See what you actually walk away with on a Tennessee sale — after commission, payoff, title, and the tax proration. And note the buyer pays the transfer tax here, not you.
Commission, owner’s title policy, and property tax proration on Tennessee’s in-arrears calendar.
In Tennessee the buyer pays the realty transfer tax, so it is not a seller cost — see the transfer tax calculator. Premiums use Stewart’s filed Tennessee schedule effective 01/08/2024; rates are filed, not promulgated, so confirm with your underwriter. This is an estimate, not a settlement statement.
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A seller’s net is the sale price minus the loan payoff and minus the costs the seller agreed to carry. In Tennessee the usual seller-side items are the real estate commission, the owner’s title policy where the seller customarily pays it, the property tax proration owed to the buyer, and whatever concessions or repairs were negotiated.
Commission is almost always the largest single line, and it dwarfs everything else on the sheet. The title premium and the tax proration matter, but a seller trying to understand where the money went should start with the commission line.
This is the line that surprises sellers arriving from other states. Tennessee’s realty transfer tax of $0.37 per $100 is the grantee’s obligation, which means the buyer pays it. In many states the deed tax falls on the seller, so sellers routinely budget for a cost they will never be charged here.
On a $400,000 sale that is $1,480 that stays in the seller’s column. The same logic applies to the mortgage tax on the buyer’s new loan, which is the borrower’s cost, not yours.
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Tennessee bills property tax in arrears. At a mid-year closing, the bill covering the months you owned the home has not been issued yet, so you hand the buyer a credit for your share and the buyer pays the full bill when it arrives in the fall. It reads like a cost because it reduces your proceeds, but it is really just settling a bill you already owe.
The later in the year you close, the larger that credit gets. A December closing means you are crediting the buyer for nearly a full year of taxes. You can see the exact split on the proration calculator.
Unlike the transfer tax, this one genuinely is negotiable and practice varies across Tennessee. In many transactions the seller pays for the buyer’s owner’s policy; in others it is the buyer’s cost or the parties split it. The contract controls, so use the toggle above to model it either way before you sign.
If a prior owner’s policy exists on the property, ask about the reissue rate — it can cut the premium to 70% of the basic rate, and whoever is paying for the policy keeps that saving.
Closing in Tennessee? We are a licensed Tennessee title agency — see how we handle Tennessee title insurance and closings, or read how a Tennessee mail-away or RON closing works if you are signing from another state.
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