Real Estate Transfer Taxes by State

What a transfer tax actually is

A real estate transfer tax — sometimes called a deed tax, documentary stamp tax, conveyance tax, or realty transfer fee — is a tax charged when a deed transferring real property is recorded with the county. It's a one-time tax assessed on the sale price (or sometimes the consideration), payable at closing, and collected by the recording office before the deed is accepted.

Transfer taxes can be assessed at three layers: state, county, and municipality. A handful of states stack all three. In states without a state-level tax, counties or cities sometimes impose one of their own.

The three rate structures

Almost every state with a transfer tax uses one of three structures:

• Flat rate per thousand. A simple multiplier — for example, $1.50 per $500 of value or $4 per $1,000. Most states fall here. The bill is proportional to sale price.
• Tiered (graduated) rate. The rate climbs in brackets as the sale price rises. New York, Connecticut, and a few others use this. A home selling for $2M pays a meaningfully higher effective rate than one selling for $400K.
• Marginal "mansion tax." A flat rate on lower values plus an additional surtax above a threshold (commonly $1M). New York's 1% additional tax above $1M is the canonical example; New Jersey and California have similar local surcharges.

Where transfer taxes are biggest

The states and cities with the heaviest transfer-tax burdens typically include:

• New York. State rate plus New York City's RPTT (Real Property Transfer Tax) plus the mansion tax above $1M. On high-end Manhattan sales, combined transfer taxes can exceed 3% of the price.
• Washington State. Tiered REET (Real Estate Excise Tax) climbs to 3% on the portion above $3M, payable by the seller.
• Delaware. 4% combined state and local, typically split 50/50 between buyer and seller (so 2% each).
• Pennsylvania. 1% state plus 1% local (often more in Philadelphia), customarily split 50/50.
• Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles. City-level transfer taxes that can be the largest line on a high-value closing. Los Angeles's Measure ULA (often called the "mansion tax") adds 4% above $5M and 5.5% above $10M.

Where they're smallest or nonexistent

Several states impose no state-level real estate transfer tax. The list most commonly cited:

• Alaska
• Idaho
• Indiana
• Louisiana
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Montana
• New Mexico
• North Dakota
• Oregon (with a county-level exception in Washington County)
• Texas
• Utah
• Wyoming

Even in these states, the county recorder charges a modest per-page recording fee for the deed and mortgage release. Those fees are small — usually well under $200.

Who pays — and why "customary" is not "required"

In most transfer-tax states, the seller customarily pays. In a few, custom is split or buyer-paid. But the statute typically only specifies that the tax is due at recording — not who must write the check. That means who pays is negotiable in the purchase contract. In a buyer's market, sellers sometimes agree to absorb the buyer's customary share as a concession; in a seller's market, that flips.

Counties and cities that stack their own transfer taxes on top of the state rate sometimes follow a different custom than the state. Pennsylvania is the canonical example: the 1% state and 1% local taxes are customarily split 50/50, regardless of who pays everything else.

Estimating your bill

For most flat-rate states, the math is simple: multiply the rate by the sale price, divide by $1,000 (or $500, depending on the unit), and that's the bill. For tiered states, you have to walk through each bracket. For mansion-tax jurisdictions, you compute the base tax and add the surtax on the portion above the threshold.

Rather than do this by hand, use our state-specific calculators — the transfer-tax structure and customary split are already wired in. Start with the home seller net proceeds calculator and pick your state, or jump straight to a high-tax state like the New York calculator or the Washington calculator. For a fuller picture of every line item, our seller closing costs guide walks through what else hits your settlement statement.

Two caveats

First, transfer-tax rates change. State legislatures and city councils adjust them more often than you'd think, especially the high-end tiers. Always verify the rate that applies on your closing date with the title company or recorder.

Second, some transactions qualify for partial exemptions — sales between spouses, transfers into living trusts, certain transfers among family members, and (in some states) sales of low-value homes. Your title or escrow officer will know what applies; ask before closing if your situation is unusual.