NJ Seller Closing Costs: The Transfer Fee, the "Exit Tax" & What You Actually Pay

Almost every seller we talk to in Cherry Hill has a number in their head — the price they think they'll walk away with. Almost none of them have subtracted what New Jersey charges to transfer the deed. It isn't a huge number, but it's real money, it's due at closing, and it's one of the few costs in a home sale you genuinely cannot negotiate away.

This guide covers what the state actually takes out of a South Jersey home sale: the Realty Transfer Fee, the nonresident withholding people call the "exit tax," and the supplemental fee on million-dollar sales. We've used real dollar amounts throughout, calculated from the published state rate schedules, so you can find the line closest to your own sale price.

The Three Seller-Side Costs New Jersey Actually Charges

Set aside agent commissions and attorney fees for a moment — those vary and are negotiable. The state-imposed costs are narrower than most sellers expect:

• The Realty Transfer Fee (RTF) — a graduated fee on the sale price, collected by the county clerk when the deed is recorded. In a standard residential sale this sits on the seller's side of the ledger.
• Nonresident income tax withholding — the "exit tax." It only applies if you are no longer a New Jersey resident when you sell.
• The supplemental fee, or "mansion tax" — only on sales above $1 million.

That's it from the state. Everything else on a typical closing statement — commissions, repair credits, payoff of taxes and liens — comes from the deal you strike, not from Trenton. That distinction matters, because it's the negotiable part where sellers lose the most money. We break the commission side down in our guide to cash buyer vs. realtor in Cherry Hill.

The Realty Transfer Fee, in Real Dollars

The RTF is calculated on a graduated schedule published by the New Jersey Division of Taxation — a certain rate per $500 of price, tiered by bracket. Nobody thinks in dollars per $500, so here's what it actually comes to at prices common across Camden and Gloucester counties:

Look closely at the jump between $350,000 and $400,000. The price went up 14%; the fee went up 53%. That isn't a typo — it's the single most important thing on this page.

The $350,000 Cliff

New Jersey doesn't use one rate table. It uses two. Sales of $350,000 or less are calculated on a lower schedule. Sales above $350,000 are calculated on an entirely different, higher schedule — and the higher rates apply to the whole price, not just the portion above the line.

The practical result is a cliff:

• A sale at exactly $350,000 owes about $2,105.
• A sale at $351,000 owes roughly $2,745.

One thousand dollars more in sale price costs about $640 more in transfer fee. Not the end of the world, but worth knowing if you're weighing two offers that straddle the line — the higher gross offer isn't always the higher net.

This matters more in Cherry Hill now than it did five years ago. Market trackers put the Cherry Hill median sale price in the mid-$400,000s in 2026 (figures vary by source and neighborhood, with entry-level townhomes well below that and parts of Barclay Farm and Springdale well above). The median Cherry Hill sale now clears the $350,000 line comfortably — so the higher schedule is the normal case here, not the exception. In parts of Cumberland County, where values run far lower, most sales still fall on the cheaper table.

Seniors, Blind and Disabled Sellers Pay Substantially Less

This exemption is real, it's significant, and in our experience it gets missed constantly. Sellers who are 62 or older, blind, or disabled qualify for a partial exemption that cuts the fee roughly in half or better.

To qualify, all of the following must be true:

• You owned and occupied the property at the time of sale.
• You are a resident of New Jersey.
• The property is a one- or two-family residence.
• If owned as joint tenants, all owners must qualify.

On a $300,000 sale, the partial exemption drops the fee from about $1,715 to roughly $525 — a saving of nearly $1,200. The claim is made on the Affidavit of Consideration (form RTF-1), which gets notarized and recorded along with the deed. If nobody at your closing brings it up, bring it up yourself. For sellers downsizing out of a long-time family home, it's often the easiest dollar saved in the whole transaction.

The "Exit Tax" That Isn't a Tax

The phrase "New Jersey exit tax" causes more unnecessary panic than anything else we field questions about. So let's be precise: New Jersey does not charge you a tax for leaving. There is no penalty for moving away.

What exists is a withholding requirement. When a seller is no longer a New Jersey resident, the state collects an estimated income tax payment at closing rather than trusting an out-of-state seller to file a New Jersey return later. It's a prepayment against tax you may or may not actually owe — much like withholding on a paycheck.

