Home Sale Calculator: What You Actually Walk Away With

How do you calculate net proceeds from selling a house?

Start with the sale price. Subtract the selling costs: agent commissions, title and escrow, transfer tax, buyer credits, repairs and the monthly costs of holding the house until closing. Then subtract your mortgage payoff and any liens. What's left is your net proceeds, the cash wired to you at closing.

Written out, it's one line:

Net proceeds = sale price − selling costs − what you owe

The selling costs are where calculators disagree. Some count only commission and closing costs. We also count the repairs before listing and the months you keep paying interest, taxes, insurance and utilities while the house is for sale, because that money is just as gone.

The principal part of your mortgage payment isn't a cost. It lowers what you owe at payoff, so it comes back to you. Only the interest counts.

How much will I walk away with if I sell my house for $450,000?

On a $450,000 house in Greater Phoenix with $280,000 owed, average condition and four months to sell, a listed sale costs about $44,528 and leaves about $125,472 at closing. Commission is the biggest line. Arizona has no transfer tax, so that line is zero.

We picked $450,000because it's the Greater Phoenix median sale price for September 2026. Here it is line by line, the same numbers the calculator opens with.

The holding line is about $2,132 a month: interest on $280,000at 6.5 percent, Maricopa County's property tax rate, insurance and utilities. Four months is realistic in the Valley right now, because a listing there takes a median 63 days just to go under contract.

Why doesn't the cash column show a price for every house?

Because we only show prices we could actually pay that would also cover what you owe. Our cash price comes from a formula: the house's value, minus repairs, minus an investor's costs, minus one profit number. On a lot of houses with a mortgage, that price is below the payoff, so cash doesn't fit.

Take the Phoenix example. Our best cash price, for a close in two to three months, works out to $260,685. The seller owes $280,000. A sale at that price would leave them writing a check at closing, so the calculator leaves cash out and tells them listing is the better path.

The cash price also depends on when you need to close:

• Close in 2 to 3 months: our highest price.
• Close within about a month: a lower price.
• Close in about 2 weeks:the lowest, because we have to line up a buyer who can close almost at once. We don't recommend it unless the date is the whole problem.

We pay all the standard closing costs on a sale to us, so each price is what reaches you, minus what you owe. The full formula, with a worked example, is in how we calculate your offer.

What do most home sale calculators leave out?

Most leave out the months of payments while the house is for sale, the repairs before listing and any comparison with a cash sale. They show commission and closing costs, then subtract your loan. On a four-month sale the holding costs alone can run several thousand dollars, so leaving them out makes listing look better than it is.

The calculators that rank for this search mostly come from title companies, banks and agents. Here is what this one adds:

• Holding costs. Interest, property taxes, insurance, utilities and HOA dues for every month until closing.
• Your state's rules. Transfer tax and a property tax default for California, Arizona and Texas, with a box for any other state.
• Repairs by condition. A rough number you can change, instead of a blank.
• The cash column, honestly.Shown only when it works, and hidden when it doesn't.

How do state transfer taxes change my net?

California charges $1.10 per $1,000 of the price in every county, and some cities add their own, like $4.50 per $1,000 in the City of Los Angeles. Arizona's constitution bars a transfer tax. Texas has none. On a $500,000 house, that's $550 in most of California and $0 in Arizona or Texas.

Property tax matters more than transfer tax for most sellers, because you pay it every month the house sits. The calculator starts with each state's big-county rate from the Tax Foundation: 0.67 percent in San Diego County, 0.44 percent in Maricopa County and 1.50 percent in Harris County. Your own bill is better. Divide your yearly tax by the price and type it in.

In California, a long-time owner often pays far less than the county average because of Proposition 13, and a recent buyer often pays more. More on each state in our California seller's guide and our Arizona seller's guide.

Should I list my house or sell it for cash?

If your house can pass a buyer's inspection and you have a few months, list it with a Realtor, and have a real estate attorney review the contract. That usually nets the most. A cash sale fits about 1 in 20 sellers, the ones whose deadline, repairs or loan problem makes listing break down.

A Realtor is a licensed agent who belongs to the National Association of Realtors and is bound by its Code of Ethics. We explain why that matters, plus the one Freakonomics warning to read before you sign a listing agreement, in should you use a Realtor or any licensed agent.

Don't sell it yourself to save the commission. Every family we know who sold by owner ended up with less than a Realtor would have gotten them, even after paying the commission. If you're thinking about it anyway, read selling a house without a Realtor first.

Cash fits when the listing path breaks: a house a lender won't finance, a sale date that won't move, heirs in three states who need one number. Our five-question self-test tells you which group you're in.

When does seller financing make sense?

Seller financing can fit when you own the house free and clear, or have enough equity that a buyer could pay off your loan at closing. You get a down payment, then monthly payments with interest, and usually more in total than a cash sale. The trade is time, because part of your money arrives over years.

If you still owe money, the loan has to be paid off at closing. Leaving it in place turns the deal into something riskier for you, because the lender can call the loan. That's why the calculator only shows this option when your equity is large enough.

The calculator doesn't put a price on terms, because the price depends on the buyer and the terms you choose. We write real terms for your house in the free side-by-side. Here is how seller financing works for a seller.