Seller Closing Costs in Cobb County, GA: What You'll Actually Net at Closing
Quick answer: In Cobb County, Georgia, sellers typically pay between 6% and 8% of their sale price in closing costs, most of that being real estate commission (now negotiable following the 2024 NAR settlement), the Georgia real estate transfer tax of $1.00 per $1,000 of sale price, a share of the closing attorney's fee, prorated property taxes through the closing date, and any HOA transfer or resale disclosure fees. On a $364,000 Kennesaw home, that typically works out to roughly $20,000 to $29,000 in seller-paid costs before mortgage payoff.
TLDR
- Georgia sellers generally net 92% to 94% of their sale price after closing costs, before mortgage payoff.
- Commission is the single largest cost and is fully negotiable since the 2024 NAR settlement changes took effect.
- Georgia's transfer tax ($1 per $1,000 of sale price) is customarily paid by the seller, not the buyer.
- Georgia requires an attorney to conduct the closing, and sellers usually pay a share of that fee.
- Prorated property taxes, HOA transfer fees, and any buyer concessions (like a home warranty) come out of your proceeds too.
- The only way to know your real number is a personalized net sheet, not a generic percentage.
If you're getting ready to list a home in Kennesaw, Acworth, or Marietta, the number that actually matters isn't your sale price. It's what lands in your account after closing. I covered buyer closing costs for Cobb County a few weeks back, and the question I hear just as often from sellers is the mirror image of it: "Okay, but what do I actually walk away with?"
The honest answer is that it depends on your specific home, your loan payoff, and what you negotiate. But the categories of cost are predictable, and once you know them, you can build a realistic net sheet before you ever sign a listing agreement.
1. Real Estate Commission (Still the Biggest Line Item)
Commission remains the largest single cost for most sellers, but the rules around it changed in 2025. Since the NAR settlement took effect, listing commission is fully negotiable and no longer automatically includes a pre-set offer of compensation to the buyer's agent through the MLS. As a seller, you now decide, in writing, whether and how much to offer toward a buyer's agent's fee as part of your marketing strategy.
That means two sellers on the same street can pay meaningfully different amounts depending on how their listing agreement is structured and how competitive their local market is at the time. In a market where well-priced West Cobb homes are still moving quickly, some sellers choose not to offer buyer-agent compensation at all and let buyers negotiate that with their own agent. Others find that offering it keeps their home competitive against similar listings that do. For more on how this shifted, see who pays the buyer's agent in Cobb County now.
There isn't a single "standard" number anymore, which is exactly why this needs to be a specific conversation with your agent rather than an assumption carried over from a few years ago.
2. Georgia's Real Estate Transfer Tax
Georgia charges a state real estate transfer tax of $1.00 per $1,000 of the sale price (with the first $100 exempt). On a $364,000 sale, that's roughly $364. Unlike the buyer's intangible recording tax on a new mortgage, this one is customarily paid by the seller in Georgia, and it's collected at closing when the deed is recorded with the Cobb County Clerk of Superior Court.
It's a small line item next to commission, but it's one relocation sellers coming from states without a transfer tax, or with a very different one, are often surprised to see on their settlement statement.
3. The Closing Attorney's Fee
Georgia is an attorney-closing state. Unlike many states where a title company or escrow officer can close a transaction, Georgia law requires a licensed attorney to conduct the closing and disburse funds. Sellers typically contribute a portion of that attorney's fee, generally in the low hundreds of dollars, though the buyer's lender usually selects the closing attorney since the lender's title work is tied to that firm.
If you're paying off a mortgage, home equity line, or judgment at closing, expect a modest additional fee for the payoff processing and lien release work as well.
4. Prorated Property Taxes
Property taxes in Cobb County are paid in arrears, and at closing your share gets prorated up to your closing date. If you close mid-year, you'll typically see a credit to the buyer (or a debit against your proceeds, depending on how the county has billed that year) covering the days you owned the home. This isn't really a "fee," it's the county being paid what it's owed for the time you held title, but it does come directly out of your proceeds and often surprises first-time sellers who forget to plan for it.
5. HOA Transfer and Resale Disclosure Fees
Many Kennesaw, Acworth, and Marietta subdivisions are governed by an HOA, and most of those associations charge a resale disclosure or transfer fee, commonly somewhere between $200 and $500, to provide the buyer's lender and closing attorney with the required HOA documents and to update ownership records. If your community also has a working capital contribution or initiation fee, confirm in your HOA's governing documents whether that's a buyer-paid or seller-paid item, since it varies by association.
