What It Actually Costs to Sell a House in Georgia

Start with the number that actually matters

There's a number every seller wants to know: What am I going to walk away with?

Not what the house lists for. Not what the neighbor got last spring. What actually lands in your bank account when it's all said and done.

You'd be surprised how many sellers don't have a clear answer until they're sitting at the closing table. That's a pretty lousy time to discover you're walking away with $15,000 less than you expected.

Let's look at where the money goes.

Eight common categories of seller expenses in Georgia

These aren't the only expenses that can appear on a closing statement. Every property and transaction is different. But these are some of the big ones worth understanding before you put a sign in the yard.

1. 01

   Mortgage payoff

   If you owe money on the house, that loan generally gets paid off when you sell.

   And here's something that catches people: Your mortgage balance isn't necessarily your payoff amount.

   Interest continues accruing, and there may be other amounts due. That number on your last statement could already be outdated.

   Get a written payoff quote from your lender. If you have a second mortgage or home equity line of credit, we'll need to account for those too.

2. 02

   Listing-side compensation

   This is what you pay the brokerage representing you in the sale.

   It covers the services agreed to in your listing agreement, which can include pricing guidance, marketing, negotiations, contract management, and getting the transaction to closing.

   Broker compensation isn't set by law. It's negotiable, and the services you receive should be part of that conversation.

   At Amplifier, our fee is 1.5% of the sale price, payable at closing. That includes professional photography, aerial photography, MLS exposure, negotiations, and representation through closing.

   That's $6,000 on a $400,000 sale.

   We don't believe you should have to pay for a bunch of unnecessary overhead to get competent representation. That's a big part of why Amplifier exists.

   Our 1.5% is the listing-side fee. It doesn't include buyer-broker compensation or other seller closing expenses.

   See how we compare →

3. 03

   Buyer-broker compensation

   This is compensation for the brokerage representing the buyer, when applicable.

   And no, there's no law requiring you to pay a buyer's agent a particular percentage. There's no mandatory standard rate, either.

   Since August 2024, offers of buyer-broker compensation can't be advertised through participating MLS systems, including Georgia MLS. That doesn't mean compensation disappeared. It means the conversation happens differently.

   You might agree to pay some or all of it. You might receive an offer requesting it. You might choose not to pay it.

   The important thing is understanding your options and evaluating the actual terms of an offer.

   A $400,000 offer asking you to pay $12,000 in buyer-broker compensation is not financially identical to a $400,000 offer without that request.

   Same price. Different math.

4. 04

   Closing attorney and settlement expenses

   Georgia real estate closings are handled by attorneys.

   The buyer commonly designates the closing attorney, particularly in transactions using standard Georgia purchase agreements. But who pays which expenses is a separate question.

   Depending on the contract, you may be responsible for deed preparation, certain settlement charges, or other seller-side costs.

   Some transactions are straightforward. Others come with additional title work, documents, or complications that cost money to resolve.

   Don't assume every closing attorney charges the same thing, and don't assume every fee belongs to the buyer.

   Get an estimate based on your actual transaction.

5. 05

   Georgia real estate transfer tax

   Georgia charges a tax when real estate is transferred.

   The basic rate works out to $1 per $1,000 of sale price, with the state's calculation rules accounting for fractional increments.

   On a $400,000 sale, that's $400.

   The seller is generally liable for the tax unless the contract allocates payment differently.

   Of all the expenses we're discussing, this one is usually pretty easy to calculate.

   Wouldn't it be nice if the rest were that simple?

6. 06

   Property taxes and prorations

   Here's one that confuses people because the money doesn't always move the direction they expect.

   Property taxes and certain association expenses are typically divided between buyer and seller based on the closing date and the contract.

   For example, if you sell in June before the year's property tax bill has been paid, you'll commonly give the buyer a credit for your share of the year. The buyer then handles the bill when it comes due.

   If you've already paid the full year's taxes, the buyer may instead reimburse you for their portion.

   That's proration.

   You're paying for the period you owned the property, even if you haven't received the bill yet. Welcome to prorations.

   The exact amount depends on the tax bill, payment status, closing date, and contract terms.

7. 07

   Seller concessions and repairs

   This is where a perfectly good-looking offer can get considerably less attractive.

   Maybe the buyer wants $5,000 toward closing costs. Maybe the inspection turns up a roof issue. Maybe the appraisal comes in lower than expected and everyone has to revisit the numbers.

   None of that automatically means you have to agree to a concession or repair.

