Michigan's transfer taxes and the owner's title policy are the two costs a seller can estimate to the dollar. Commission, concessions and tax prorations are the ones that move — and in a market where 42% of listings have cut their price, concessions are the line to watch.
By BIG Real Estate · November 7, 2026
With Oakland County's active listings up 29.4% from a year ago in October (Realtor.com data via FRED), more owners are running the numbers on a sale. The first question is usually "what will I net?" Part of that answer is fixed by Michigan law and filed title-insurance rates, and part is negotiated. This guide separates the two, with the math worked on the county's September median sale price of $383,500 (Realcomp, Oakland County residential and condo).
This is general information, not tax or legal advice. Your title company's settlement statement is the final word on your numbers.
The two costs set by law and filed rates
Michigan transfer tax: 0.86% of the price
When a deed is recorded, Michigan charges two transfer taxes, and both fall on the seller:
- State tax: $3.75 for each $500 of value or fraction of $500 (MCL 207.525); the seller is liable (MCL 207.523).
- County tax: 55 cents per $500 in counties under 2 million people, which includes Oakland (MCL 207.504), paid by the seller (MCL 207.502).
Together that is $4.30 per $500, or 0.86%. On a $383,500 sale: $2,876.25 state plus $421.85 county, $3,298.10. On a $700,000 sale: $6,020.
The owner's title insurance policy
In Michigan the seller customarily pays for the buyer's owner's title policy, according to Chicago Title's Michigan closing-customs summary (2026 edition). Custom is not law: the purchase agreement decides, and it is negotiable.
Michigan does not set one statewide title rate; each underwriter files its own schedule. Stewart Title Guaranty's Michigan residential rate manual (effective Feb. 17, 2025) is one public example. Its standard owner's policy charge is $450 for the first $20,000 of coverage, then a per-$1,000 rate that steps down as the price rises ($6.42, $4.55, $3.75, then $3.21 from $300,000 to $1 million). Worked through:
- $383,500 sale: owner's policy $2,063.24; enhanced "homeowner's" policy $2,318.32
- $700,000 sale: owner's policy $3,077.60
Two caveats. These are premiums only — the manual says they exclude title search, examination and other service fees, which agents charge separately. And other underwriters' filed rates differ, so ask the title company for a written quote early. Settlement or closing fees are usually split between buyer and seller in Michigan, per the same Chicago Title summary. If the buyer asks for the enhanced homeowner's policy, settle in the purchase agreement who pays the difference.
Bottom line on fixed costs: transfer tax plus the owner's policy premium is about $5,360 on a $383,500 sale (1.4%) and about $9,100 on a $700,000 sale (1.3%). Everything else on the seller's side is negotiated, prorated or specific to the home.
The costs that move
Commission
Brokerage commissions are not set by law and are negotiable. Since practice changes from the National Association of Realtors settlement took effect on Aug. 17, 2024, offers of compensation to a buyer's agent can no longer appear in the MLS, and buyers sign a written agreement with their own agent. A seller can still agree to pay some or all of the buyer's agent's fee, or offer a concession the buyer uses for it. Because there is no single "typical" figure, it helps to price it simply: on a $383,500 sale, every percentage point of commission is $3,835.
Concessions: the line growing fastest
Concessions are credits from the seller toward the buyer's closing costs or a rate buydown. Nationally, sellers gave them in 44.7% of sales in the three months ending Aug. 31, 2026, according to Redfin. There is no Oakland County concession figure, but the county's price-cut share was 42.4% of active listings in October — a sign that negotiating room exists.
On a $383,500 sale, a 3% credit is $11,505 — more than the transfer tax and title premium combined. Loan rules cap what a buyer can accept:
- Conventional (Fannie Mae): 3% of the price with less than 10% down, 6% with 10–25% down, 9% with more than 25% down (Selling Guide B3-4.1-02).
- FHA: generally up to 6% of the price.
- VA: concessions up to 4% of the home's reasonable value; ordinary closing-cost credits are counted separately and are not capped by that 4%.
A concession is not always worse than a price cut. A credit that buys down the buyer's rate can make a monthly payment work at your price, while a price cut of the same size becomes a lower comparable sale for the next listing on your street. Which is better depends on the buyer and the appraisal; it is worth asking your agent to model both.
Property tax prorations
Michigan property taxes are billed in summer and December, and in many Oakland school districts the school operating millage is split between the two bills. How the bills are divided at closing — whether taxes are treated as paid for the period before or after the bill date — is set by the purchase agreement, not by statute, so read that paragraph before you sign. The method can move the credit by hundreds of dollars.
One Michigan-specific point helps sellers and buyers alike: a seller's principal residence exemption stays on the property through Dec. 31 of the year of the sale (MCL 211.7cc), so a 2026 closing is prorated on the exempt rate. The buyer's own taxes reset the following year. (Our principal residence exemption guide covers the buyer's side.)
The rest
Mortgage payoff (including interest to the payoff date), any liens, condo association fees or transfer charges, a final water bill, and repairs negotiated after the buyer's inspection all come out of proceeds. Some communities also have their own sale or occupancy requirements; check with your city or township building department before listing.
A state transfer tax exemption most sellers never check
Michigan exempts a sale from the state transfer tax — the $3.75-per-$500 portion — when all of these are true (MCL 207.526(u)):
- the seller has a principal residence exemption on the home;
- the home's state equalized value (SEV) is equal to or less than its SEV when the seller acquired it (or, for a new home, the first tax day after the certificate of occupancy, whichever is later); and
- the price is an arm's-length market price.
The county tax still applies; the county act has no matching exemption (MCL 207.505). The seller, or a buyer who paid the tax on the seller's behalf, can request a refund from the Michigan Department of Treasury; refund claims are subject to the state's general limitations period for tax refunds (MCL 205.27a), which is generally four years.
Because SEV rises with market values — Oakland County's total SEV rose 5.85% in 2026 alone, according to the county's 2026 equalization report — most owners who bought in the last decade will not qualify. The test is two numbers from your assessment history: your SEV now and your SEV in the year you bought. If you bought near a market peak or your assessment fell, check before closing.
Taxes on the gain
Most owner-occupants pay no federal tax on the profit. You can exclude up to $250,000 of gain ($500,000 on a joint return) if you owned and lived in the home for at least two of the five years before the sale, and generally haven't used the exclusion in the prior two years (IRS Topic 701). Selling expenses such as commissions and legal fees reduce the amount realized when you compute the gain (IRS Publication 523). Long-time owners in higher-priced parts of the county are the ones most likely to exceed the exclusion; that is a question for a tax professional, and our downsizing guide covers what happens to the property tax on the next home.
What to do before you list
- Ask a title company for a seller's net sheet with its own filed premium and fees.
- Decide your concession position in advance. With 42% of Oakland listings cutting prices in October, buyers will ask. Know whether you'd rather offer a credit, a price reduction, or neither — and what the buyer's loan type allows.
- Read the tax proration paragraph in the purchase agreement, especially for a November–December closing when the December bill is issued.
- Pull your SEV history if you bought near a peak, to see whether the state transfer tax exemption applies.
- Price for the market you're in. Our fall pricing guide and inventory report cover how much room sellers have.
The fixed part of selling is small and predictable: about 1.3–1.4% of the price for transfer tax and title insurance. The negotiated part — commission and concessions — is larger, and in this market it is where most of the difference in a seller's net will be decided.
This article is general information about Michigan transaction costs as of November 2026, not legal, tax or financial advice. Title premiums shown are one underwriter's filed rates; your title company's quote and settlement statement govern. Statutes cited were checked on the Michigan Legislature's website on Nov. 7, 2026.