About
Source library
These are the primary sources our guides lean on most. Each guide also lists the specific sources used on that page. Where the answer depends on your state, we go to that state's own authorities.
Federal: taxes and consumer protection
National rules on home-sale taxes, mortgages, closing documents, and lead paint.
- Topic no. 701, Sale of your home
Internal Revenue Service
The capital-gains exclusion on a main home: up to $250,000, or $500,000 for a married couple filing jointly.
- Publication 523, Selling Your Home
Internal Revenue Service
The full rules and worksheets for figuring gain, basis, and the exclusion when you sell.
- Owning a home
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
The federal walkthrough of the mortgage and closing process for buyers.
- Loan Estimate explainer
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
The standardized three-page form a lender must give you within three business days of applying.
- Closing Disclosure explainer
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
The final loan and cost document, due at least three business days before closing.
- What are appraisals and why do I need to look at them?
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
How a lender values a home and what happens when an appraisal comes in low.
- Real estate disclosures about potential lead hazards
US Environmental Protection Agency
The federal lead-paint disclosure required when selling a home built before 1978.
Industry: commissions and practice
The 2024 changes to how buyer-agent compensation is communicated and documented.
- What the NAR settlement means for home buyers and sellers
National Association of Realtors
The plain summary of the August 2024 practice changes. An industry source, so we label it as such.
- NAR settlement FAQs
National Association of Realtors
The detailed questions and answers on compensation, written agreements, and concessions.
State and local
Where the rules are local
Disclosures, closing practice, transfer taxes, and whether an attorney is involved all change from state to state, and sometimes by county. For those, we go to each state's real estate commission, its county recorder or registry of deeds, and its department of revenue. You will find the specific ones we used cited on each state guide.