   But these are real negotiations, and they can affect your proceeds.

   Don't get so fixated on the highest offer that you forget to look at everything attached to it.

   An extra $5,000 in purchase price doesn't do you much good if you're giving up another $12,000 to get the deal closed.

8. 08

   Other liens, loans, and property-related obligations

   Some houses have a little more baggage than others.

   Second mortgages, HELOCs, judgments, outstanding liens, unpaid association assessments, and certain solar financing arrangements can affect a sale.

   Not every loan associated with a property automatically has to be paid off at closing. The terms of the obligation, title requirements, and negotiated agreement determine what happens.

   But if there's something attached to the property that needs to be resolved, you want to know about it early.

   Especially that solar loan the salesman swore would "pay for itself."

The math on a $400,000 house

Let's put some actual numbers to this.

Say your home sells for $400,000. You have a $250,000 mortgage payoff, and we're comparing Amplifier's 1.5% listing fee with an illustrative 3% listing fee.

For this example, we'll hold everything else constant.

One line changed. Six grand moved. That's third-grade math.

The point isn't that every seller will save exactly $6,000. The point is that the fee you agree to pay has a direct impact on what you keep.

And if two agents are offering different prices, it's worth understanding exactly what you're getting for the difference.

Where sellers get blindsided

• Planning around the list price. You can list a house for whatever number you want. That doesn't mean a buyer will pay it. Build your estimates around realistic sale prices supported by the market.
• Treating the mortgage payoff like it's frozen. It isn't. Interest keeps accruing, and the final payoff depends on when the loan is actually paid.
• Counting prepaid money twice. If you already paid certain expenses, they don't necessarily appear as new deductions at closing. But that doesn't mean you'll get all that money back, either. Your tax and escrow adjustments need to be accounted for correctly.
• Making assumptions about buyer-broker compensation. Understand your options before offers arrive. Then evaluate what each buyer is actually asking for. Preferably not while you're taking a phone call in the Publix parking lot.
• Chasing the biggest number. A higher purchase price doesn't automatically mean a better offer. Financing, concessions, contingencies, repair requests, and the likelihood of actually closing all matter.

Do you have to pay the buyer's agent?

That doesn't mean requests for buyer-broker compensation should automatically be rejected.

Sometimes agreeing to pay it makes financial sense. Sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes the buyer has the funds to cover it independently, and sometimes that expense affects what they can afford to offer.

There's no universal answer.

What matters is the whole offer and what it means for you.

That's where having someone who can explain the options without trying to make the decision for you becomes useful.

Have your agent build you a net sheet

A net sheet is an estimate of what you could walk away with after the expenses of selling your home.

It's not complicated, but it is important.

And any agent you're considering should be willing to walk you through one before you commit to listing.

Here's what I want to see on it:

1. Your estimated mortgage payoff

   Based on current information, with a written lender quote obtained when appropriate.

2. A realistic sale price range

   Based on actual market activity, not just what active listings are asking.

3. Listing compensation in dollars

   A percentage is easy to say. Show me what it costs on the sale we're discussing.

4. Buyer-broker compensation scenarios

   Show what happens if the seller agrees to pay none, some, or all of a requested amount.

5. Estimated closing expenses and prorations

   Transfer tax, applicable attorney expenses, property taxes, and other known costs.

6. A conservative scenario

   What happens if the sale price is lower than expected or the buyer negotiates concessions?

And the net sheet shouldn't disappear into a folder once the house is listed.

As the price, offers, and expenses change, the estimate should change with them.

At Amplifier, we'll help you understand those numbers before listing and revisit them as meaningful information changes.

Because a net sheet that never gets updated is eventually just a nicely formatted guess.

Check your local market

Understanding your expenses is only half the equation.

The other half is knowing what buyers are actually paying for homes like yours.

A house listed at $425,000 isn't necessarily a house worth $425,000. We need to look at comparable sales, current competition, property condition, and what buyers are doing in your particular market.

We've built local market pages covering the North Georgia communities we serve, with regularly refreshed housing data.

Take a look at your county, get a feel for the market, and use that information as a starting point.

The bottom line

Selling a house costs money. There's no getting around that.

But you should know what those expenses look like before you agree to anything, and you should understand how each offer affects what you actually keep.

That's not some extraordinary level of service. It's basic representation.

If you're thinking about selling in North Georgia, we'll help you work through the numbers, understand your options, and decide what makes sense.

No mystery math required.

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