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

As a conservative budget, about 3% of the sale price for the agent and selling costs, plus conveyancing. Agent fee structures and marketing costs move it up or down.

What costs do people forget when selling and buying?

Stamp duty on the new purchase. It's often larger than the agent's fee and it comes straight out of what you have for the next deposit.

Do selling costs affect my next home loan?

Yes. They come out of the sale proceeds first, so they change your deposit on the next purchase and, if you're bridging, your end debt.

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What does it actually cost me to sell a property?

Bayley Clarke · Mortgage broker on the road · Last checked 3 September 2026 · 3 min read

The short answer

I'm no real estate agent, but when I'm running numbers for people who are selling and buying, I use a conservative figure of 3% of the sale price as the budget for the agent and selling the home.

The cost people forget is the second one: stamp duty on the new purchase. Put both in the spreadsheet before you decide whether to sell first, bridge, or keep the place as a rental.

The one minute version. The rest of this page is the detail underneath it.

The 3% budget, and what moves it

When I'm chatting to people who are considering selling and buying, and we're looking at things like bridging loans, or selling, living somewhere else and buying again, I normally use quite a conservative figure of 3% of whatever your sale price is as the budget for what it costs to use an agent and sell your home. On a $700k sale that's $21k set aside.

There are things that can make that higher or lower: the particular agent, their fee structure, and whether there are marketing costs on top of the commission. Some agents quote a lower percentage and add marketing, staging and photography as separate lines. Ask for the all-in number, then check it against the 3%.

The other cost: stamp duty on the next place

What it costs you isn't only the agent fees. You're then paying stamp duty on the new purchase too. That's the cost people leave out when they compare selling and buying with staying put and renovating, and on a bigger next home it can be more than the agent's fee.

So the honest cost of moving is the agent, the conveyancing on both ends, the stamp duty on the purchase, and the discharge and setup fees on the loans. Add it up before you fall for the next house, not after.

Why the number matters for the loan

The sale costs come out of your sale proceeds before you see a dollar, so they change how much deposit you're walking into the next purchase with. If you're bridging, they change your end debt. If you're keeping the current place as a rental, they're the cost you avoid. The three paths are compared on do I have to sell before I buy.

The honest bit: I'd rather over-budget than surprise you

3% is deliberately conservative. Plenty of sales come in under it, and if yours does, that's money back in the deposit. What I won't do is run your next-home numbers on a best-case agent fee and have the settlement statement come in worse.

Get two agents to quote in writing, all-in. Then we use the higher one.

Selling and buying and want the real number?

A 30 minute call. Sale price, selling costs, stamp duty on the next place, and what's left as deposit. Then we compare sell first, bridge, or keep it as a rental, on your figures.

Book a 30 minute call Call 0437 189 939

No cost to you. The bank pays me when a loan settles. · How I get paid

Next question

Do I need to save a full 20% deposit again for my next home?

What the sale proceeds and your equity actually give you for the next deposit.