A question I am Often Asked: “What will I net selling my house in Northern Virginia?”
Your net proceeds equal your contract price minus your mortgage payoff, brokerage commission, Virginia grantor's tax, the Northern Virginia regional congestion relief fee, title and settlement charges, HOA or condo resale certificate fees, prorated county taxes and association dues, and any credits you've agreed to give the buyer. Every one of those line items is specific to your loan balance, your county, and your community, which is why a generic online calculator almost always gets it wrong.
Key Takeaways
Virginia sellers pay a statutory grantor's tax under Va. Code § 58.1-802, set at $0.50 per $500 (or fraction) of consideration, excluding liens remaining on the property.
Northern Virginia sellers pay an additional regional congestion relief fee of $0.10 per $100 (or fraction) of the purchase price on top of the state grantor's tax, a line item that does not appear in most generic net-sheet tools.
HOA and condo resale certificate fees are seller-paid in Virginia and capped by the Common Interest Community Board (CICB) fee schedule, with the current schedule (effective January 12, 2023) expected to remain in force until at least January 1, 2028.
Mortgage payoff, including any HELOC, second mortgage, or lien, is typically the single largest deduction from your sale price and must come from a written payoff statement, not an estimate.
Seller concessions, repair credits, and price reductions negotiated after inspection are direct reductions to your net and should be factored into every counter-offer decision.
What are all the line items on a Northern Virginia seller's net sheet?
Before you accept an offer, or even decide on a list price, you need to see every deduction laid out in one place. Here's the structure I walk my clients through, in the order it typically appears on a Virginia settlement statement.
Contract sale price
This is your starting point. Everything below is subtracted from it.
Brokerage commission
Commission is negotiated between you and your listing broker in the listing agreement, there is no standard or fixed rate, and no percentage should be treated as "typical" or "customary." Post the 2024 NAR settlement changes, the listing-side fee and any compensation a seller chooses to offer a buyer's agent are separate, negotiable items. Whether and how a seller offers buyer-broker compensation is entirely optional. If you want to know what commission would look like in your specific situation, that's a conversation to have directly with me, not something a blog post can answer for you.
Virginia grantor's tax and the Northern Virginia regional fee
This is where Northern Virginia sellers get a line item that doesn't show up anywhere in national net-sheet templates.
Virginia imposes a grantor's tax on the seller under Va. Code § 58.1-802, calculated at $0.50 for each $500 (or fraction) of consideration, excluding any liens or encumbrances that remain on the property at the time of sale.
On top of that, sellers in the Northern Virginia region pay an additional congestion relief fee of $0.10 per $100 (or fraction) of the purchase price, also excluding liens. The City of Alexandria's recordation tax page explains both charges clearly and is one of the best plain-language explanations of how these two seller-paid taxes stack on a settlement statement.
Both are statutory, the rates are set by law, not negotiated, so they are fixed line items you can count on seeing. Your settlement company will calculate them based on your actual sale price.
Note: Virginia also charges a separate state recordation tax on the deed under Va. Code § 58.1-801. That tax is on the buyer's side, but it can come up in negotiations, more on that below.
Title and settlement charges
Virginia is a title company and settlement company-driven closing state. Your closing agent handles the settlement, and their fees appear as seller-side line items on the closing disclosure. Expect to see some combination of:
Settlement or escrow fee
Title search and examination fee
Document preparation fee
Wire transfer or courier fees
The exact amounts vary by company and transaction complexity. I always recommend asking the title or settlement company for a draft seller closing statement once you have an offer in hand, that draft will show you the real numbers, not estimates.
HOA and condo resale certificate fees
If your home is in a homeowners association or condo association, and in communities like Embrey Mill, Hampton Oaks, Colonial Forge, or Aquia Harbour, it almost certainly is, you are responsible for ordering and paying for a resale certificate under the Virginia Resale Disclosure Act, Va. Code § 55.1-2307 et seq.
