If you are thinking about selling, the question that actually keeps you up at night is not "what will my house list for." It is "what will I actually walk away with." Those are two very different numbers, and the gap between them is the cost of selling.
Here is the honest breakdown for a Central Ohio sale in 2026, with no rounding in my favor or yours.
The short answer
Total selling costs in the Columbus area usually run about 7 to 9 percent of your sale price, assuming a typical negotiated commission, which is the line that swings the most. On a $400,000 home, that is roughly $28,000 to $36,000. Then you subtract whatever is left on your mortgage, and what remains is your net proceeds, the check you actually take to your next move.
Net proceeds is the only number that matters. A higher sale price with sloppy costs can lose to a slightly lower price with a tight, well-run close. So let me walk you through every line, biggest to smallest, then show you where sellers leave real money on the table.
1. Agent commission, the biggest line
Commission is the largest cost in almost every sale, and it is negotiable. There is no fixed rate in Ohio, despite what anyone tells you.
The rules changed in August 2024. Sellers are no longer automatically on the hook for the buyer's agent fee, and that fee can no longer be advertised on the MLS. You decide, at listing or at offer, whether to offer anything toward the buyer's side. Plenty of Central Ohio sellers still offer it, because a home that is friendly to the entire buyer pool tends to sell for more, not less. But it is a strategy decision now, not a default.
I wrote a full plain-English guide to how commissions work in Columbus if you want the deep version. For your net sheet, the thing to understand is that commission is a lever you and your agent set together, and the right number depends on your home, your price band, and how competitive the buyer pool is.
2. Title, escrow, and closing fees
This is the bundle of fees the title company charges to make the sale legal and clean: owner's title insurance, escrow and settlement fees, deed preparation, recording, and a few small administrative line items. In Ohio this typically lands around 1 to 2 percent of the sale price for the seller.
Title insurance is the heaviest piece here. It protects the buyer and their lender against any old claim, lien, or paperwork problem in the chain of ownership. In most Central Ohio deals the seller pays for the owner's policy, though like everything else it can be negotiated.
3. The Ohio conveyance fee
This is the one most sellers have never heard of until they see it at closing. Ohio charges a conveyance fee when a property changes hands: $1 per $1,000 of sale price set by the state, plus a permissive fee set by each county.
In Franklin County the combined rate is currently $3 per $1,000, which is $1 set by the state plus $2 set by the county. Rates can change, so use the Franklin County Auditor's conveyance fee calculator for the exact current figure, and check your own county auditor if you are in Delaware, Licking, Fairfield, or elsewhere, since the permissive piece varies by county. On a $400,000 sale at the Franklin County rate, that is about $1,200, and somewhat more in counties with a higher permissive fee.
4. Prorated property taxes
Here is an Ohio quirk that surprises people. Ohio property taxes are paid in arrears, meaning you are always paying for a period that has already passed. So at closing you usually owe the buyer a credit for the taxes that have built up during your ownership but have not been billed yet.
This is not an extra fee so much as settling up for the time you owned the home. The title company calculates it to the day. Depending on where you are in the tax cycle, it can be a few hundred dollars or a few thousand. It is real money off your bottom line, so it belongs on your net sheet from the start.
5. Concessions and repairs
After the inspection, a buyer may ask for repairs or a credit toward closing costs. Whether you give any, and how much, is negotiated. In a tight, well-prepared listing you hold more leverage here. In a home that went to market with known issues and no plan, buyers smell it and the concessions pile up.
This is exactly why I push sellers toward getting ahead of inspection issues before the sign goes in the yard rather than reacting to them under contract, when every dollar is a concession instead of a choice.
6. Prep, staging, and photography
This is the smallest line on the page and the one that moves your sale price the most. A modest investment in cleaning, light staging, and genuinely professional photography and video routinely returns many times its cost in a stronger sale price and a faster sale. I treat this as the highest-leverage money in the entire transaction, which is why my sellers do not pay extra for it.
The mistake that costs sellers the most
Most sellers try to win by shaving costs. They hunt for the lowest commission, skip the prep, and rush to market. Then they wonder why the house sits, drops, and finally sells for less than the home down the street that was launched properly.
Selling costs are a few percentage points. Your sale price is the whole number. A strategic launch, sharp pricing, and marketing that reaches every buyer can move your sale price by far more than you would ever save by cutting corners on costs. The goal is not the cheapest sale. It is the highest net proceeds, and those are not the same thing.
If you would rather run the sale yourself, that is a real strategy, and I respect it. I even put together a free playbook for selling it yourself so you go in with your eyes open. Just go in knowing what the market quietly costs an unrepresented seller, and what it does not.
What it looks like on a $400,000 sale
Here is an illustration, not a market prediction. Say your Central Ohio home sells for $400,000:
- Agent commission (negotiated): the largest single line, set with your agent
- Title, escrow, and closing fees: roughly $4,000 to $8,000
- Conveyance fee: roughly $1,200 to $1,600
- Property tax proration: varies, often several hundred to a few thousand
- Concessions and prep: depends entirely on the deal and the home
Add it up and most sellers land around 7 to 9 percent in total costs, then subtract the mortgage payoff to get to net proceeds. The spread between a good outcome and an average one is rarely about the fees. It is about the price, and the price is about how the home is brought to market.
Know your number before you list
You should never list a home without a written seller net sheet in your hand. Before you commit to a price or a plan, you deserve to see your likely sale price, every cost line, your mortgage payoff, and the real number you walk away with.
I will build you that net sheet for free, no pressure and no obligation. Get your home value and net proceeds estimate or reach out directly and we will run your real numbers together.