6. Buyer Concessions That Come Out of Your Net
These aren't "closing costs" in the traditional sense, but they reduce what you walk away with just the same, and in this market they show up often enough that you should plan for the possibility:
- Home warranty. Offering a one-year home warranty, typically $500 to $700, is a common low-cost way to make a listing more attractive without discounting price.
- Repair credits after the Due Diligence Period. If the buyer's inspection turns up issues, it's common to negotiate a credit toward closing costs instead of completing repairs yourself before closing.
- Closing cost credits. Especially for buyers using certain loan programs, a seller-paid closing cost credit can be the difference between an offer working and not working, and it's worth pricing that possibility into your strategy from the start.
7. What This Looks Like on an Actual Cobb County Home
Here's an illustrative example using Kennesaw's recent median sale price of roughly $364,000. Your numbers will differ based on your loan payoff, your specific commission agreement, and what you negotiate with a buyer, but this shows how the pieces stack up:
| Line Item | Estimated Cost |
|---|---|
| Sale price | $364,000 |
| Commission (illustrative, fully negotiable) | ~$18,200 - $20,020 |
| Georgia transfer tax | ~$364 |
| Attorney closing fee (seller's share) | ~$400 - $600 |
| Prorated property taxes (partial year) | ~$1,200 - $1,800 |
| HOA resale/transfer fee | ~$250 - $500 |
| Home warranty (if offered as a concession) | ~$500 - $700 |
| Estimated seller-paid costs (before mortgage payoff) | ~$20,900 - $23,700 |
| Estimated net before mortgage payoff | ~$340,300 - $343,100 |
That's before subtracting whatever you still owe on your mortgage. If you're not sure what that payoff looks like or how much equity you're actually sitting on, that's the very first number to nail down, well before you pick a list price.
8. Why a Generic Percentage Isn't Good Enough
You'll see rules of thumb online suggesting sellers pay "6% to 10%" of their sale price in costs. That range is technically true and practically useless, because it doesn't account for your specific commission agreement, your HOA's actual fee schedule, your exact closing date and tax proration, or what a buyer might ask for in negotiation. Two nearly identical homes on the same Kennesaw street can net their sellers different amounts because of details that a percentage-based estimate simply can't capture.
As a certified residential appraiser as well as your agent, I build net sheets based on your specific home, your specific loan payoff, and current comparable activity in your subdivision, not a national average. If you're weighing whether to list this fall or thinking through what you'd actually walk away with, that's a conversation worth having before you commit to a price or a strategy.
Want to know what your specific home would net? I'll build you a no-obligation net sheet using your actual loan payoff and current comps, not a rule of thumb.
Schedule Your Free Net Sheet ConsultationFrequently Asked Questions
How much are seller closing costs in Cobb County, Georgia?
Most sellers pay between 6% and 8% of their sale price in total closing costs, with real estate commission making up the largest share. The exact figure depends on your negotiated commission, your HOA's fee schedule, and how much of the year has passed when you close.
Who pays the real estate transfer tax when selling a house in Georgia?
The seller customarily pays Georgia's real estate transfer tax, which is $1.00 per $1,000 of the sale price. This is separate from the intangible recording tax a buyer pays on a new mortgage.
Is real estate commission still negotiable in Georgia after the NAR settlement?
Yes. Since the 2024 NAR settlement changes took effect in 2025, listing commission is fully negotiable between a seller and their agent, and sellers now decide in writing whether and how much to offer toward a buyer's agent's compensation as part of their listing strategy.
Do sellers pay for the closing attorney in Georgia?
Georgia requires an attorney to conduct every real estate closing. Sellers typically pay a share of that attorney's fee, along with any payoff processing fee if there's an existing mortgage or lien to clear.
What is prorated property tax and how does it affect what I net at closing?
Cobb County property taxes are paid in arrears. At closing, your share is prorated based on how many days of the tax year you owned the home, and that amount is settled out of your proceeds rather than billed separately later.
Do I have to offer a home warranty when I sell my house in Cobb County?
No, but it's a common and relatively low-cost concession, usually $500 to $700, that can make a listing more competitive without lowering your asking price.
If you're thinking about listing in Kennesaw, Acworth, or Marietta this fall, let's get you a real number.
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Commission percentages, tax proration, and fee ranges above are illustrative estimates based on typical Cobb County transactions as of August 2026. Actual costs vary by property, lender, HOA, and negotiated terms. This is not legal, tax, or financial advice.
