What Closing Costs Do Home Sellers Pay in Tennessee?

If you're getting ready to sell your house fast in Bartlett, TN or anywhere in the Memphis area, here is a plain breakdown of which closing costs actually come out of your proceeds, and which ones don't.

See also: What's the Hardest Month to Sell a House in the Memphis Area?.

Tennessee's transfer tax is a buyer expense, not a seller one

Many sellers assume they owe a share of Tennessee's real estate transfer tax. They don't. Under Tenn. Code Ann. § 67-4-409, the state charges $0.37 per $100 of the sale price, or the property's value if that's higher, to record the deed. State law makes the grantee, meaning the buyer, responsible for paying it. On a $150,000 sale that's $555, and it's the buyer's line item, not yours.

The Register of Deeds also charges its own flat fee to file the deed itself: $12 for the first two pages and $5 for each page after that. That fee is paid by whoever records the document.

What Tennessee sellers customarily pay

Outside the transfer tax, who pays most other costs comes down to local custom and the purchase contract. The biggest cost that customarily lands on the seller is the buyer's owner's title insurance policy. There's no statute behind it, it's simply tradition in Tennessee, so it can be negotiated, but Tennessee closing companies typically charge $300 to $500 for the title search and settlement fee that goes with issuing that policy, a separate charge from the insurance premium itself.

If you're paying off an existing mortgage or another lien at closing, the closing agent also has to record a release of that debt with the Register of Deeds. That's the same fee structure as above, $12 for the first two pages and $5 per additional page, and because it's discharging your own lien, it's a cost that typically comes out of the seller's proceeds.

Real estate commission, if you list with an agent

If you sell through a listing agent instead of directly, commission is usually the single largest seller-side closing cost. It isn't set by law and is fully negotiable, but a 2026 Clever Real Estate survey puts the average total real estate commission in Tennessee at 5.59% of the sale price, slightly above the 5.46% national average, and it's paid out of your proceeds at closing. A seller who sells directly, without listing the property on the open market, doesn't owe this cost at all, since there's no agent commission involved. A direct cash offer is usually lower than a listed price, so compare your net after costs, not just the fee lines.

Prorated property taxes

Property tax in the Memphis area is billed once a year. The bill becomes due the first Monday of October, and you can pay it through the last day of February without interest. After that it's delinquent, and interest of 1.5% of the base tax starts accruing on the first of each following month. Because the county bills annually instead of month by month, your closing statement will include a proration: a credit or a charge covering the days you actually owned the house during that tax year. That's a standard "Adjustments" line item on the Closing Disclosure used when the buyer has a mortgage, not something unique to this area.

Do you need to pay for an attorney to close?

Not necessarily. Tennessee is not an attorney-closing state. Most residential closings here happen at a title company, with no attorney representing either side. You can still hire your own attorney to review the contract if the sale involves an estate, multiple liens, or anything else complicated, but that's a separate cost you'd choose to add, not one Tennessee requires.

Frequently asked questions

Does the seller or the buyer pay Tennessee's real estate transfer tax?

The buyer does. Tennessee law makes the grantee, the person receiving the deed, responsible for the $0.37-per-$100 realty transfer tax under Tenn. Code Ann. § 67-4-409, so it isn't a cost sellers need to budget for.

Do Tennessee home sellers have to hire a real estate attorney to close?

No. Tennessee doesn't require an attorney at closing. Most sales close through a title company instead, so hiring an attorney is optional and would be a separate cost you add yourself.

Are closing costs different if I sell my house directly instead of listing it?

The transfer tax rule and the county recording fees stay the same either way, since those come from state and county rules, not the sale method. What changes is the commission line: a direct sale with no listing agent has no commission to pay, which is the largest seller-side cost described above. A direct cash offer is usually lower than a listed price, so compare your net after costs, not just the fee lines.

If comparing these numbers makes a traditional listing feel like a lot of steps for a sale you need to close quickly, you can request a no-obligation cash offer on your Bartlett house instead and skip the agent commission described above.