Seller Closing Cost Calculator for Ohio (2022 Data)

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Our Ohio closing cost calculator will help you estimate an accurate number for your closing costs. In Ohio, sellers typically pay around 6% to 9% of their home’s sale price in closing costs.

A large chunk of this goes to realtors (around 5% to 6%), while the rest covers fees you’ll incur as you transfer your home to a buyer, such as title inspections, property taxes, deed preparations, and transfer taxes.

Ohio seller closing cost calculator

Ohio seller closing cost breakdown

Though many fees depend on your home and county, some are standard for the state of Ohio. Here's a closer look at how much you can expect to pay when you sell a house in Ohio, as well as a breakdown of each fee.

Realtor commission fees

In addition to closing costs, you should expect to pay an average of 5.81% on realtor fees in Ohio.

Realtor commissions are usually the single biggest expense in a real estate transaction. The 5.81% fee covers the cost of both your listing agent and the buyer's agent. According to the 2024 NAR settlement, buyers now negotiate rates separately with their agent. However, they will typically ask you to include their agent fees in the costs of the transaction, so they don't have to bring extra cash out of pocket.

Conveyance fee (transfer tax)

The conveyance fee is a special tax that’s paid to cities, counties, or the state of Ohio (or all three) to transfer the property from seller to buyer. The statewide rate is $1 for every $1,000 of the home’s selling price, which is also called “one mil.” Individual counties may also impose their own transfer tax, which can be up to $3 per $1,000 in property value (“three mills”), or a percentage of the total sale price.

Deed preparation

Preparing a deed involves signing, notarizing, and delivering a deed from seller to buyer, usually through a real estate attorney. Many title companies offer this service for $75–$100. If you want to do this yourself, Ohio county recorders will charge you a $34 recording fee for the first two pages of your deed, plus $8 for every page after that. But if the deed doesn’t follow the correct formatting standards, you’ll have to pay a $20 fee.

Settlement fee

A settlement fee is the cost you pay for a settlement agent. These agents help transfer ownership from seller to buyer, run title examinations, and mediate between all parties involved in the home transaction.

Title examination

A title examination analyzes a property’s ownership history to ensure the title has no defects, problems, or liens. Lenders often require title examinations to avoid any problems that might stop a buyer from rightfully claiming the property as their own. They cost between $200–$375, and the seller pays for them.

Title insurance (owners policy)

Title insurance protects buyers from any title issues that come up after the title is transferred to their name. It can protect them from previous acts of fraud, forged deeds, liens of unpaid taxes, and other title problems.

Water hold

In many counties in Ohio, water companies can place a lien on a property if the water bill isn’t paid. Lenders and settlement attorneys will often ask sellers to put money in an escrow account for the final water bill (the “water hold” or “water escrow'' fee). Once the final bill is paid, the escrow manager will return the remaining money to the seller.

Broker services

This is a fixed fee that real estate agents charge to cover administrative costs, such as storing documents, marketing properties, using office supplies, and paying the salaries of non-licensed employees. Sometimes these fees can be negotiable.

Home warranty

A seller’s home warranty can mean two things:

• A limited home warranty that covers a home’s major systems or appliances before the seller closes on the home. This gives the seller financial protection in case something breaks before they can sell.
• A home warranty that covers the home after the seller closes, usually as an incentive to buyers.

For an annual premium on a home warranty, sellers can expect to pay $450–$700 in Ohio. It can be more if the seller wants to buy a warranty for themselves and the buyer.

Pest inspection

The average cost of a pest inspection in Ohio is $75–$150, though this isn't a mandatory cost. The state of Ohio only requires you to get a pest inspection if your buyer is purchasing with a VA loan.

Prorated property taxes

Sellers will pay property taxes for every month they inhabited the home up until the day of closing. For instance, if you sold your home in May, then you would pay property taxes for five months.

» MORE: Ohio seller closing costs and net proceeds calculator

How to save on Ohio seller closing costs

✅ Sell with a low commission realtor

The best way to reduce your fees is to work with a real estate agent who charges lower listing fees. Realtor fees make up the largest portion of your closing costs, roughly 5–6%. In Ohio, the average realtor charges around $12,130 in listing fees. In some scenarios, that’s more than quadruple your closing costs!

If you want to save, an agent-matching service can connect you with experienced low-commission real estate agents to sell your home. We recommend Clever Real Estate: it pre-negotiates low commission rates for sellers, with listing fees as low as 1.5%.

✅ Negotiate closing costs with the buyer

In hot seller's markets, buyers may be more willing to share certain fees with sellers to stand out from other buyers. If demand in your area is high, consider asking buyers to share some of the closing costs, such as real estate agent commissions and home warranties.

Ohio seller closing cost calculator FAQ