Selling and buying without an agent in Arizona

Who runs your closing

Arizona is an escrow state. A neutral escrow company, usually the escrow branch of a title company, opens escrow when you sign the contract. It holds the earnest money, orders the title search and title insurance, follows the written escrow instructions from both sides, prepares the settlement statement, coordinates any lender funding, disburses the money, and records the deed with the county recorder. No Arizona statute requires a lawyer to conduct a residential sale, and most closings happen without one. You can still hire an attorney to review your contract, but that is optional.

What you must disclose

Arizona has no single statute that prescribes a disclosure form, yet the duty is strict. The Arizona Supreme Court held in Hill v. Jones that a seller must disclose known facts materially affecting the property’s value, whether or not the buyer asks. Sellers meet that duty with the Residential Seller’s Property Disclosure Statement, the SPDS, the standard form published by the Arizona Association of Realtors. Fill it out from your actual knowledge, covering the home’s systems, past repairs, and known defects. Watch one trap: if the home was ever used to manufacture methamphetamine or other drugs, that must be remediated or disclosed in writing within five days, and the buyer gains a right to cancel. Certain unsubdivided rural parcels also trigger a separate affidavit of disclosure under A.R.S. 33-422.

Transfer taxes

Arizona is one of the easy states here: there is no real estate transfer tax. Voters went further in 2008, adding Article IX, Section 24 to the state constitution, which bars the state and every county, city, and district from imposing any new tax or fee on transferring real property. The one transfer-specific charge at recording is a flat $2 fee that accompanies the Affidavit of Property Value filed with the deed under A.R.S. 11-1133. The sale price does not change that number, so there is no percentage to budget for.

The bottom line for doing it yourself

Selling without an agent in Arizona is about as friendly as it gets. The escrow company carries the procedural load for both sides, and the missing transfer tax removes a cost that trips up sellers elsewhere. Your real work is pricing the home, completing the SPDS honestly, and reviewing the contract before you sign. This is general information, not legal advice. If a clause gives you pause, an hour with an Arizona attorney is money well spent.