Seller tool · Closing
What Louisiana sellers pay at closing
Under the default terms of Louisiana's 2026 purchase agreement, the seller pays required certificates, mortgage cancellations, seller closing fees and prior years' taxes and dues. Current-year taxes and dues are prorated to the closing date. Your mortgage payoff and any commission you agreed to also come out of your proceeds. Commission is negotiable. Louisiana has no state real estate transfer tax, but New Orleans has a flat documentary transaction tax.
Reviewed by the Nicole Spellman Group team
Updated September 27, 2026
The default split
Who pays what in a Louisiana sale
These are the defaults in the Louisiana Residential Agreement to Buy or Sell. Every item can be negotiated in the contract.
Seller pays
- Necessary tax, mortgage and conveyance certificates
- Release certificates or mortgage cancellations
- Seller closing fees, if any
- All previous years' taxes, special assessments and condominium dues
- Buyer's broker pay only if you agree to it; $0 if left blank
Buyer pays
- Act of Sale costs
- Abstracting and title search
- Title insurance
- Costs required to get financing
- Unless the contract says otherwise
Source: Louisiana Real Estate Commission, 2026 mandatory forms; Louisiana Residential Agreement to Buy or Sell, rev. 01/2026, lines 107–121 (costs and prorations) and line 338 (buyer's broker compensation).
Line by line
Seller-side items on a Louisiana closing
Not every sale has every line. Your title company or closing attorney sets the final figures.
| Item | What it is | How the amount is set |
|---|---|---|
| Listing broker commission | Pay to your listing brokerage | Negotiable. Set in your listing agreement |
| Buyer's broker pay | Anything you agree to pay toward the buyer's broker | Only if you agree. $0 if the contract line is blank |
| Mortgage payoff | Balance of every loan secured by the home | Your lender's written payoff statement, with interest to the closing date |
| Mortgage cancellation | Recording the release of your mortgage | Parish clerk of court fee. Example: West Baton Rouge lists $55 for a single cancellation |
| Certificates | Tax, mortgage and conveyance certificates | Title company or closing attorney fees |
| Seller closing fees | Fees the closing agent charges the seller | Title company or closing attorney fees |
| Prior years' taxes and dues | Anything unpaid from earlier years | Your tax and HOA or condo records |
| Prorations | Current-year taxes, HOA and condo dues, special assessments, rents, and flood premiums if the buyer assumes the policy | Prorated through the date of the Act of Sale |
| Concessions and credits | Closing cost help or repair credits you agree to give the buyer | Negotiated in the contract |
| New Orleans documentary tax | City tax on recorded transfers in Orleans Parish | $325 flat, paid by the seller |
Sources: Louisiana Residential Agreement to Buy or Sell, rev. 01/2026; West Baton Rouge Clerk of Court fee schedule (fees under Act 173 of 2017); Orleans Parish Civil District Court Clerk, Documentary Transaction Tax. Other parishes: check your clerk of court's fee schedule.
Property taxes
Why sellers credit the buyer for taxes
Property taxes for the year are billed near the end of that year and are due by December 31. In East Baton Rouge, notices generally go out the last week of November. At closing, you credit the buyer for the part of the year you owned the home, and the buyer pays the full bill when it arrives.
Sources: East Baton Rouge Sheriff and Tax Collector; Louisiana Residential Agreement to Buy or Sell, rev. 01/2026. Timing in other parishes may differ; ask your parish tax collector.
Transfer tax
Is there a transfer tax in Louisiana?
Louisiana's constitution bars new taxes or fees on the sale or transfer of real estate after November 30, 2011. New Orleans kept its existing tax.
Statewide
- No state real estate transfer tax
- No new parish or city transfer taxes allowed after November 30, 2011
- Recording fees still apply; they are set by the clerk of court
New Orleans
- Documentary Transaction Tax of $325 on most real estate transfers
- Paid by the seller
- Collected by the Notarial Archives for the City
Sources: La. Const. Art. VII §2.3, approved by voters in 2011 (Ballotpedia summary; a 2025 proposal to renumber it was rejected by voters on March 29, 2025, per Ballotpedia News); Orleans Parish Civil District Court Clerk.
Run your numbers
Estimate your net proceeds
Put your own payoff, commission, closing costs, tax bill and closing date into the net sheet calculator. It prorates taxes to your closing date for you.
What comes out
- Mortgage payoff
- All loans and lines
- Commissions
- What you agreed to
- Certificates, cancellations
- Seller side
- Property taxes
- Prorated to closing
- Credits to buyer
- If negotiated
- What's left
- Your net proceeds
Straight answers
Seller closing cost questions
What closing costs does a seller pay in Louisiana?
By default, required certificates, mortgage cancellations, seller closing fees and prior years' taxes and dues. Current-year taxes and dues are prorated, and your payoff and any commission you agreed to come out of proceeds.
LREC Residential Agreement to Buy or Sell, rev. 01/2026
Is real estate commission set by law?
No. Commission is negotiable and set in your listing agreement. You pay the buyer's broker only if you agree to.
LREC Residential Agreement to Buy or Sell, rev. 01/2026
Does Louisiana have a transfer tax?
There is no state transfer tax, and the constitution bars new ones after November 30, 2011. New Orleans charges a $325 documentary transaction tax, paid by the seller.
La. Const. Art. VII §2.3 · Orleans Parish Civil Clerk
Are Louisiana property taxes paid in arrears?
Bills go out near the end of the year and are due by December 31, so at closing the seller usually credits the buyer for the months already owned. In East Baton Rouge, notices are generally mailed the last week of November.
East Baton Rouge Sheriff and Tax Collector
Who pays for title insurance in Louisiana?
The buyer, under the contract's default terms, along with Act of Sale costs and title search. The parties can agree to a different split.
LREC Residential Agreement to Buy or Sell, rev. 01/2026
How do I get my exact closing costs?
Use a net sheet for an estimate before you list. Your title company or closing attorney issues the final settlement statement.
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General information, current as of September 27, 2026. Not legal, tax or insurance advice. Nicole Spellman Group agents are licensed Louisiana real estate salespersons, not attorneys, tax advisors or insurance agents. Final costs come from your title company or closing attorney. For questions about title or the Act of Sale, talk to a Louisiana real estate attorney or title company; for tax on your gain, talk to a tax professional.