Here's how it splits:

If you're still a New Jersey resident

Nothing is withheld. You complete form GIT/REP-3, the Seller's Residency Certification, checking the box certifying you're a resident taxpayer who will report any gain on your regular New Jersey return. The form still has to be completed and submitted with the deed — county clerks will refuse to record a deed without it — but no money is held back.

If you've moved out of state

The settlement agent withholds the greater of:

• 10.75% of your taxable gain, or
• 2% of the gross sale price.

The 2% is a floor, not a cap, and you don't get to pick the smaller one. You then file a New Jersey nonresident return (NJ-1040NR) to reconcile what you actually owe and claim a refund of the excess. There's also form A-3128 for sellers who want to pursue an early refund rather than wait for the filing season.

Why Inherited and Out-of-State Sales Get Hit Hardest

The 2% floor is where the real-world pain shows up, and it lands squarely on two groups we work with constantly: heirs and relocators.

Consider an out-of-state heir selling an inherited Cherry Hill house for $400,000. Because inherited property generally receives a stepped-up basis at the date of death, the actual taxable gain might be only $10,000. Run the two calculations:

Eight thousand dollars gets held back on a sale where the true liability is a fraction of that. The money isn't lost — it comes back after the nonresident return is filed — but it's gone from the closing table on the day you needed it, and it can sit with the state for months. For an estate splitting proceeds among siblings who each expected a clean check, that's an unwelcome surprise.

If that's your situation, our guide to selling an inherited house in Cherry Hill covers the probate side, and our Williamstown estate sale project shows how one played out start to finish. Sellers who've already relocated should read the relocation page — the withholding rule is exactly why timing your move and your sale matters.

Plan for the withholding as a cash-flow event, not a loss. If you're counting on every dollar of proceeds to fund your next purchase, the 2% floor can quietly break your budget even though you'll get most of it back.

The Mansion Tax (And Why It Rarely Applies Here)

New Jersey charges a supplemental fee on residential sales above $1 million, universally known as the mansion tax. It historically ran 1% and was paid by the buyer. Legislation enacted in 2025 restructured it — shifting responsibility toward the seller and replacing the flat 1% with graduated rates that climb above the $2 million mark.

For most South Jersey sellers this is trivia: $1 million is far above the typical sale price in Cherry Hill, Deptford or Pennsauken. But if your property is near that line, the details and effective dates changed recently and carry real money. Have your real estate attorney confirm the treatment for your specific contract date rather than relying on any article, including this one.

What Changes When You Sell to a Cash Buyer

Let's be straight about this, because the honest answer isn't "everything becomes free."

What doesn't change: the Realty Transfer Fee is set by statute and applies to the transaction regardless of who buys. Nonresident withholding is a function of your residency, not your buyer. No buyer can wave those away, and you should be skeptical of anyone who claims otherwise.

What does change: everything on the negotiable side of the ledger. When you sell to Northbound Home Buyers in Cherry Hill, there are no agent commissions, no repair credits negotiated off your price after an inspection, no staging or carrying costs while the house sits, and no out-of-pocket closing costs — we cover the title, recording and transfer costs on our side. The number we quote is the number you receive.

That tradeoff is the whole decision, and it's worth making with clear eyes: a cash offer is typically below full retail market value, but it arrives without commissions, without repairs, and without the months of carrying costs and uncertainty of a traditional listing. For some sellers the listing wins. For others — especially those selling as-is, on a deadline, or from out of state — the certainty is worth more than the spread. Our FAQ answers the cost questions we hear most.

One last practical note: deeds for Cherry Hill and the rest of the county are recorded through the Camden County Clerk's Office, and the transfer fee is collected at that point. Your settlement agent handles the filing — but the GIT/REP form has to be complete and correct or the deed won't record, a common cause of last-minute closing delays.

Every situation is different, and this article is general information rather than legal or tax advice — confirm specifics with your attorney or accountant. If you'd like a straight answer about what a sale would actually net you, call Northbound Home Buyers at (856) 226-4289. We'll walk you through the numbers, including the ones that don't benefit us.