How to estimate your net proceeds from a home sale
The sale price is not what lands in your account. Between the contract and the wire transfer sit a mortgage payoff, taxes, title and settlement charges, and whatever you pay a company to help you sell. A net sheet lines those up so you can see the number that matters before you list: your net proceeds. This page explains each line so the estimate is one you can check yourself.
The formula
Net proceeds= Sale price − loan payoff(s) − listing commission or technology fee − any buyer-side costs you agree to pay − transfer and grantor taxes − title and settlement charges − repairs, credits, warranty and HOA charges.
The calculator runs this twice, side by side: once with a traditional listing commission at the rate you enter, and once for a sale with VroomBrick, which charges a 1% technology fee for the platform and has no listing agent commission line. Every other line is identical in both columns, because those costs exist no matter how you sell.
What each line means
- Sale price. Use a realistic contract price. Every percentage-based line moves with it.
- Loan payoff and additional loans.The amount needed to release each lien on the home, including a second mortgage or home equity line. Your lender’s payoff statement is the source of truth here.
- Commission or technology fee. A listing commission is a percentage in your agreement and is negotiable. With VroomBrick, that line is our 1% technology fee.
- Buyer-side costs. If you agree to pay any buyer-side compensation, discount points or closing-cost credits, enter them. These are negotiated in each sale, and the calculator only reflects what you enter.
- Taxes on the deed. In Virginia, the grantor tax under Code of Virginia § 58.1-802 is 50 cents for each $500 of consideration or value (or fraction of $500) and is paid by the grantor, the seller, unless the parties arrange otherwise. Localities in the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority add a regional fee under § 58.1-802.3 (both as of September 2026). The calculator uses an estimated combined rate by state; your closing attorney confirms the exact figure.
- Title and settlement. Settlement, document preparation and related charges. The default is editable.
- Repairs, warranty, HOA and survey items. Optional lines for costs you agree to cover, such as repairs after an inspection, a home warranty, an HOA resale certificate or transfer fee, or survey coverage.
A worked example
Everything except the commission line is the same in both columns, so the gap between them comes down to the fee. On the price and example rate we use in all of our materials:
Worked example
On a $400,000 home, a 1% technology fee is $4,000. If a seller's agent charged 3%, that would be $12,000, a difference of $8,000. Commissions are negotiable, so your number depends on what you'd have paid.
Enter your own price, payoff and commission rate and the calculator applies the same logic to your numbers, then subtracts the costs that apply in either case.
Selling for sale by owner in Virginia
Some sellers who run a net sheet are weighing a for sale by owner listing. Whichever way you sell, the paperwork still applies. The Virginia Residential Property Disclosure Act (§ 55.1-703) requires the owner to furnish a residential property disclosure statement to the purchaser, and the exclusions in § 55.1-702 do not include sales made without a real estate licensee (as of September 2026). The deed, grantor tax and settlement also have to be handled correctly. VroomBrick is a technology platform, not a brokerage: sellers get a licensed closing attorney for contracts and settlement, showing agents, a transaction dashboard, and remote closing and power-of-attorney support, for a 1% technology fee.
What the net sheet leaves out
Income tax on any gain is not included, because it depends on your own circumstances. IRS Publication 523 explains the rules for selling a main home, including how gain is figured and the exclusion of up to $250,000 of gain ($500,000 for a married couple filing jointly) for owners who meet the ownership and use tests (as of September 2026). Prorated property taxes and utility final bills can also shift the number at closing. For a view of how your equity builds before you sell, try the home equity calculator, or run just the fee comparison in the agent commission cost calculator.