Who pays closing costs when I sell my house to a cash buyer in Washington?
When you sell to Horizon Home Buyers, we pay the closing costs: title insurance, escrow fees and recording fees. The only amounts deducted from your proceeds are things recorded against the property, such as your mortgage payoff or liens, plus Washington's real estate excise tax (REET), which state law assigns to the seller on any transfer and the title company calculates from the sale price.
Closing costs are the part of a sale most people never see itemized until the settlement statement lands in front of them.
In a traditional Spokane sale
The seller usually pays the owner’s title insurance policy, half of the escrow fee, recording fees for releasing the mortgage, the real estate excise tax, and any credits negotiated with the buyer after inspection. That often runs about 2% of the price before commissions.
In a sale to Horizon Home Buyers
We cover the title, escrow and recording fees. There is no commission and no inspection credit. What the title company still deducts from your proceeds:
- Mortgage or HELOC payoff, requested directly from your lender.
- Property taxes due through the closing date, prorated.
- Liens recorded against the property (contractor, tax, judgment, HOA).
- Washington REET, the state’s graduated seller-paid transfer tax. The rate steps up with the sale price and the title company files the affidavit with the Spokane County Treasurer so the deed can record.
You see all of this on the settlement statement before you sign anything, and we walk through it with you.