How much does it cost to sell a house in California?

California is the most expensive state in the country to sell a home, and not only because the homes cost more. The statewide median single-family price was $904,640 in June 2026, and the customary commission structure takes a percentage of that number — so the same 5–6% that costs a Texas seller $15,000 costs a Californian nearly $50,000.

Here is every line, with real figures.

What are the actual costs of selling a house in California?

Two things stand out in that table.

The listing-side fee is where the variance lives. Escrow, title, and county transfer tax are broadly the same regardless of how you sell. The listing fee ranges from $0 to more than $22,000 on the same house.

FSBO nets the most on paper. That is honest arithmetic and worth saying plainly — a seller who does everything themselves and pays no listing fee keeps more than a seller who pays anyone. What the table cannot show is the cost of getting pricing wrong, missing a disclosure, or losing a buyer in escrow. The FSBO trade-off is real in both directions.

How much is realtor commission in California?

Historically a California seller paid a single 5–6% commission, split between the listing brokerage and the buyer's brokerage. After the 2024 NAR settlement that changed: buyer-agent compensation is now a separate seller decision, negotiated and disclosed independently rather than bundled into one number.

In practice most California listings still offer something to the buyer's side — commonly 2–2.5% — because a listing that offers nothing reaches fewer buyers. But it is now a decision rather than a default, and it is the second-largest line in the table above.

On the median California home:

• Listing side at 2.5% — $22,616
• Listing side at 3% — $27,139
• Buyer side at 2.5% — $22,616

Full detail in the California realtor commission guide.

What is the transfer tax on a California home sale?

Every California county charges a documentary transfer tax of $1.10 per $1,000 of sale price. On the median home that is about $995, and the seller customarily pays it.

The complication is city transfer tax. Roughly 40 charter cities add their own rate on top of the county's, and the amounts are not small:

• Most of San Diego, Sacramento, and Orange County — county rate only, so about $995 on the median home
• San Jose — an additional $3.30 per $1,000
• Los Angeles — a city rate on top of the county's, plus Measure ULA, which adds 4% above $5 million and 5.5% above $10 million
• San Francisco — a graduated rate that climbs with sale price
• Oakland and Berkeley — sliding-scale city rates that can add five figures on a median-priced sale

Two identical homes on opposite sides of a city line can owe very different transfer tax. Confirm the rate for your specific address before you list — county recorder websites publish current rates, and rates change by ordinance.

Full rate detail in the California transfer tax guide.

What about escrow and title fees?

These are the quieter lines and they are reasonably predictable.

• Escrow fee — commonly around $2 per $1,000 of sale price plus a base fee, so roughly $2,000 on the median home. Split between buyer and seller by local custom.
• Owner's title insurance policy — roughly $2,000–$2,600 at this price point. In most Southern California counties the seller customarily pays it; in much of Northern California the buyer does.
• Natural Hazard Disclosure report — $100–$150, and required.
• County recording fees — modest, usually under $150.

Together, call it $4,000–$5,500 for a median-priced California sale. See the title and escrow breakdown for county-level variation.

What costs come out of pocket before closing?

Nearly everything above is deducted from your proceeds at closing. The exceptions are what you spend getting the house ready:

• Pre-listing repairs — the single most variable number on this page
• Staging — $2,000–$6,000 in most California metros, more in the Bay Area
• Professional photography — usually bundled into a listing service
• Pre-listing inspection — $400–$700, optional but it prevents surprises

How can California sellers reduce these costs?

Look again at the table. Escrow, title, and transfer tax are effectively fixed. Buyer-agent compensation is a strategic decision that affects how many buyers see your home. That leaves the listing-side fee as the line with real room in it — and on a $904,640 home, moving it from 2.5% to a flat fee is a difference of more than $17,000.

That is the whole argument for a flat fee. The work of listing a home — pricing it against comps, preparing it, getting it on the MLS and syndicated, fielding inquiries, comparing offers, tracking deadlines to close — does not cost twice as much on a $900,000 home as on a $450,000 one. Pricing it as a percentage assumes it does.

Stelo charges a flat fee for that work. The software handles pricing analysis, listing preparation, MLS syndication, buyer inquiries, offer comparison, document handling, and closing coordination, and a licensed partner agent handles the parts that need a person — strategy, negotiation, contract review, and the closing table.

The bottom line

On California's median home, expect $50,000 or so in total selling costs the traditional way. About 90% of that is commission. The other lines are real but largely fixed, and the one worth spending your attention on is the listing fee — because it is the only large number on the page you actually control.

Common questions.