These States Have the Highest Home-Selling Costs, Study Shows

By True North Home Buyers

Cash flow seems to always be the goal when investors begin searching for a deal. Rarely, do they take into account the fees and expenses associated with the purchase or sale of a property.

Selling a typical home in Pennsylvania costs owners more than $27K in fees and taxes, taking nearly 10% of the sale price, according to an October 2026 real estate report. This freshly released study by True North Home Buyers reveals the top 10 most expensive housing markets where sellers pay the most to close a deal.

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• Delaware charges sellers a 1.5% state transfer tax, the highest in America, adding nearly $5.8K to the closing bill.
• Selling a house in California costs more than anywhere else in America, with the total passing $50K, and most of it goes to realtors.
• Agents in Vermont need around 2 months to find a buyer, but they still collect a 5% commission, about $23K on a typical home sale.

The research examined all 50 US states to find where selling a home costs the most. It added up what sellers typically pay at closing, including agent commissions, state transfer taxes, title insurance, and property taxes owed up to the sale date, plus attorney fees where they are customary. Each state's total was then measured against its median sale price, revealing where sellers give up the biggest share of their money.

Here's a look at the top 10 states where selling a home costs the most:

You can access the complete research findings here.

1. Pennsylvania

• Total selling cost: 8.29% of the sale price, about $27.4K on a typical home
• Median home price: $330.2K
• Agent commission: 5.71% of the sale price, nearly $18.9K
• State transfer tax: 1% of the sale price, about $3.3K
• Title insurance: about $2.6K

Pennsylvania is the most expensive state to sell a home. On a typical $330K house, the bill here comes to more than $27K, or 8.3% of the sale price. To put that into perspective, that share is closer to 6.5% in the rest of the country. Agents take the biggest piece at nearly $19K, but Pennsylvania adds its own extras on top. The state charges a 1% transfer tax worth about $3.3K, and title insurance adds another $2.6K because of higher regional premium rates.  

2. Michigan

Michigan is the second-most expensive state to put the house on the market. Realtors here take close to 6% of whatever the buyer pays, one of the highest commissions in the country, and the state adds a transfer tax of about $2.6K on top. By the time the papers are signed, around $24K is gone. Title insurance is part of that, as Michigan actually charges the highest rate in America for it, about $2.5K on a typical house.

3. Delaware

Delaware is another region where selling a house is expensive, with the state taking a big cut for itself. The 1.5% transfer tax is the highest rate in the country, which comes to nearly $5.8K on a typical $385K house. Beyond that, the real estate agents here also take a sizable share, around $21.5K on each sale, so the full bill lands above $30K. That is actually more than what sellers give up in Pennsylvania and Michigan. 

4. Vermont

Vermont sellers wait around two months for a buyer, and the wait does not make anything cheaper. When a deal finally closes, the state takes a 1.25% transfer tax, about $5.6K on a typical $448K house, and agents still collect about 5%, over $22K. Property taxes in Vermont are heavy too, so the part sellers owe up to closing day adds roughly $2.5K. All of it comes to nearly $33K, paid after two months of waiting for an offer.

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5. New Jersey

New Jersey rounds out the top five real estate markets where selling a house is expensive. Homeowners here pay the highestpropertytax bills in the country, close to $9.6K a year, so what a seller owes through closing day comes to about $4.8K. On top of that, agents take roughly $29K from a typical $580K house sale, and the state's transfer tax adds about $4.6K. Altogether, a New Jersey seller leaves about $41.5K behind at the closing table, one of the biggest bills in America.

A real estate market analyst from True North Home Buyers commented on the study:

"The agent's commission is the highest cost when selling a house, and it is not fixed. It can be negotiated, just like the price of the house itself. A rule change in 2024 by the National Association of Realtors made this easier, since commissions are now talked about openly between agents and sellers instead of being set by habit. My advice is to speak with two or three agents before listing and ask each one what they charge. Sellers who compare before choosing keep more of their money."

For more information, please visit​: https://truenorthbuyers.com