District of Columbia Seller Closing Costs & Net Proceeds Calculator
Estimate exactly what you'll walk away with after selling a home in District of Columbia. Defaults below reflect typical District of Columbia transfer-tax treatment, title custom, and seller closing costs.
Data last reviewed: September 2026
Estimated net proceeds — District of Columbia
$0
Enter a sale price below to estimate your net proceeds in District of Columbia.
Net Proceeds Calculator — District of Columbia
Defaults reflect typical District of Columbia practice. Edit any field to match your transaction.
Figures last updated: September 2026
Sale & loan
Commission
Post-NAR settlement: the buyer-agent share is negotiable. Switch to listing-only if you're not offering buyer-agent compensation.
Title & closing costs
In District of Columbia, the buyer customarily pays this. Informational only — the premium amount isn't included in the totals below.
Optional adjustments
Breakdown
| Gross sale price | $0 |
| Agent commission | − $0 |
| Mortgage payoff | − $0 |
| Title / escrow services | − $0 |
| Transfer / excise tax | − $0 |
| Recording fees | − $75 |
| Settlement / escrow fee | − $450 |
| Home warranty | − $0 |
| Repairs / concessions | − $0 |
| Property tax proration | − $0 |
| HOA dues owed | − $0 |
| Total deductions | − $525 |
| Estimated net proceeds | $0 |
State-specific seller details
Transfer tax
The DC real property transfer tax is 1.1% of price for residential transfers under $400,000 and 1.45% at $400,000 or more, customarily paid by the seller. Note that DC also charges a separate recordation tax at the same 1.1%/1.45% rates customarily paid by the buyer, so DC is unusually expensive on both sides of closing.
Closing structure
DC closings are customarily handled by title/settlement companies; attorneys may be involved but are not required.
Disclosure
Sellers of residential property must provide a written disclosure of known defects (DC Code §42-1305). Also note that the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA) can give tenants purchase rights when selling tenant-occupied property.
State income tax on the gain
DC taxes capital gains as ordinary income on a graduated scale from 4% to a top rate of 10.75% (on income over $1,000,000), after the federal Section 121 exclusion.
Agent commission
Real-estate commission is fully negotiable and typically falls within a customary range. Following the 2024 NAR settlement, buyer-agent compensation is no longer automatically seller-paid and is itself negotiable between the parties.
Last reviewed: September 2026
Source: DC Office of the Chief Financial Officer, DC Code §42-1305, and DC Code Title 47 Chapter 18.
Selling a home in District of Columbia: what to expect
Transfer / excise tax
1.1% (<$400k) / 1.45% (>=$400k) — Buyer separately pays recordation tax.
Title & closing custom
Closings customarily handled by title/settlement companies; attorneys may be involved but are not required. Owner's title policy customarily paid by BUYER.
Recording fees ~$25 plus the transfer/recordation taxes above.
Typical commission
Around 5% of the sale price in District of Columbia, combining the listing-side commission and anything the seller agrees to offer the buyer's brokerage. Always negotiable — there is no set rate.
Typical total seller closing costs
About 1.5%-2.5% of sale price (excluding agent commission).
Notes specific to District of Columbia
- The District of Columbia charges a 1.1% transfer tax on sales under $400K and 1.45% on sales of $400K or more — paid by the seller. The buyer pays a matching recordation tax.
- Together the DC transfer + recordation taxes can be among the highest combined rates in the country.
- Closings are typically conducted by attorneys.
A real example: selling a median-priced home in District of Columbia
Washington, DC's median sale price was $700,000 over the three months to July 2026 (Redfin), essentially flat year-over-year at +0.09%, with homes going under contract in around 50 days. DC is the opposite extreme from most of this group: it charges sellers a 1.1% transfer tax on sales under $400,000 and 1.45% at $400,000 and above. On a $700,000 sale that is about $10,150 owed to the District — a single line item larger than the entire closing-cost bill on a median-priced Alaska or Wyoming sale.
The full picture: a 5% commission comes to $35,000, and total seller closing costs of 1.5%–2.5% work out to roughly $14,000 at the midpoint, with that $10,150 transfer tax making up most of it. Total deductions land near $49,000 — about 7.0% of the sale price before mortgage payoff. And that is only the seller's half: the buyer separately owes a matching recordation tax, so the combined government take on a DC transfer is among the highest in the country. Worth remembering when a buyer asks you to cover part of their closing costs.
Frequently asked questions — District of Columbia
Who pays the transfer tax in District of Columbia?
1.1% (<$400k) / 1.45% (>=$400k) — Buyer separately pays recordation tax.
What are typical seller closing costs in District of Columbia?
Excluding the real estate agent commission, sellers in District of Columbia typically pay about 1.5%-2.5% of the sale price in closing costs. Closings customarily handled by title/settlement companies; attorneys may be involved but are not required. Owner's title policy customarily paid by BUYER.
What is the typical real estate commission in District of Columbia?
Commission in District of Columbia is negotiated between the seller and the listing brokerage — combined rates commonly land in the mid-single digits, but there is no set rate. Since the 2024 NAR settlement, what the seller offers the buyer's brokerage (if anything) is negotiated in the purchase contract, not advertised on the MLS.
Do I need an attorney to sell a home in District of Columbia?
Closings are typically conducted by attorneys.