Sellers usually know their home's rough value. What surprises them at the settlement table is everything subtracted from it. The gap between sale price and the wire that hits your bank account has five or six line items in it, and in Pennsylvania a couple of them work differently than the national articles suggest.
Here is every cost, with 2026 numbers, ending with a full worked example at Franklin County's median sale price. The short version: plan on 7% to 10% of your sale price, plus whatever you still owe on the mortgage.
Agent Commissions After the NAR Settlement
This is your biggest line item, and it changed in 2024. Under the NAR settlement, buyer-agent compensation can no longer be advertised on the MLS, buyers must sign written agreements with their agents, and every piece of the commission is explicitly negotiable. So did fees collapse? Not really. A Clever survey of 533 agents in February 2026 found a national average total commission of 5.70%, with Pennsylvania averaging 5.77%: about 2.97% to the listing side and 2.80% to the buyer's side.
What actually changed is the conversation. As a seller you now decide, up front and in writing, whether to offer the buyer's agent anything. In our Franklin County market, most sellers still do, for a practical reason: a large share of local buyers are FHA, VA, or first-time purchasers with little spare cash, and asking them to pay their own agent out of pocket shrinks your buyer pool. Offering buyer-side compensation is a marketing decision, and it should be weighed listing by listing, not treated as automatic. Ask any listing agent you interview to walk you through both scenarios with real numbers before you sign.
What about skipping agents entirely? Selling by owner removes the listing fee but not the transfer tax, deed prep, prorations, or the buyer's expectations, and most FSBO sellers still end up paying a buyer's agent to get the deal done. National data has long shown FSBO homes selling for meaningfully less than agented ones. Run the math both ways before you decide; we are happy to show you ours.
Pennsylvania Realty Transfer Tax: The 2% Nobody Warns You About
Pennsylvania charges a realty transfer tax of 1% to the state, plus a local share that brings the total to 2% in most Franklin County municipalities (the local 1% is typically split between the municipality and school district). On a $272,000 sale, that is $5,440 in tax due at closing.
Who pays it? Legally, the state does not care; the parties can split it any way they agree, and both are liable if it goes unpaid. By long-standing custom in Franklin County and most of Pennsylvania, buyer and seller split it 50/50, so the seller's customary share is 1% of the price. In a strong seller's market we occasionally see buyers offer to pay all of it to sweeten an offer; in a slower market, some sellers absorb the full 2% as a negotiating concession. Certain transfers, such as those between spouses or parents and children, are exempt.
Deed Prep, Payoffs, and the Smaller Line Items
Pennsylvania does not require an attorney at closing, and the buyer customarily pays for title insurance here. But a few smaller charges land on the seller's side of the settlement sheet:
- Deed preparation: usually $150 to $350 for an attorney or title company to draft the new deed. Seller pays by custom.
- Mortgage payoff and lien letters: your lender charges a small fee for the payoff statement, and per-diem interest accrues to the day of closing. Any second mortgage, HELOC (even at a zero balance, it must be closed and released), judgment, or municipal lien gets paid from your proceeds.
- Municipal certifications: tax certification and sewer/water certification letters, typically $25 to $75 each depending on the municipality.
- Notary, recording, and overnight fees: usually under $200 combined on the seller side.
- Use and occupancy or resale inspections: some boroughs require a pre-sale inspection or certificate; many Franklin County townships do not. We confirm this per municipality when we list.
Pro-Rated Property Taxes
You owe property taxes for every day you own the home, and settlement squares this up to the day. Franklin County homeowners get county and municipal bills on a calendar year and a school bill that runs July through June, so the proration depends on your closing date. Close in October having already paid the school bill through next June, and the buyer reimburses you thousands at closing. Close in May with the school bill not yet issued, and you will be charged your share instead.
The point: proration can swing your net by a few thousand dollars in either direction, so have your agent estimate it before you pick a closing date. For the fuller picture of how millage rates and assessments work here, see our guide to Franklin County property taxes.
Seller Assists and Concessions: The 2026 Reality
A seller assist is a credit toward the buyer's closing costs, capped by loan type (typically 3% to 6% for FHA and conventional loans depending on down payment). It effectively reduces your price without changing the number on the contract.
