When you sell a home in New Zealand, the price on the sign is not the amount that lands in your bank account. A handful of costs come out along the way, and the biggest of them, agent commission, often surprises sellers who have not sold for a while. For many people the equity in their home is the largest part of their family's future, the deposit on the next place or the foundation of a more secure life here, so it is worth understanding exactly where the money goes. The good news is that none of these costs are mysterious once they are laid out, and several of them are negotiable. This guide walks through every cost of selling, explains how each one works, and shows you the honest, practical ways to keep more of your sale price. Maifang is free and independent, and we are not a licensed agency. We explain the numbers plainly and can match you with a licensed local agent so you can compare what you are being offered. Figures here are general guidance, current at the time of writing, and you should always confirm your own situation with your agent, lawyer or adviser.
The full picture of selling costs
Before drilling into any single line, it helps to see the whole picture, because sellers who only think about commission can be caught out by the smaller costs that add up. A typical sale in New Zealand involves agent commission (the largest cost), marketing and advertising, optional staging and presentation, your own legal or conveyancing fees, and sometimes a mortgage discharge or break cost if you are repaying a home loan. There can be minor pre-sale repairs and a building report on your side if you choose to commission one to reassure buyers. Some of these costs are paid upfront (marketing often is), some come out at settlement (commission and legal fees), and a few only apply in certain situations. Knowing which is which lets you budget properly and avoid nasty surprises. The single most important habit is to ask every professional for their fees in writing before you engage them, and to read the agency agreement carefully, because that document sets out the largest cost of all.
How agent commission is usually structured
Agent commission is the fee you pay the agency for marketing and selling your home, and it is the single biggest cost in most sales. In New Zealand it is commonly structured as a tiered percentage of the sale price plus GST: a higher percentage on the first portion of the price and a lower percentage on the balance, sometimes with a fixed base fee as well. Because it is a percentage, the dollar figure rises with your sale price, though the rate itself is fully negotiable and varies between agencies and regions. Commission is paid by the seller out of the sale proceeds at settlement, so you never have to find it upfront, but it does come straight off your result. The exact rate, structure and any base fee are set out in the agency agreement you sign before listing, which is a binding contract under the Real Estate Agents Act 2008. Read it closely, ask what is and is not included, and remember that everything in it is open to discussion before you sign.
Marketing and advertising costs
Marketing is what gets your home in front of the right buyers, and it is usually a separate cost from commission, paid by you regardless of whether the home ultimately sells. A typical marketing package can include professional photography, a listing on the major listing portals, a sign on the property, a printed brochure or flyer, and sometimes a video walk-through, a floor plan or drone footage. Premium placement and a longer campaign cost more. There is real value in good marketing, because presentation and reach genuinely affect how many buyers compete for your home, but the spend should be proportionate to your property and your method of sale. Ask your agent for an itemised marketing plan with costs before you commit, and question anything that feels like an add-on you do not need. A modest, well-targeted campaign on an in-demand home can outperform an expensive scattergun one. Because you generally pay this whether or not the sale completes, it is worth getting right from the start.
Staging and presentation costs
Staging is the optional step of dressing your home with hired furniture, styling and small touch-ups so it shows at its best in photos and at open homes. It is not compulsory, and plenty of homes sell well without it, but in the right market a clean, warm, lived-in presentation can lift both buyer interest and the final price. Costs range widely depending on whether you stage the whole house or just the key living spaces, and for how many weeks. Cheaper alternatives can be just as effective: a thorough declutter, a deep clean, fresh paint in tired rooms, tidy gardens and a welcoming front door cost far less and often deliver most of the benefit. The goal is to help buyers picture themselves settling in, not to disguise the home. Talk to your agent about whether staging is worth it for your property and your budget, and weigh the cost against the realistic lift it might bring rather than treating it as automatic.
Legal and conveyancing fees
Every property sale in New Zealand goes through a lawyer or licensed conveyancer who handles the legal side: reviewing the sale and purchase agreement, dealing with the buyer's lawyer, repaying your mortgage if you have one, and managing the transfer of ownership at settlement. Their fee is usually a fixed or capped amount for a standard sale, plus disbursements (the small third-party costs they pay on your behalf). It is one of the more predictable costs, and it is paid at settlement. It pays to engage your lawyer early, before you sign anything, so they can check the agency agreement and the sale agreement and flag anything unusual. If you do not already have a property lawyer, Maifang can connect you with one. Getting good legal advice is not the place to cut corners, because the cost of a lawyer is small next to the value of the transaction they are protecting, and a clear-eyed review before you sign can save real money and stress later.
Ways to keep more of your sale price
Keeping more of your sale comes down to a few honest, repeatable moves rather than any single trick. First, negotiate the commission and the marketing spend, because both are open to discussion and a small change in rate can mean real money on a larger sale. Second, choose the right agent and method of sale for your property, since the result they achieve matters far more than shaving a fraction off their fee. Third, present the home well using low-cost wins, declutter, clean, tidy the garden, fix the obvious niggles, before spending big on staging. Fourth, read every document and ask what each line means, so you are never paying for something you did not understand. Finally, line up your own lawyer early to keep the process smooth and avoid costly mistakes. Our selling-costs calculator can help you estimate your likely net proceeds (indicative only), and our full guide to selling your home puts these costs in the context of the whole journey. In plain English: the price on the sign is not what you keep, but once you understand commission, marketing, staging and legal fees, and negotiate the parts that are negotiable, you protect far more of your result. Get matched with a licensed local agent and compare what you are offered.
In plain English: The price on the sign is not what you keep. The main selling costs in New Zealand are agent commission, marketing, optional staging and legal fees. Commission and marketing are negotiable, so understand each line, negotiate the parts you can, and present the home well to protect more of your sale.
General information, not personalised real-estate, legal or financial advice. Confirm your situation with a licensed adviser. Read the full disclaimer →