What it actually costs to sell a Bay Area home

Ask most homeowners what it costs to sell and you’ll hear one word: commission. That’s the largest line, but it’s one of seven, and sellers who see the whole list up front make better decisions about pricing, prep, and timing than sellers who discover it in escrow. Here is the whole list.

The seven lines between list price and your wire

Commissions. The listing-side commission is negotiated between us up front, in writing, and paid at close from your proceeds. Since the 2024 settlement changed the rules, any compensation offered to a buyer’s broker is negotiated separately and openly too. You can offer a flat amount, a percentage, or nothing; we choose based on your competition and buyer pool, because the goal is your best net, not a custom.

Transfer taxes. The county collects a documentary transfer tax on the sale, and some cities (San Jose among them, above certain price points) collect their own on top. This is a real line on Bay Area sales and it surprises people. We calculate yours precisely before we price.

Escrow, title, and reports. The escrow fee, the owner’s title insurance policy, and the natural hazard disclosure report. Roughly $1,500 to $4,000 combined depending on price and county custom, and who pays which piece varies by county convention. Negotiable, like most things.

Pre-list prep. Paint, landscaping, staging, photography, and the handful of repairs that actually move price. This is the one category where spending well earns its money back, and spending badly doesn’t. My rule: cosmetic fixes under a few thousand dollars that improve the first ten seconds of a tour usually pay; major remodels on a home you’re leaving usually don’t.

Pre-listing inspections, if we choose them. A few hundred to $1,500. Often worth it: buyers bid with more confidence against a known quantity.

Prorations. Property taxes, HOA dues, and utilities get split to the day of closing. Not a surprise, just arithmetic.

Your mortgage payoff. The principal balance plus interest to the payoff date and any recording fees. The number on your statement is not quite the payoff number; escrow orders the exact figure.

The number that matters is the net

List price is the headline. Net is the answer. Before we set any price, I build your net sheet at three candidate list prices side by side, so you can see exactly how the headline moves what lands in your account. Sellers who choose a price by its net choose better than sellers who choose the biggest number a listing agent says out loud.

And one caution that belongs in every money conversation: when it’s time for your proceeds to wire, we confirm the instructions by phone with escrow directly. Wire fraud targets closings. It’s rare, it’s real, and a two-minute phone call defeats it.

If you’re weighing a sale and want the real arithmetic for your home, that’s a 45-minute conversation and a net sheet. No pitch, no pressure.