What a Richmond Seller Actually Walks Away With: Building a Net Proceeds Sheet Line by Line

Published October 2026

Listing prices are easy to find. What lands in your account on closing day takes a few more steps, and it is the number that decides whether the next purchase works. Below is a full net proceeds sheet for a made-up sale, then a second one with different assumptions, and then a walk through each line: what it is, who sets it, and which part you can still change.

The net sheet first: two hypothetical Richmond-area sales

Example A is a $475,000 house with a modest loan balance, a buyer who asks for help with closing costs, and an inspection credit. Example B is a $360,000 house with a large remaining balance, no concession and a larger inspection credit. Costs are subtracted from the price in the order they usually appear on a settlement statement.

Illustrative figures only. Arithmetic checked in code: Example A, $475,000 less $317,955 in total deductions is $157,045 before the $3,000 holdback. Example B, $360,000 less $348,250 is $11,750.

The gap between the two outcomes is the point. In Example A the costs other than the mortgage add up to $36,535, or 7.7% of the price, and the seller keeps 33.1% of the price at closing. In Example B those costs are $24,640, or 6.8% of the price, yet the seller keeps only 3.3%, because the payoff is $323,610. A seller’s costs scale with the price, but the loan balance does not, so a seller with a thin equity cushion feels every line.

What the numbers say about where the money goes

Two lines dominate in both columns: the mortgage payoff and the commission. Everything else is small by comparison, but the small lines are the ones that surprise people, because they arrive late. The grantor tax is $475 in Example A and $360 in Example B. The proration lines depend on the calendar. The inspection credit exists only if the buyer’s inspection finds something and the two sides agree on how to handle it.

Because the sheet is built from the top down, you can also work it backward. Pick the cash you need at closing, add the lines in reverse and you have the price an offer must reach. If your plan to sell depends on a down payment elsewhere, that reverse calculation is the useful one.

Line by line: the payoff, the prorations and the grantor tax

Mortgage payoff

The payoff is the largest deduction for most sellers and the one least like the balance on your monthly statement. It includes interest accrued up to the closing date, and it comes from your lender in a payoff letter that is valid through a stated date with a per diem beyond it. We assumed $280,000 of principal plus $1,420 of interest in Example A. Our guide to the payoff letter and why the number moves explains how a closing that slips a few days changes this line. If you have a second mortgage or a home equity line, each is a separate payoff.

Real estate tax and HOA proration

Prorations split a bill by days of ownership. If the tax installment covering the closing date has not been paid, the seller’s share of it is a debit; if the seller already paid it, the buyer reimburses the seller’s unused share and the line becomes a credit. We used a $1,520 debit in Example A as an assumption. Chesterfield and Henrico set their own due dates, and our piece on prorations on a Richmond closing statement covers who owes whom. HOA dues work the same way, and a neighborhood association in Midlothian or Short Pump may also charge a resale certificate or transfer fee that belongs on your sheet. Ask the association for its current charges instead of guessing.

Virginia grantor tax

The rate is set by Va. Code section 58.1-802: 50 cents for each $500 or fraction of it, paid by the grantor unless the parties agree the grantee will pay part or all. The statute measures it on the greater of the price or the assessed value, so we assumed each assessment is at or below the price. On $475,000 that is 950 units of $500, so $475. On $360,000 it is 720 units, so $360. A separate state recordation tax at 25 cents per $100 under section 58.1-801 is not on this sheet because the statute sets the rate but not who pays it; your contract decides. For the details, including the assessment rule, see our worked example and what the fees cost a seller at closing.

Settlement fees, commission and concessions

Settlement and title charges

Closing attorneys and title companies charge for preparing the deed, handling funds and recording releases. Fees differ by firm, so the $1,100 here is a placeholder. Ask for an itemized seller-side estimate. The CFPB closing disclosure explainer describes the buyer’s form and notes that seller credits and seller-paid costs show up in it, which is a useful way to see how both sides of the same transaction line up.

Commission

Commission is negotiable, and the amount belongs in your written listing agreement, not in a general rule. We chose 5% combined for both sides purely so the arithmetic is easy to follow; it is not a typical figure and it is not a recommendation. What matters on a net sheet is that you enter the actual terms you signed, including any amount offered to the buyer’s agent. Our posts on what a realtor costs when selling in Richmond and the full cost to sell explain what the line pays for.

Buyer concessions

A concession is a credit from you toward the buyer’s closing costs. In Example A it is 1.5% of the price, $7,125, and it comes straight off the bottom line. When the buyer is financing, the lender limits how much seller contribution a loan program allows, so the figure has a ceiling worth asking about. Our article on seller concessions in Richmond walks through how they are written and what they cost. Compare offers on the net sheet, not the headline price: a lower offer with no concession can beat a higher one with a large credit.

After the inspection: repairs, credits and holdbacks

Once the buyer’s inspection report is in, there are usually three ways to resolve an item: you fix it before closing, you credit the buyer, or you agree on a price change. A credit is a cash line on the sheet, $2,500 in Example A and $4,000 in Example B. A repair you do yourself does not appear on the settlement statement, but it costs you the contractor’s bill, so add it on your own sheet.

Sometimes the work cannot be finished by closing day because of weather, permits or a contractor’s schedule. A holdback fixes that. The settlement agent keeps an agreed amount from your proceeds until the work is done, then releases it according to the written agreement. In Example A $3,000 is held, so the wire is $154,045 and the $3,000 is still yours if the work is completed as agreed. Our guide to escrow holdbacks at a Richmond closing explains who holds the money and how release works. Put the holdback on its own line so you do not treat it as spent or as available.

How the sheet changes between a financed and a cash offer

The payoff, the grantor tax and the prorations are the same whether the buyer pays cash or borrows. What moves is the rest. A financed buyer brings a lender’s appraisal, loan conditions and often a request for closing cost help, so the concession line, the repair line and the closing date are more likely to change. A cash buyer removes the lender from the equation, which can shorten the timeline and change which items get negotiated. It does not make a lower price better on its own. Run both offers through the same sheet. Our comparison of a cash offer and a financed offer sets out the questions to ask about each.

The closing date matters for another reason: it controls the per diem interest on your payoff and the proration split, so a week’s delay can change two lines at once. If you are weighing offers on homes in neighborhoods like Glen Allen, build the sheet around each offer’s real closing date.

Net proceeds are not the same as taxable gain

The sheet tells you the cash from the sale. It does not tell you what you owe in federal tax, which depends on your basis, how long you owned and lived in the home, and your filing status. The IRS describes the main-home exclusion, up to $250,000 or up to $500,000 on a joint return if the tests are met, on its Topic 701 page. Treat that as a separate question from the net sheet. Our posts on the gain exclusion limits and who misses the exclusions cover it, and a tax professional should look at your own facts.

Building your own sheet from the top down

Start with the price you would accept. Subtract the payoff from your lender’s letter, then your listing agreement’s commission. Add the grantor tax at the rate above, the prorations and your settlement estimate. Enter any concession and inspection credit from the offer, and any holdback. To see which homes are competing for the same buyers while you decide on price, browse our live property search. The result is a cash figure you can compare with the amount you need, and you can rerun it as offers change.

This post is general information, not legal or tax advice. Contracts, closing costs and tax treatment depend on your facts, so talk to a Virginia real estate attorney about your contract and a tax professional about your return.

Written by the Mission Realty Team. Real Broker LLC, 3701 Cox Rd, Richmond VA 23233, (804) 601-4960. Meet the people behind these guides on our team page.