The Montana Home-Selling Process: Your Step-by-Step Checklist

Your agent posts your listing on the MLS with photos, description, and pricing. Since the NAR settlement took effect August 17, 2024, the MLS cannot show offers of buyer-broker pay as a structured field — that compensation now gets handled through the purchase agreement or directly between brokerages.

Cost: $0

You can still offer to help pay the buyer's broker, but it can't be advertised in the MLS anymore. You can put it in the listing agreement, advertise it through your agent's direct outreach to buyer agents, or handle it as a seller concession written into each offer. Walk through the trade-offs with your agent.

Cost: varies

Buyers will tour the home with their own agents or visit open houses. Make the place look lived-in but not cluttered, turn on lights, and step out for showings so buyers feel free to talk openly. Most homes get the strongest offers in the first 2-3 weeks on the market.

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Look at price, financing type, contingencies, closing date, and any requests for repairs or seller concessions. Montana offers usually arrive on the Montana Association of REALTORS Buy-Sell Agreement, which has dedicated sections for water rights, mineral rights, and personal property — pay attention to which items the buyer is asking to include or exclude.

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You can accept, reject, or counter any offer. Counters can adjust price, closing date, contingencies, or which items stay with the home. Once both sides sign the same version of the contract, the deal is binding.

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Montana uses title companies, not attorneys, to handle residential closings. Your agent sends the fully signed Buy-Sell Agreement to the title company, which opens the escrow file, orders a title commitment, and starts gathering payoff demands from your lender.

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The buyer's earnest money has to land in a separate trust account no later than the third business day after the broker receives it under Montana rules. It stays in that trust account — not the broker's regular operating account — until closing or contract cancellation. Confirm with your agent that the deposit cleared.

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Montana law requires you to tell the buyer about material facts you actually know — things like roof leaks, foundation issues, flooding history, drainage problems, or pest infestations. You fill out the seller property condition disclosure form and deliver it to the buyer. When in doubt, disclose — failure to share known issues can come back as a lawsuit after closing.

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Water rights in Montana follow the prior appropriation doctrine — they are separate from land ownership and have to be specifically conveyed in the contract. Mineral rights are often severed in eastern Montana, meaning a third party may own what's beneath the ground. Conservation easements run with the land and bind every future owner. List what you have, what you're transferring, and what's excluded.

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If you're selling a condo, Montana's Unit Ownership Act requires you and the association to deliver the declaration, bylaws, rules, current assessments, special assessments, reserve fund balance, and any pending litigation. The buyer has a right to rescind the contract within a set review period after receiving the full packet, so don't drag your feet getting it together.

Cost: varies

If your home was built before 1978, federal law requires you to disclose any known lead-based paint or hazards, share any test reports you have, give the buyer the EPA pamphlet, and include the federal disclosure language in the contract. This applies in every state — Montana has no separate state version, so you rely on the federal rule.

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Montana law requires sellers to disclose if they know the property was ever used to manufacture or store methamphetamine, even after professional decontamination has been done. If you have a certificate of decontamination from a certified contractor, share it with the buyer. Hiding this is a serious legal and health risk.

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The buyer will hire a licensed home inspector to check the roof, foundation, plumbing, electrical, HVAC, and appliances. Plan to be out of the house for 2-4 hours during the inspection. Make sure crawlspaces, attics, and electrical panels are accessible.

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On top of a general inspection, the buyer may order radon tests, well water tests, septic inspections, sewer scopes, or pest inspections. Each one needs scheduled access. Rural Montana properties with wells and septic systems almost always get separate tests.

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After inspections, the buyer typically sends a written list asking for repairs, credits, or a price reduction. Read it with your agent and figure out what's reasonable. You don't have to fix everything — but big-ticket safety items (electrical hazards, structural issues, leaking roof) are usually worth addressing to keep the deal alive.