The resale certificate documents current dues, special assessments, any violations, and other items the buyer and their lender need. Many Northern Virginia associations outsource these packages to vendors like HomeWiseDocs or CondoCerts. The fees are seller-paid and capped by the Common Interest Community Board (CICB). The current CICB fee schedule, effective January 12, 2023, is expected to remain in force until at least January 1, 2028, so those caps apply to your sale today.
One thing I tell sellers who ask me about HOA costs: don't wait until you're under contract to check your association status. Outstanding violations, unpaid fines, or a looming special assessment will show up on the resale certificate and can mean unexpected payoffs at closing. Confirm your standing before you list.
Prorated real estate taxes and HOA dues
Your county property taxes and HOA dues are prorated to your closing date. The seller pays the portion covering the days they owned the home in the current billing period; the buyer takes over from there. County billing cycles vary across Fairfax, Arlington, Loudoun, Prince William, and the City of Alexandria, so the exact proration depends on your county's calendar and your closing date. Your settlement company will calculate this once a date is confirmed.
Mortgage payoff and other liens
Your mortgage payoff is almost always the largest single deduction on your net sheet. The settlement company obtains a written payoff statement from your lender, collects that amount from your sale proceeds, and remits it directly. The same applies to any HELOC, second mortgage, judgment lien, or tax lien.
A few things to know: your payoff figure is not the same as your current balance. It includes interest accrued through the payoff date and may include a per-diem interest charge. If your loan has a prepayment penalty, that's an additional deduction defined by your mortgage note, not Virginia law. Request a preliminary payoff statement from your lender as early as possible, I walk my clients through this step before we even go under contract so there are no surprises.
Seller concessions and credits
Any closing-cost credit, repair credit, or price reduction you agree to after inspection shows up as a direct reduction in your net. In segments of the Northern Virginia market where buyers have more leverage, concession requests are common. Every dollar you concede is a dollar less in your pocket, which is why I treat every counter-offer conversation as a net-proceeds conversation, not just a price conversation.
For a deeper look at how pricing strategy affects what you ultimately walk away with, my post on strategic home pricing in Northern Virginia covers how the first week on market sets the tone for everything that follows.
Net Sheet Line Item Who Pays Fixed by Law or Negotiated? Contract sale price Starting point Negotiated Brokerage commission (listing side) Seller Fully negotiable Buyer-agent compensation (if offered) Seller (optional) Fully negotiable Virginia grantor's tax (Va. Code § 58.1-802) Seller Fixed by statute Northern Virginia regional congestion relief fee Seller Fixed by statute Title and settlement charges Seller (seller's share) Varies by company; sometimes negotiated HOA/condo resale certificate fee(s) Seller Capped by CICB; varies by association Prorated county real estate taxes Seller (seller's share) Based on county rate and closing date Prorated HOA/condo dues and special assessments Seller (seller's share) Based on community billing cycle Unpaid HOA/condo balances or violation cure costs Seller Specific to your account Mortgage payoff(s) and lien payoffs Seller Specific to your loan(s) Seller concessions or repair credits Seller Negotiated per contract.
How do you firm up your net estimate before accepting an offer?
Here's the process I use with every seller I work with in Northern Virginia. You don't have to wait until closing to have a clear picture.
Request a preliminary payoff statement from your mortgage lender (and any HELOC or second-lien holder) before you go under contract. This gives you a real number, not a guess.
Check your HOA or condo status before listing. Call your association or management company and confirm your current balance, any open violations, and whether a special assessment is pending. Surprises here are expensive.
Ask your title or settlement company for a draft seller closing statement as soon as you have an offer. Plug in the contract price, your known commission terms, the statutory taxes, estimated title charges, and estimated prorations. This draft is your working net sheet.
Update the draft once final payoff and association figures are confirmed, usually a few days before closing. That's your real number.