Nationally, concessions are at record levels: Redfin reported that 46% of sellers gave buyers a concession in May 2026, the highest share on record for that month. Franklin County follows the same pattern in the entry and mid price ranges, where FHA and first-time buyers dominate. A 2% to 3% assist request ($5,400 to $8,200 on a median-price sale) is common in offers we negotiate. You do not have to grant one, but pricing your home as if a partial assist may happen keeps you from being blindsided. If you are also debating what comes next after selling, our renting vs. buying in Chambersburg comparison is a useful next read.
Getting the House Ready: Prep and Staging
Pre-sale prep is the one cost you control completely. Our standing advice for most Franklin County homes: deep clean, fresh neutral paint where it is tired, mulch and trimmed shrubs, and fix the small stuff a buyer's inspector will flag anyway. That usually runs a few hundred to $2,000 if you hire it out, less if you do it yourself.
Full professional staging with rented furniture can cost $1,500 to $4,000 and rarely pays for itself on typical homes here; we reserve it for vacant or higher-end listings. Most of our sellers get 90% of the effect from decluttering and a consultation. One cost you can cross off entirely: every client who sells with us gets our free moving truck on moving day, which typically saves a local move $100 or more in rental fees.
Taxes on Your Profit: Usually Zero, But Check
One cost most Franklin County sellers can cross off is capital gains tax. The federal Section 121 exclusion lets you shelter up to $250,000 of gain ($500,000 for a married couple filing jointly) on a home you owned and used as your primary residence for at least two of the last five years. Pennsylvania mirrors that treatment for its state income tax on a qualifying principal residence. At local price points, very few owner-occupants clear those thresholds.
The exceptions matter, though. Sold a rental or a flip? The exclusion does not apply, and depreciation you claimed gets recaptured federally. Inherited the property, used part of it for business, or lived there less than two years? The math changes. None of this is due at the settlement table, but talk to your tax preparer before you list so April holds no surprises.
A Worked Example: Selling at Franklin County's Median Price
Zillow data through April 2026 puts Franklin County's median sale price at about $272,000. Here is a realistic settlement-sheet estimate at that price:
- Total commission at 5.5%: $14,960 (listing and buyer side combined, as negotiated)
- Seller's half of the 2% transfer tax: $2,720
- Deed preparation: $250
- Certifications, notary, recording, payoff fees: $300
- Property tax proration: call it $800 owed (varies widely with closing date; can be a credit instead)
- Seller assist to an FHA buyer: $4,000
- Pre-sale prep and touch-ups: $1,200
Total: roughly $24,230, or about 8.9% of the sale price. A seller who negotiates a lower commission, gives no assist, and closes right after paying the school bill might land near 6.5%. One who offers a full assist in a slow month might touch 11%. Everything above is before your mortgage payoff, which is the final subtraction: on this sale with a $150,000 balance, you would walk away with proceeds in the neighborhood of $98,000.
Before you list, get the real number for your house, not an internet estimate. We prepare a written net sheet with every line item for any seller, no obligation, as part of our free home valuation. Reach out and we will run yours this week.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to sell a house in Pennsylvania?
Plan on roughly 7% to 10% of the sale price once you add commissions, your customary half of the 2% transfer tax, deed prep, tax prorations, and any concessions. On a $272,000 Franklin County median sale, that is typically $19,000 to $27,000 before the mortgage payoff.
Who pays the transfer tax when selling a house in PA?
Pennsylvania collects 1% for the state plus local shares totaling 2% in most Franklin County municipalities. The split is negotiable by law, but local custom is 50/50, so sellers usually pay 1% of the sale price.
Do I need a lawyer to sell a house in Pennsylvania?
No. A title company typically handles settlement, and the seller pays a deed preparation fee of about $150 to $350. Estates, divorces, and title problems are the exceptions where hiring a real estate attorney is money well spent.
What is a seller assist and will I have to give one?
It is a credit toward the buyer's closing costs, common with FHA, VA, and first-time buyers here. Redfin reported about 46% of sellers nationwide gave some concession in May 2026. Assists of 2% to 3% are typical locally, but they are a negotiating lever, not a requirement.
How can I reduce the cost of selling my house in PA?
Negotiate commission openly, price accurately so you are not forced into concessions after weeks on market, do the simple prep yourself, and ask your agent what not to fix. The cheapest sale is usually the one that is priced right on day one.
Do sellers pay property taxes at closing in Pennsylvania?
You pay your share through the day of closing via proration. If you prepaid a bill that covers months after closing, the buyer reimburses you at settlement, so depending on timing this line can be a charge or a credit.