Closing costs include various fees typically paid by the home seller. These fees are deducted from the home sale proceeds at closing.
Some common closing costs include transfer tax, property taxes, and title insurance. These costs vary by state and the details of your home sale.
Closing costs don't include realtor commission, which costs sellers about 5.35% on average in Pennsylvania. Realtor commission is typically the largest expense for home sellers, so the best way to increase your home sale profits is to save on realtor fees.
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Seller's closing costs calculator for Pennsylvania
Who pays closing costs in Pennsylvania?
Sellers are typically responsible for the majority of closing costs. This includes taxes and fees paid to real estate professionals who do the paperwork necessary for transferring ownership of the property from one party to another.
Buyers will owe some closing costs related to their mortgage, on top of the down payment for the home.
Closing costs are fixed; sellers can't negotiate the cost of taxes and fees like they can negotiate realtor commission. However, sellers can always ask the buyer to pay some of the fees for them. How successful you'll be depends on how much leverage you have in the home sale.
How much are closing costs in Pennsylvania?
If you're selling a home in Pennsylvania, you can expect to pay 5.38% of the home's selling price in closing costs (such as transfer taxes, buyer incentives, recording fees, etc).
Here's how closing costs break down by home price:
- $10,800 for a $200,000 home
- $21,500 for a $400,000 home
- $35,800 for a $666,000 home
On top of closing costs, you should also expect to pay an additional 5.35% in realtor commission fees.
Pennsylvania seller closing costs and related fees
Here are some of the biggest closing costs you'll need to pay when selling your home in Pennsylvania:
- Realtor commission: 5.35%
- Buyer incentives: 2.00% of home price
- Transfer tax: 2% of home sale price
- Prorated property taxes: 1.31% of home's assessed value
- Title service fees: $1,342
- Recording fees: $75
- Owner's title insurance: Typically paid by buyer
- Lender's title insurance: Typically paid by buyer
- Attorney fees (optional in Pennsylvania): up to $184 per hour
Realtor commission
In Pennsylvania, you can expect to pay 5.35% in total realtor commission when selling your home. This includes 2.75% in listing agent commission and 2.60% in buyer's agent commission. Realtor fees are due at closing and are typically paid out of the proceeds of the home sale.
While realtor fees aren't considered closing costs, they are typically the biggest expense for sellers.
Why would a seller pay for the buyer's agent?
While the buyer is ultimately responsible for paying their own agent, it's common practice for the seller to pay for both agents.
Paying for the buyer's agent makes it easier for the buyer to afford the home. If you don't pay for the buyer's agent, the buyer will need to come up with 2.60% on top of the 10% or so already needed for the down payment.
While you might find a buyer willing to pay for their agent in a market favoring the seller, it's wise to include commission for both agents in your budget.
How did the NAR settlement affect realtor commission?
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) has implemented significant changes to real estate practices due to an August 2024 ruling:
- Buyer's agents must now provide potential home buyers with an "agency agreement" detailing their services.
- Buyer's agents are required to negotiate their compensation directly with buyers before signing contracts.
- Home listings can no longer display buyer's agent commission information.
This marks a major shift from the previous system where:
- Listing agents typically collected a 6% commission from sellers
- Half of this commission was shared with the buyer's agent
- Home buyers generally didn't pay agent commissions directly
In the past, sellers would advertise the buyer's agent's portion of the commission on listings to encourage agents to show their properties. This practice clearly established that the listing agent would typically cover the buyer's agent fees before prospective buyers even viewed the home.[1]
Buyer incentives
Buyer incentives aren't required fees, but it's smart to incorporate about 2.00% of the home's sale price into your budget to help with negotiations. With this money, you can offer to pay some of the buyer's closing costs or other expenses.
If the market favors you as a seller, you might not have to offer much in buyer incentives. But if the buyer has more leverage, these incentives can help you close the deal.
Transfer tax
Some states impose a transfer tax when transferring a property from one owner to another.
In Pennsylvania, transfer tax is usually split between the buyer and the seller. That means you'll pay about 2.0% of your home's sale price to transfer the title to the new owner.Prorated property taxes
On average, property taxes in Pennsylvania are 1.31% of the home's assessed value. You'll have to pay your property taxes for the portion of the year you owned the home before you can transfer ownership.
This rate varies greatly from one local area to another, however.
- Lowest tax rate: 0.83% in Bedford County
- Highest tax rate: 2.05% in Delaware County
Use our property tax proration calculator for a customized estimate of what property taxes you may owe at closing.
Recording fees
Recording fees are charged by the local government for recording the deed and mortgage details into the public record. Sellers pay an average of $75 in Pennsylvania for recording fees, but the precise cost will depend on the location.
Title service fees
At closing, you'll pay a fee to a title company that scours public records to look for claims or liens on the property, ensuring a clean title before transferring ownership.
Title service fees are about $1,342 in Pennsylvania.
Owner's title insurance
In the rare event that a title service makes a mistake and misses a lien or claim on the property, a title insurance policy protects the owner.
In Pennsylvania, it's more common for the buyer to pay for owner's title insurance.
However, it's always possible to negotiate who pays what.Lender's title insurance
The bank providing the loan will require a title insurance policy to protect them, as well.
In Pennsylvania, the buyer usually pays for lender's title insurance, so you're off the hook. Still, it's always possible the buyer will try to get you to pay for this in negotiations, so make sure you have a quality real estate agent looking out for your best interests.Attorney fees
In Pennsylvania, using an attorney for closing is optional. On average, a real estate attorney costs about $184 per hour in Pennsylvania.
Many real estate attorneys charge a flat fee of $750–$1,250 for straightforward closing services. This rate can vary by location and the complexity of your home sale.
Save on closing costs in Pennsylvania
Most closing costs are fixed prices. There's typically no way to negotiate transfer taxes, for example. But that doesn't mean you can't look for other ways to save.
Pay less in realtor commission
Realtor fees are likely to be your largest expense when selling a home. They're also the biggest opportunity for savings.
You can and should negotiate realtor fees before signing a contract with an agent. Or, you can skip negotiating and let our agent-matching service do it for you.
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View AgentsNegotiate for buyer to pay
As the property seller, you're generally responsible most closing expenses. However, you can negotiate with the buyer to cover these costs. This approach works best when selling in a competitive market with limited housing inventory.
However, in a buyer's market, sellers struggle to persuade buyers to take on additional costs beyond the purchase price.
Working with a seasoned real estate agent provides valuable insight into your negotiating position based on current market conditions and helps you effectively structure sale terms with potential buyers.
FAQ about seller closing costs
How much are closing costs for sellers in Pennsylvania?
In Pennsylvania, the seller typically pays about 5.38% of the home sale price in closing costs. Not included in this figure are realtor fees, the most expensive cost for most sellers. Learn how to save on realtor fees.
Who pays closing costs in Pennsylvania?
The seller usually owes the bulk of closing costs, although the buyer has to pay for certain mortgage-related costs, such as the loan origination fee.
Methodology
Our team gathered data for property taxes, transfer taxes, and recording fees using publicly available information.
We found average costs for attorney fees, title insurance, and other services by requesting quotes from local providers.
We gathered our commission rate data from a survey of 734 of our partner agents. Additionally, we utilized the following data from Zillow and Realtor.com:
- Home values, list prices, and sale prices: Based on Zillow data as of February 2025
- Transfer taxes and mortgage taxes: Based on public data as of February 2024.