Use that updated estimate to evaluate concession requests. When a buyer asks for a repair credit or closing-cost contribution after inspection, you need to see what your net looks like before and after, not just react to the dollar amount in isolation.
If you're selling and buying at the same time, staying local or moving out of the area, the net from your sale is also the input for your next purchase. That's a timing and financing equation I help clients work through so both sides of the transaction land without stress. The PCS move sale-and-purchase alignment post walks through how that coordination works for military families specifically.
When will the money actually hit your account?
Once the buyer's lender has funded and the deed is recorded, the settlement company typically disburses seller proceeds by wire on the same business day or the next business day, depending on recording cutoff times. Friday afternoon closings can push disbursement to Monday. Wire fees are a line item on your settlement statement. Recording and funding timing affects when you receive the money, it doesn't change the net amount, aside from nominal wire fees.
For context on current Northern Virginia market conditions that affect what buyers are willing to pay and how much negotiating leverage you have, the Northern Virginia Housing Market Report is a good starting point.
Frequently Asked Questions
What closing costs do sellers pay in Northern Virginia, and which ones are negotiable?
Sellers in Northern Virginia typically pay the Virginia grantor's tax, the Northern Virginia regional congestion relief fee, their share of title and settlement charges, HOA or condo resale certificate fees, prorated real estate taxes and association dues, and any agreed buyer concessions, in addition to their mortgage payoff. The statutory taxes (grantor's tax and the regional fee) are fixed by law and not negotiable. Commission, title charges, and concessions are negotiable. Prorations are calculated based on the closing date and your county's billing cycle.
How do the Virginia grantor's tax and the Northern Virginia congestion relief fee reduce my net proceeds?
Both are seller-paid taxes calculated on the sale price (excluding liens remaining at closing). The state grantor's tax under Va. Code § 58.1-802 is set at $0.50 per $500 (or fraction) of consideration; the Northern Virginia regional fee adds $0.10 per $100 (or fraction) on top of that. The City of Alexandria's recordation tax page explains how both appear on a settlement statement. These are fixed line items your settlement company will calculate from your contract price.
Who pays HOA or condo resale certificate fees when I sell my home in Northern Virginia?
The seller pays for the resale certificate in Virginia. Under the Virginia Resale Disclosure Act, Va. Code § 55.1-2307 et seq., the seller (or seller's agent) requests the certificate and pays the fees, which are capped by the Common Interest Community Board (CICB). The current CICB fee schedule, effective January 12, 2023, is expected to remain in force until at least January 1, 2028. Many Northern Virginia associations use third-party vendors to prepare these packages, and fees can approach the CICB cap, budget for this line item before you list.
When will I actually get my money after closing on my house in Northern Virginia?
The settlement company typically wires seller proceeds on the same business day as closing or by the next business day, once the buyer's lender has funded and the deed has been recorded. Friday closings can push disbursement to Monday if recording cutoffs are missed. Wire fees are deducted from proceeds at settlement, but they don't change the net amount in any material way.
Do I have to pay the buyer's closing costs, or can I limit my seller concessions?
You are not required to pay any of the buyer's closing costs, concessions are negotiated, not automatic. Post-NAR settlement, any compensation a seller offers a buyer's agent is also optional and separately negotiable. That said, in segments of the Northern Virginia market where buyers have more options, concession requests after inspection are common. Every concession is a direct reduction in your net, so evaluating requests against your updated net-sheet estimate, not in isolation, is how you make a clear-eyed decision.
About Ginger Walker
Ginger Walker is an award-winning REALTOR® and CEO of the Give Back Team at Coldwell Banker Elite, serving Stafford and Northern Virginia since 2008. Ranked in the top 1.5% nationally by RealTrends, she specializes in military and government relocation, including PCS moves and VA loans.
This article is general information only and does not constitute legal, tax, or financial advice. Confirm your specific numbers with your closing agent, tax advisor, or lender. Equal Housing Opportunity. Ginger Walker is licensed by the Virginia Real Estate Board.
