Australia-wide · Selling

Cost of selling a house

Every other calculator guesses your agent's fee. This one works on the rate you were actually quoted, adds the GST on top of it, repays the mortgage and takes out capital gains tax — so the number at the end is cash in your hand, not a gross figure that flatters the sale.

FY 2026-27 rates · verified

Rates verified 28 Aug 2026 against the official sources — how we check.

Your tally

Cash in your hand

$469,400

After selling costs of $30,600 and repaying $400,000 of mortgage.

You keep $469,400Mortgage $400,000Costs $30,600

How it’s made up

Sale price$900,000

Agent commission (2.5% + GST)−$24,750

Marketing, legals, discharge−$5,850

Mortgage payout−$400,000

Cash in your hand$469,400

Selling costs are 3.4% of the sale price.

Commission, conveyancing, marketing and auction fees are quotes, not schedules — this calculator does the arithmetic on the figures you enter and never invents a market rate. The capital gains tax uses our tested FY 2026-27 engine. General information only — not financial or tax advice.

Why nobody can tell you the “average” commission

Real estate commission in Australia is deregulated. There is no legislated rate, no published schedule and no regulator setting a number — which is precisely why every article quoting a national average is quoting a private survey, not an official source. We will not do that. What we can tell you is the arithmetic, and the arithmetic is unforgiving: on a $900,000 sale, every 0.25% of commission is $2,250 before GST, and $2,475 after it.

So the useful move is not finding an average — it is getting three written quotes and running them through the same sum. A rate that sounds nearly identical to another can be thousands apart once GST and marketing are included, and marketing in particular is often quoted separately and forgotten.

The GST trap in an agency agreement

Agents are registered for GST, so 10% goes on top of their fee. A rate quoted plus GST is 10% dearer than it looks: 2.5% is really 2.75% of the sale price. On $900,000 that is the difference between $22,500 and $24,750. Both numbers are honest; only one is what leaves your account. The toggle above switches between the two readings so you can check which one your agreement actually says.

The two costs sellers forget

The mortgage payout. Settlement repays the loan before you see a cent, so a healthy sale price and a large remaining balance can still produce a modest cheque. There is usually a discharge fee on top, small but real.

Capital gains tax. Your own home is generally exempt, but an investment property is not, and the tax is assessed in the financial year you contract to sell, not when the money arrives. The one mercy is that selling costs work in your favour: they come off the capital proceeds and shrink the gain. Tick the investment box above and the tax is computed by the same tested engine as our capital gains tax calculator, so the two pages can never disagree.

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to sell a house in Australia?

There is no set figure, because the largest cost — agent commission — is deregulated and negotiable. On a $900,000 sale, a 2.5% commission plus GST is $24,750, and adding marketing, conveyancing and a discharge fee typically brings total selling costs to somewhere near 3–4% of the price. That is why this calculator asks for the rate you were actually quoted instead of inventing an average: your agent's number is the number that matters.

Do you pay stamp duty when you sell a house?

No. Transfer duty is paid by the buyer. As the seller your costs are commission, conveyancing, marketing and the mortgage discharge — plus capital gains tax if the property was an investment.

Is GST charged on real estate agent commission?

Yes. Agents are registered for GST, so 10% is added to their fee. A rate quoted "plus GST" costs 10% more than the number suggests — 2.5% becomes 2.75% of the sale price in real money. Always ask whether a quoted rate includes GST, and use the toggle above to see the difference.

What is a typical real estate agent commission?

Commission was deregulated in Australia, so there is no official or legislated rate and any "national average" you see quoted is an estimate from private surveys rather than a published schedule. Rates generally sit low single digits as a percentage of the sale price, tend to be lower where agents compete hardest and higher in thinner regional markets, and are genuinely negotiable. Get three written quotes and compare them on this calculator.

Do I pay capital gains tax when I sell?

Not on your main residence, which is generally exempt. On an investment property you do, and the selling costs reduce it: they come off your capital proceeds, shrinking the gain. Tick the investment box above and this calculator runs the same tested FY 2026–27 engine as our CGT calculator, so the tax figure and the cash figure always agree.

What is left after the mortgage is paid out?

Settlement repays your loan before you see anything. The calculator subtracts the balance and the discharge fee, so the headline number is genuine cash in hand — and, if you tick investment, cash after the ATO is paid too. If the loan exceeds what the sale nets, the shortfall is still owed; the figure here is what this settlement produces, not a debt write-off.

Assumptions & sources

Commission, marketing, conveyancing and auction fees are your inputs. They are negotiated prices, not published schedules, so this calculator asserts no market rate for them.
GST on agent commission is the standard 10% rate. Where a quote already includes GST, the split shown is derived from that total so the parts always sum to what you were quoted.
Capital gains tax uses the FY 2026-27 resident rates in our tested engine, with selling costs reducing the capital proceeds. Main residence is treated as exempt unless you tick investment.
The mortgage payout is capped at what the sale nets — a shortfall in negative equity is still owed, but it is not cash from this settlement.