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Counter the buyer's response with what you'll do — fix items, give a closing credit, drop the price, or refuse. Closing credits are often simpler than doing the repairs yourself because the buyer can hire whoever they want. Get any final agreement signed in writing as an addendum to the contract.

Cost: varies

If you agreed to fix items, get them done before closing and keep all receipts and contractor invoices. The buyer's final walk-through will check that the work was actually completed. Use licensed contractors for plumbing, electrical, and HVAC work so receipts hold up if there's a dispute.

Cost: varies

The buyer's lender hires an appraiser to confirm the home is worth at least the contract price. The appraiser usually takes 30-60 minutes to walk through, measure, and photograph the property. Cleanliness and minor presentation tweaks can affect their value opinion, so don't go dirty on appraisal day.

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If the appraisal comes in below the contract price, the buyer's lender will only loan against the appraised value. Your options: lower your price to match, ask the buyer to bring extra cash, split the difference, or challenge the appraisal with comparable sales. Most contracts let either side walk if you can't agree.

Cost: varies

The lender will underwrite the loan after the appraisal clears — they'll review the buyer's income, credit, debts, and the appraised value. Once the loan is fully approved, the buyer's financing contingency is removed. Don't celebrate until you see the contingency removal in writing.

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Don't start big projects, remove fixtures the contract says stay, or do anything that could change the property's condition between appraisal and closing. The buyer's final walk-through expects the home in the same shape it was when they wrote the offer — minus any repairs you agreed to.

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The title company prepares an ALTA settlement statement showing every credit and debit at closing — sale price, mortgage payoff, prorated taxes, commission, title fees, and your net proceeds. Read it line by line. Montana has no real estate transfer tax, no state deed tax, and no county transfer tax, so your closing costs are typically lower than in many other states.

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Your title company needs current payoff statements from your mortgage lender (and any second mortgage, HELOC, or lien holder) to know exactly how much to wire off at closing. Authorize the title company to request payoffs early — they sometimes take a week to come back.

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Call your electric, gas, water, sewer, trash, internet, and propane providers to schedule final meter reads for the closing date. Don't shut anything off before closing — the buyer may need utilities on for the final walk-through and any last-minute inspections.

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Plan to be fully moved out by the date and time stated in the contract — usually by closing day or earlier. Leave the home broom-clean, remove all personal items unless the contract says they stay, and dispose of trash, paints, and chemicals properly.

Cost: varies

Usually within 1-3 days of closing, the buyer walks through the property one last time to confirm it's in agreed condition and any repairs are done. Make sure access is easy, repairs are completed, and the home is clean. If they find a problem, the title company can hold back funds at closing to address it.

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Bring a current government-issued photo ID (driver's license or passport) and any wiring instructions for where your net proceeds should go. If you're signing on behalf of a trust, LLC, or estate, bring the authorization documents the title company requested in advance.

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Closings in Montana happen at the title company office (or remotely with notarization). The escrow officer walks you through the documents — the deed, settlement statement, payoff authorization, and any required affidavits. The escrow officer can answer factual questions but cannot give legal advice; bring an attorney if you want one.

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You'll sign the warranty deed transferring ownership to the buyer in front of a notary. The title company records the deed with the county clerk and recorder once funds clear. After recording, you no longer own the property.

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If you are not a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, federal FIRPTA rules require the buyer to withhold a portion of your sale proceeds and send it to the IRS. The standard rate is 15% of the gross sale price; reduced rates may apply for primary-residence buyers under specific price thresholds. Talk to a tax professional well before closing — the withholding comes out of your proceeds at the closing table.

Cost: 10-15% of sale price withheld

After the deed records and the buyer's funds clear, the title company disburses the funds owed to you. Most sellers choose a wire transfer to their bank — verify the wire instructions in person or by phone (never by email) to avoid wire fraud. A paper check is also possible but takes longer to clear.

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Once closing is funded and recorded, hand over keys, garage door openers, mailbox keys, manuals, and any warranties on appliances or systems. The buyer typically takes possession at closing unless the contract sets a different possession date.

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