Real estate & rental
Seller Closing Cost Calculator
Totals a seller's closing costs, where the compensation agreements are the figures to use.
Result
Who pays which closing cost is set by state law and local custom, not by a national rule, so the split here is whatever you enter. Your loan estimate and closing disclosure are the authoritative figures for an actual transaction; this is for working out roughly what to have ready. Commission is normally the largest single item and it is negotiable. The tax proration covers the part of the period you owned the property, so it varies with the closing date rather than being a fixed fee. The payoff figure should come from your servicer rather than from your last statement, because it includes interest to the closing date and any prepayment or recording charges.
Get a Free Business AuditHow the calculation works
Compensation payable under the agreements the seller has entered into, transfer taxes and recording charges where the seller pays them, title and settlement charges customary for the locality, prorated property taxes to the closing date, the loan payoff, and any credits negotiated. The result is subtracted from the price to give net proceeds.
What moves the number
- Compensation agreed in the listing and any other agreements.
- Transfer taxes, which vary by state and locality.
- Prorated property taxes to closing.
- Repair credits negotiated after inspection.
Where this one goes wrong
Compensation is negotiable and determined by agreement between the parties rather than by any standard rate, so the figures to put in are the ones in your own signed agreements. Prorations are the item most often misunderstood: whether the seller owes or is owed depends on whether local taxes are billed in advance or in arrears, and the two conventions produce opposite results. Ask the settlement agent which applies before estimating.
Before you quote
- Use the compensation figures in your own signed agreements.
- Ask whether local taxes are billed in advance or in arrears.
- Allow for credits that may be negotiated after inspection.
Where the rules come from
Questions
About this calculator
What compensation figures should a seller use?
The ones in their own agreements. Compensation in a real estate transaction is negotiable and set by agreement between the parties rather than following a standard rate, so any assumed percentage is a guess about a contract you can simply read.
Do prorated taxes mean I owe money or receive it?
It depends on whether your locality bills in advance or in arrears, and the two conventions produce opposite results. Asking the settlement agent which applies is the only reliable way to know before the statement arrives.
What is most often missed from a seller's estimate?
Repair credits negotiated after inspection and the full loan payoff including interest to closing. Both arrive late in the process, and together they are the usual reason net proceeds come in below what the seller expected.
The formula
net proceeds = price - commission - transfer tax - title and escrow - concessions - other fees - tax proration - mortgage payoff
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How to use this calculator
- Sale price ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $380,000.
- Total real estate commission (%). Whatever you have agreed. Commission is negotiable and is not set by any rule.
- Transfer tax and recording (%). Varies by state and county. Some states charge the buyer instead, and some have none.
- Title, escrow and settlement ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $1,800.
- Concessions and repair credits to the buyer ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $3,000.
- Attorney, HOA and other fees ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $900.
The result updates as you type, so you can try a figure, see what it does to you walk away with, and change it back. Nothing you enter is sent anywhere or saved.
A worked example
These are the figures the calculator opens with. Every number in the results column below is produced by the same calculation the page runs, so you can follow it through before putting your own figures in.
What goes in
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Sale price | $380,000 |
| Total real estate commission | 5% |
| Transfer tax and recording | 0.5% |
| Title, escrow and settlement | $1,800 |
| Concessions and repair credits to the buyer | $3,000 |
| Attorney, HOA and other fees | $900 |
| Annual property tax | $4,200 |
| Days of property tax you owe | 120 |
| Mortgage payoff | $240,000 |
What comes out
| Result | Value |
|---|---|
| You walk away with main result | $112,019 |
| Total selling costs | $27,981 |
| Commission | $19,000 |
| Transfer tax and recording | $1,900 |
| Property tax proration | $1,381 |
| Selling costs as a share of price | 7.4% |
| Proceeds before the mortgage payoff | $352,019 |
You walk away with $112,019. Selling costs take $27,981, which is 7.4% of the price, and commission alone is $19,000 of that. The mortgage payoff takes the rest.
How sensitive the answer is
Holding everything else steady and changing only sale price, this is what happens to you walk away with. It is worth knowing which of your inputs the answer actually hinges on, and which barely move it.
| Sale price ($) | You walk away with |
|---|---|
| $190,000 | -$67,531 |
| $285,000 | $22,244 |
| $380,000 example above | $112,019 |
| $570,000 | $291,569 |
| $760,000 | $471,119 |
Every other input is held at the example value while this one changes, which is not how a real job behaves. Treat it as a guide to which number matters most, not as five separate quotes.
What each figure means
- Sale price ($)
- A money amount, starting at $380,000.
- Total real estate commission (%)
- Whatever you have agreed. Commission is negotiable and is not set by any rule.
- Transfer tax and recording (%)
- Varies by state and county. Some states charge the buyer instead, and some have none.
- Title, escrow and settlement ($)
- A money amount, starting at $1,800.
- Concessions and repair credits to the buyer ($)
- A money amount, starting at $3,000.
- Attorney, HOA and other fees ($)
- A money amount, starting at $900.
- Annual property tax ($)
- A money amount, starting at $4,200.
- Days of property tax you owe
- From the start of the tax period to the closing date.
- Mortgage payoff ($)
- A money amount, starting at $240,000.
What the results tell you
| Result | What it is |
|---|---|
| You walk away with | The headline result. A money figure. |
| Total selling costs | A money figure. |
| Commission | A money figure. |
| Transfer tax and recording | A money figure. |
| Property tax proration | A money figure. |
| Selling costs as a share of price | A percentage. |
| Proceeds before the mortgage payoff | A money figure. |
What is not in this number
Property figures here exclude the costs that decide whether a deal works: vacancy, maintenance, management, capital expenditure and the transaction costs at both ends. A return that looks strong before those frequently does not survive them.
Keep going
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