How to sell a house by owner in Massachusetts: the steps, the paperwork, and the rules you cannot skip

Published September 10, 2026 · Written by Sell My Mass House · Every statute and regulation cited is linked in the Sources section below.

In this guide

1. What a by owner sale means in Massachusetts
2. Step 1: price it from public records, not from a guess
3. Step 2: get the required paperwork ready before the first showing
4. Step 3: market it, and follow fair housing law
5. Step 4: the offer, and why it is not a formality here
6. Step 5: the attorney, the purchase and sale agreement, and the closing
7. Step 6: after the sale
8. When a by owner sale is not the right tool
9. Frequently asked questions
10. Sources

What a by owner sale means in Massachusetts

Selling by owner, often written FSBO, means no listing agent. It does not mean no professionals. In Massachusetts the closing is run by an attorney, the buyer's lender will have its own attorney, and the state's transfer rules apply whether or not anyone is licensed. What you take on yourself is the part an agent normally does: setting the price, getting the house in front of buyers, handling showings, and negotiating the offer. What you save is the listing side of the commission. Whether a buyer's agent is paid, and by whom, is negotiable and should be put in writing before you accept an offer.

Step 1: price it from public records, not from a guess

Massachusetts makes this easier than most states because the records are public and online:

• Registry of deeds records for most counties are searchable at masslandrecords.com. Recorded deeds show what nearby houses actually sold for and when. That is the same data an agent's comparable sales report is built on.
• The assessor's database for your city or town lists every property's assessed value, lot size, living area, and year built. Assessed value is not market value, but the assessor's record is how you confirm the facts about your own house and its neighbors.
• Massachusetts Association of Realtors monthly reports give the county level median price and days on market, which tells you how much room you have.

Price from three to five recent recorded sales of houses like yours on streets like yours, adjusted for condition. If you cannot find comparable sales, a licensed appraiser can produce a report for a flat fee, and it will also be useful if a buyer's appraisal comes in low.

Step 2: get the required paperwork ready before the first showing

Buyers, their attorneys, and their lenders will ask for these, and having them ready is what makes a by owner sale look professional:

1. Lead paint notification. If the house was built before 1978, General Laws chapter 111, section 197A requires you to give the buyer the state notification form and any lead inspection reports, and the buyer gets at least ten days to have a lead inspection before signing a purchase and sale agreement. Federal law, 42 U.S.C. section 4852d, adds the federal pamphlet and a lead warning statement in the contract.
2. Title 5. If the house is on septic, 310 CMR 15.301 requires an inspection by a licensed inspector within two years before the transfer, or three years if the system was pumped annually with records. Book it early. Inspectors are busy in spring.
3. Smoke and carbon monoxide alarm certificate. General Laws chapter 148, section 26F requires the local fire department to inspect and certify the alarms at transfer. Schedule it once you have a closing date.
4. Your deed, your mortgage payoff statement, and the last tax bill. The closing attorney needs all three.
5. Condo documents and the 6(d) certificate under chapter 183A, section 6, if you are selling a condominium.

Massachusetts has no general seller disclosure form, but you may not misrepresent the house, and you must answer direct questions truthfully. Handing over old inspection reports and permits protects you more than hiding them does.

Step 3: market it, and follow fair housing law

Listing photos, a yard sign, online listings, and word of mouth are the by owner toolkit. Some sellers pay a broker a flat fee to place the house on the Multiple Listing Service without other services, which puts it in front of buyer's agents. Two rules apply to every ad and every conversation:

• Fair housing. General Laws chapter 151B, section 4 prohibits discrimination in the sale of housing on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, familial status, and other protected classes, and the federal Fair Housing Act applies as well. Describe the house, not the buyer you imagine for it.
• Honesty. Advertising that misstates the house's size, condition, or features is misrepresentation, and a buyer who relies on it has a claim.

Step 4: the offer, and why it is not a formality here

In Massachusetts a buyer typically presents a short form Offer to Purchase with a small deposit, and the two sides then sign a longer Purchase and Sale Agreement a week or two later with a larger deposit. Many sellers treat the offer as a handshake. The Supreme Judicial Court does not. In McCarthy v. Tobin, 429 Mass. 84 (1999), the court held that a signed offer to purchase that contains the essential terms can be a binding contract even though a fuller agreement is expected to follow. So read the offer as a contract, watch the contingencies (inspection, financing, sale of the buyer's home), and have your attorney look at it before you sign.

Step 5: the attorney, the purchase and sale agreement, and the closing

This is the step a by owner seller cannot do alone. In Real Estate Bar Association v. National Real Estate Information Services, 459 Mass. 512 (2011), the Supreme Judicial Court held that a Massachusetts real estate closing, including the transfer of title and the disbursement of funds, must be conducted by a licensed attorney. In practice:

• Your attorney drafts or reviews the Purchase and Sale Agreement, holds the buyer's deposit in escrow, prepares the deed, and orders the mortgage payoff.
• The buyer's lender's attorney examines the title, runs the closing, and disburses the money.
• Either attorney can record the deed at the registry, where the seller's deeds excise under chapter 64D, section 1 is paid from the proceeds.

Attorney fees for a seller are a fraction of a listing commission, and they buy you the one thing a by owner sale most often lacks: someone whose job is to make sure the paperwork is right.

Step 6: after the sale

If you had a Declaration of Homestead under chapter 188 on the house, it ends with the sale, and you should record a new one on your next home. If you had a gain, IRS Publication 523 explains the main home exclusion of up to $250,000, or $500,000 if married filing jointly, for owners who lived in the house for two of the last five years.

When a by owner sale is not the right tool

By owner works best for a house in good condition, in a market with buyers, owned by someone with the time to manage showings and the patience to wait for the right offer and the buyer's mortgage. It works poorly for a house that needs work, a house that must sell by a date, an estate with several heirs, or an owner who does not want strangers walking through. For those, the honest comparison is between a by owner listing and a direct sale to a cash buyer: the listing may net more if it succeeds, and the direct sale nets a known number on a known date with no showings. Get both numbers. If the listing would clearly net more, a straight buyer will say so.

Frequently asked questions

Compare a direct cash sale with listing, including a by owner listing, and see which nets more.