A calculator and household bills representing the carrying costs of a house while it sits on the market
A good agent earns their commission. This post is not an argument against using one — it is an argument against being surprised, because the commission is only the line people quote.
The full list
On a $150,000 Cleveland sale. Illustrative — your figures will differ.
| Cost | Typical | On $150k |
|---|---|---|
| Agent commission | 5.5% – 6% | $8,250 – $9,000 |
| Seller-paid closing costs | 1–3% | $1,500 – $4,500 |
| Pre-listing repairs | Varies wildly | $0 – $25,000 |
| Inspection-driven repairs or credits | $2,000 – $10,000 | $2,000 – $10,000 |
| Buyer concessions | 0–3% | $0 – $4,500 |
| Staging / photography | $500 – $3,000 | $500 – $3,000 |
| Cleaning and cleanout | $500 – $5,000 | $500 – $5,000 |
| Carrying costs while listed | Per month | See below |
The one that surprises people: carrying costs
Every month the house is yours, it costs you money — whether you live in it or not.
| Monthly cost | Typical |
|---|---|
| Mortgage payment | $700 – $1,400 |
| Property taxes | $150 – $400 |
| Insurance | $70 – $200 |
| Utilities (even mostly empty) | $120 – $300 |
| Lawn / snow / upkeep | $50 – $200 |
| Monthly total | $1,090 – $2,500 |
Vacant-property insurance costs more than standard cover, and a standard policy may not pay out on an unoccupied house at all. Check before assuming.
At a mid-range $1,500/month. Six months of carrying costs can equal the entire commission.
The costs that are not money
- Showings at short notice. Keeping a house show-ready while living in it, and leaving whenever asked.
- Uncertainty. You do not know your number until it is done. Budgeting around a maybe is hard.
- The deal falling through. Buyer financing collapses, and you are back to day one having lost weeks.
- Repair project management. Getting quotes, booking contractors, chasing them, discovering the second problem behind the first.
A meaningful share of agreed sales collapse before closing, usually on financing or a bad appraisal. When it happens at week ten you have lost the time, spent the money, and the house goes back on the market with a stale listing date.
Adding it up
On our $150,000 example, with modest repairs and three months on market:
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Sale price | $150,000 |
| Commission at 6% (typically 5.5% – 6%) | −$9,000 |
| Seller closing costs at 2% | −$3,000 |
| Pre-listing repairs | −$8,000 |
| Inspection credits | −$3,000 |
| Staging, photos, cleaning | −$1,500 |
| 3 months carrying costs | −$4,500 |
| Net | $121,000 |
That is roughly 19% of the sale price gone — against the 5.5% – 6% most people have in mind.
A cash offer on that house might be $105,000. The listing still nets $16,000 more. If you can fund $8,000 of repairs up front and wait three months, take it. The point is not that listing is bad — it is that "six percent" is not the real number, and you should compare against the real one.
Want both numbers side by side?
We will tell you what we would pay, and you can weigh it against what an agent quotes. Free, and no obligation either way.
Frequently asked questions
Commission is the one everybody knows. The ones that surprise people are seller-side closing costs, the county conveyance fee, buyer concessions negotiated after the inspection, repairs the lender demands before it will fund, and the holding costs — mortgage, taxes, insurance, utilities — that keep running the whole time the house sits.
Both pay some, and the split is negotiable. Sellers here typically carry the conveyance fee, their share of prorated property taxes, and often part of the title work; buyers carry the loan-related costs. When we buy, we typically pay the closing costs, so the figure we agree is the figure you receive.
It is negotiable, and it has been falling since the 2024 NAR settlement — so treat any single published figure as dated. Ask for the actual rate in writing before signing a listing agreement, and confirm what portion is offered to the buyer’s agent.
No. There is no commission because there is no agent, no charge for the offer, and nothing deducted for our costs. We typically cover the closing costs. The number we agree on is the number you receive at the table.
Cuyahoga County charges a conveyance fee on the sale price when the deed transfers, and it is customarily a seller cost. The rate is set by the county and can change, so confirm the current figure with the Fiscal Officer or your title company rather than relying on a number from a blog — including this one.
Everything that keeps running whether or not the house sells: mortgage interest, property taxes, insurance, utilities, lawn and snow, and any maintenance. Across a months-long listing these quietly accumulate, and they are the cost most often left out when a listing price is compared against a cash offer.
Find out what we would pay
Free, no obligation, and no pressure. If our number does not work for you, that is a perfectly fine answer.
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