What It Actually Costs to Sell a Home in the Tri-Cities

Most sellers focus on the commission and get surprised by everything else. This is the full list, worked through on a $445,000 sale, which is roughly the Tri-Cities median price in 2026. Your numbers will differ, and your escrow officer will give you an exact settlement statement before closing, but the shape is the same for every sale in Benton and Franklin counties.

The short version

On a $445,000 sale with a full-service listing and an offer of compensation to the buyer's agent, expect total selling costs between $27,000 and $38,000, or roughly 6% to 8.5% of the price. Skip the buyer-agent compensation and the low end drops to around 4%. What is left after that, minus your mortgage payoff, is your check at closing.

Line by line

1. Listing fee

Negotiable, set in your listing agreement. Full-service listing fees in the Tri-Cities commonly run 2% to 3%. On $445,000, that is $8,900 to $13,350. A flat-rate MLS listing replaces this with a fixed fee, typically well under $1,000, in exchange for handling the showings and negotiation yourself.

2. Buyer-agent compensation (optional)

Since the 2024 rule changes, this is no longer bundled with the listing fee. You decide whether to offer it, and how much, usually as a seller concession written into the purchase agreement. Offering 2% to 2.5% ($8,900 to $11,125) keeps your home accessible to buyers who cannot pay their own agent out of pocket, which in a market with 1,200-plus listings is most of them. Offering nothing is legal and lowers your cost; it also shrinks your buyer pool.

3. Washington real estate excise tax (REET)

This is the one out-of-state sellers never see coming. Washington taxes the seller on a graduated schedule:

Portion of sale price	State rate
Up to $525,000	1.1%
$525,000 to $1,525,000	1.28%
$1,525,000 to $3,025,000	2.75%
Above $3,025,000	3.0%

Most Tri-Cities cities add a local REET of about 0.5%. On $445,000, the state portion is $4,895 and the local portion is about $2,225, for roughly $7,120 total. The thresholds are adjusted every four years; the next adjustment is scheduled for 2027.

4. Owner's title insurance

In Washington the seller customarily buys the owner's policy that protects the buyer. On a $445,000 home, budget roughly $1,000 to $1,500 depending on the title company and any discounts for a recent prior policy.

5. Escrow fee

Split between buyer and seller by custom. Figure $600 to $1,000 for your half on a sale this size, plus small recording and courier charges.

6. Repairs and inspection concessions

This is the most variable line and the one where a good negotiator earns their fee. Buyers in 2026 are asking for more than they did in 2024, because they have alternatives. Typical outcomes range from $0 on a well-maintained home to $5,000 to $15,000 in credits or repairs when an inspection turns up a roof, HVAC, or electrical panel issue. A pre-listing inspection ($400 to $600) removes most surprises.

7. Preparation

Paint, carpet, landscaping cleanup, and a deep clean commonly run $1,500 to $6,000 and return more than they cost in this market. Professional staging is optional at the median price and more valuable above $500,000, where homes take twice as long to sell.

8. Holding costs

Every month on the market costs you the mortgage payment, taxes, insurance, and utilities. At the 2026 median of about 22 days on market plus a 30 to 40 day closing, plan on two months. Overpricing turns that into four.

9. Mortgage payoff and prorations

Not a cost of selling, but it comes out of the same check. Your payoff includes interest through the closing date. Property taxes are prorated, and Benton and Franklin counties bill in April and October, so the timing of your sale decides whether you get a credit or owe a share.

A worked example

$445,000 sale, full-service listing at 2.5%, 2.5% offered to the buyer's agent, modest preparation, one inspection credit:

Item	Amount
Listing fee (2.5%)	$11,125
Buyer-agent compensation (2.5%)	$11,125
Excise tax (state plus local)	$7,120
Owner's title policy	$1,200
Escrow (seller half) and recording	$850
Preparation	$3,000
Inspection credit	$4,000
Total	$38,420 (8.6%)
Net before mortgage payoff	$406,580

Drop the buyer-agent compensation and preparation to zero and the total falls to about $24,300, or 5.5%. Use a flat-rate MLS listing instead of a full-service one and it falls further, though you take on the showings and negotiation yourself.

What does not cost you money

• Capital gains, usually. Federal law excludes up to $250,000 of gain ($500,000 married filing jointly) on a primary residence you lived in for two of the last five years. Washington's capital gains tax exempts real estate entirely.
• A price opinion. Any competent local broker will give you a comparable-sales analysis at no charge. That is the free home evaluation, and it is the right first step whether you sell this year or in three.

How I help sellers keep more

I am a licensed Washington broker with EXIT Realty Tri Cities Life. I also own rental property across the Tri-Cities through Parency Property Management, which means I price and repair homes in these neighborhoods every week. I will show you the closed sales behind any price I suggest, give you a written estimate of net proceeds before we list, and negotiate inspection requests from the actual cost of the work rather than from fear of losing the deal. If you would rather run your own sale, ask me about the flat-rate MLS option.

This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice. Your escrow officer and tax professional will confirm the exact figures for your sale.