving it. Honesty here protects you legally. Concealing known defects can result in lawsuits after closing.
Certain sales are exempt from the disclosure requirement: foreclosure sales, transfers by a court-appointed trustee or estate/trust, transfers between co-owners, and new construction that has never been occupied. If none of those apply to you, fill the form out completely and accurately. Glen will walk you through every section.
Offers Come In
Price is not the only number that matters.
When offers arrive, resist the urge to fixate on the top-line price. A strong offer is a combination of terms: earnest money (typically 1-3% of the purchase price, more signals a serious buyer), option period length (shorter is better for you), appraisal gap coverage (the buyer agrees to cover a shortfall between appraised value and contract price), leaseback terms (if you need time after closing), and closing timeline flexibility.
59% of Texas listings still attract multiple offers. In a multiple-offer scenario, clean terms often beat the highest price. An offer at $5K over asking with no appraisal gap coverage, a long option period, and a pile of repair requests may net you less than a slightly lower offer with tight terms and a committed buyer.
Seller concessions, contributions toward the buyer's closing costs, are present in over 90% of transactions. Expect buyers to ask. Glen will advise you on which concessions are reasonable and which ones to push back on during negotiation.
Buyer's Option
The option period, explained.
The option period is a Texas-specific contract provision that gives the buyer the unrestricted right to terminate for any reason during a set window, typically 3-10 days, with 5-7 being most common. In exchange, the buyer pays a non-refundable option fee of $100-$350, which goes directly to you, the seller, regardless of whether the deal closes.
From the seller's perspective, a shorter option period means faster certainty. If the buyer is going to walk, you want to know on day 5, not day 10. A higher option fee signals a more committed buyer, a buyer willing to put $350 on the line is less likely to walk than one who offered $100.
Most inspections happen during the option period: general home inspection, termite/WDI, foundation, sewer scope, pool inspection. After the option period expires, the buyer's earnest money becomes at risk. If they terminate after that point without a contractual right (like a financing contingency or appraisal failure), you keep the earnest money.
Your Costs
What sellers actually pay at closing.
Total seller closing costs in Texas run 6-10% of the sale price. The largest line item is agent commissions at 5.5-6%. Non-commission costs add another 1.5-3.5%. Here is what to expect:
| Line Item | Typical Cost |
|---|---|
| Agent commissions (total) | 5.5-6% of sale price |
| Owner's title insurance | State-regulated, ~0.5-0.9% (seller pays by TX custom) |
| Prorated property taxes | Varies by close date |
| Escrow / settlement fee | $300-$600 (often split with buyer) |
| HOA resale certificate | $100-$300 |
| Survey (if required) | $400-$700 (negotiable) |
| State transfer tax | $0. Texas has none |
On a $400,000 sale, expect total seller costs of roughly $24,000-$40,000. Glen provides a seller net sheet before you list so you know your estimated proceeds before signing a listing agreement.
Commission Changes
What the NAR settlement means for sellers.
The 2024 NAR settlement changed how commissions are communicated, but the economics have barely moved. Total commissions in most Texas transactions remain around 5.5-6%, split roughly evenly between the listing agent and the buyer's agent.
The key change: MLSs can no longer display offers of buyer-agent compensation in the listing. Before the settlement, a listing would show something like "2.5% to buyer's agent." That field is gone. However, sellers can still offer buyer-side concessions, and most do. In practice, sellers commonly offer 2.5-3% to attract buyer-agent cooperation, just as before. The offer is simply communicated off-MLS.
Another change: buyers must now sign a written buyer representation agreement with their agent before touring homes. This does not affect you as the seller, but it means buyers who show up at your door are represented and have already committed to their agent's terms. For sellers, the practical takeaway is straightforward: commission rates have not meaningfully changed, and offering competitive buyer-agent compensation remains the norm.
Tax Implications
Capital gains and the Section 121 exclusion.
The federal government allows you to exclude up to $250,000 in capital gains from the sale of your primary residence if you are single, or $500,000 if married filing jointly. This exclusion comes from Section 121 of the Internal Revenue Code and is one of the most generous tax benefits available to homeowners.
To qualify, you must have owned and used the home as your primary residence for at least 2 of the last 5 years before the sale. The two years do not need to be consecutive. If you converted your home to a rental, you can rent it for up to 3 years and still qualify, as long as you lived in it for 2 of the prior 5 years.
Texas has no state capital gains tax. Your only exposure is federal. If your gain exceeds the exclusion, the excess is taxed at the federal long-term capital gains rate: 0%, 15%, or 20% depending on your income bracket. For most homeowners in New Braunfels, the $250K/$500K exclusion covers the full gain. Glen recommends consulting a CPA for situations involving inherited property, partial-year occupancy, or 1031 exchange planning.
The Timeline
From listing to closing, week by week.
The selling timeline has two phases. Listing to contract depends on pricing and market conditions, expect 2-12+ weeks in the current New Braunfels market, with well-priced homes landing a contract in the first two to three weeks. Contract to closing typically takes 30-45 days for a financed buyer, or as few as 7-14 days for a cash buyer.
Here is a week-by-week breakdown of the contract-to-close period:
Earnest money deposited. Title company opens the file and orders a title commitment.
Option period. Buyer conducts inspections (general, termite, foundation, etc.). Negotiation of repairs or credits. Option period expires, earnest money goes hard.
Lender orders appraisal. Survey is ordered or existing survey reviewed. Title commitment delivered and reviewed by both parties.
Underwriting review. Lender clears conditions. Buyer secures homeowner's insurance. Any remaining contingencies resolved.
Closing disclosure issued (3-day review required by law). Final walkthrough. Signing at the title company. Funds wire and title records, you are officially closed.
Cash transactions skip the appraisal and underwriting steps, which is why they close so much faster. Glen coordinates with the title company and buyer's agent to keep every deadline on track.
Ready to List?
Talk to Glen.
Glen will walk you through your home's market position and a realistic pricing strategy.