Selling a home in Atlanta: 10 steps from pricing to the attorney closing (2026)

The whole process: selling a home in Atlanta in 10 steps

Each step is explained below. This is a summary of common Georgia practice; your signed contract controls, and legal questions belong with an attorney.

Step 1: run the numbers before you list

Answer two questions first: what will it sell for, and what will you walk away with?

- What it will sell for: start with the home value estimator for an automated range and compare city prices. An automated estimate is not an appraisal; the real price comes from recent sales of similar nearby homes.
- What you keep: the price minus:
- your loan payoff (ask the servicer for a payoff quote; it is not the balance on your statement)
- agent commission, which is not set by law and is negotiable (NAR)
- Georgia real estate transfer tax: $0.10 per $100 of price, legally the seller's (Georgia Department of Revenue); about $500 on a $500,000 home
- your attorney fees and small charges
- the prorated share of this year's property tax (step 9)
- HOA dues owed and letter fees
- any repair credit or closing-cost help you agree to give the buyer
- withholding where it applies: Georgia's 3% for sellers who have moved out of state and FIRPTA for sellers who are not U.S. tax residents; see taxes when selling a home in Atlanta

Illustration (all numbers assumed): price $500,000, loan payoff $280,000, commission assumed at $25,000 in total, transfer tax $500, attorney and small fees assumed at $1,500, prorated property tax $2,975, buyer credit $5,000. Net about $185,025 before any tax on the gain, which is figured separately.

Step 2: choose an agent and agree on services and commission

Since August 17, 2024, the National Association of REALTORS® settlement changed a few things sellers should know (NAR):

• Commissions are and always have been negotiable; no rate is set by law.
• Offers of compensation to buyer agents are no longer shown on the MLS. Sellers can still offer them off the MLS, and can advertise buyer concessions (such as closing-cost help) on the MLS.
• Buyer agents need a written agreement with the buyer before touring, so many offers now ask the seller to pay a stated amount toward the buyer's agent. That is one more term to negotiate.

Before you sign a listing agreement, ask how long it runs, which services are included (photos, video, floor plan, open houses, English and Chinese marketing) and how it can end early. For choosing an agent, see how to choose an Atlanta real estate agent.

Step 3: prepare and disclose

• Repairs and cleanup: fix what every inspection will flag (leaks, electrical, roof, HVAC) before listing; it usually costs less than a price cut later. A pre-listing inspection helps when you are unsure.
• Seller disclosure: Georgia has no state-mandated disclosure form, but sellers may not conceal known defects a buyer could not find with a reasonable inspection, and must answer direct questions honestly. Most agents ask sellers to complete the GAR Seller's Property Disclosure Statement (HomeLight). An accurate disclosure protects the seller.
• Homes built before 1978: under the federal lead-based paint rule, before the contract the seller must disclose known lead-based paint, give any reports and the EPA pamphlet, include the lead warning in the contract and give the buyer a chance to test (usually 10 days, which can be waived) (EPA).
• Events in the home: Georgia law bars claims against owners and agents for not volunteering that the property was the site of a death, homicide or other felony, but questions must not be answered falsely (O.C.G.A. 44-1-16).
• HOA: have the HOA contact, rules and dues ready; the closing attorney will need an HOA payoff letter.
• Records: your purchase closing statement, receipts for improvements and major replacements, warranties, remotes and keys.

Step 4: price

Price from recent sales of similar homes nearby (size, bedrooms, age, lot, school assignment, condition), not from asking prices or an automated estimate alone. Then look at the pace of the market:

More months of supply and longer days on market give buyers more room, so the asking price has to sit closer to the sales data. The first two weeks bring the most showings and offers; overpricing wastes them, and later price cuts often end lower.

Step 5: list and show

• Photos, video and a floor plan drive online clicks; this is usually money well spent.
• Once on the MLS, the listing generally appears on Zillow, Realtor.com and other sites.
• Showings run through an electronic lockbox and a scheduling system; it is best if the seller is out during showings.
• Fair housing: treat every buyer the same regardless of race, religion, national origin, familial status and other protected classes, and describe only the home.

Step 6: compare offers by what you keep

Georgia sales usually use the GAR Purchase and Sale Agreement. Compare more than price:

• Earnest money: how much, who holds it (a brokerage or the closing attorney) and when it is due.
• Due diligence period: fewer days means more certainty for the seller (step 7).
• Financing and appraisal: cash or loan, a pre-approval letter, and what happens if the appraisal comes in low.
• Closing and possession dates: line them up with your next purchase; see selling and buying at the same time.
• Money asked of the seller: closing-cost help, buyer-agent compensation, repair allowances.
• Who chooses the closing attorney.

You can counter, or ask several buyers for their highest and best.

Step 7: due diligence, when the buyer can walk away for any reason

In a Georgia contract, the due diligence period is a negotiated number of days after the contract becomes binding. During it the buyer may terminate by written notice for any reason or no reason, and the earnest money is generally refunded (Martin Snow; common GAR contract terms). Buyers usually inspect now and send an Amendment to Address Concerns with Property asking for repairs or a lower price; the seller may agree, counter or decline.

Once due diligence ends, the buyer can no longer walk away for no reason, only under the contract's financing, appraisal and other contingencies. That is why sellers watch the number of due diligence days.

Step 8: appraisal and loan

If the buyer is financing, the lender orders an appraisal. If it comes in below the price, the usual outcomes are renegotiating, the buyer covering the gap, or, if the contract has an appraisal contingency, the buyer terminating (summary of GAR contract terms by Open Exam Prep). A price backed by sales data makes the appraisal easier.

Step 9: Georgia closings are run by an attorney

• An attorney must run it: under an ethics opinion the Supreme Court of Georgia approved in 2014, a lawyer may not just witness signatures; the lawyer must handle the closing from start to finish, and closing funds go through the attorney's trust account (Bouhan Falligant's summary).
• What the attorney does: checks title, pays off your mortgage, prepares the deed, prepares the settlement statement, collects the buyer's funds and pays you.
• Property tax proration: Georgia property tax runs on the calendar year and bills usually come in the fall. For a mid-year closing the prior year's bill is normally prorated by day: the seller credits the buyer for January 1 to the closing date, and the buyer pays the bill when it comes (Martin Snow). Example: a $6,000 prior-year bill and a June 30 closing means a seller credit of about $2,975.
• Selling from out of town: sellers who have moved can arrange early signing, mail-away signing or a power of attorney with the closing attorney, who decides what works. If you have left Georgia, plan for the 3% state withholding.

Step 10: after closing

• Hand over keys, garage remotes and gate cards; deliver the home in the condition the contract says.
• Stop utilities and internet after closing; cancel homeowners insurance only once closing is complete.
• Keep the closing statement (Closing Disclosure or settlement statement) for your tax return. The closing attorney usually files Form 1099-S with the IRS.
• The home-sale exclusion, depreciation recapture and 1031 exchanges are covered in taxes when selling a home in Atlanta.

How I can help

I'm an Atlanta REALTOR® with Virtual Properties Realty and a mortgage loan originator licensed in Georgia and California. When you sell, I can:

• give you a pricing analysis from actual recent nearby sales and work out your net proceeds line by line
• market in English and Chinese, help family who live out of state or overseas sell remotely, and coordinate signing with the closing attorney
• if you are selling to buy again, line up the next home and your pre-approval; buyers estimating annual tax can use the Georgia property tax calculator
• if you have not chosen where to buy next, see where to buy around Atlanta

To find out what your home could sell for now, call, message on WeChat or send a note.