By Eric Berman, REALTOR® | The Eric Berman Team at Compass
 

TL;DR:

A Manhasset seller's direct costs are commission, the New York State Transfer Tax at four dollars per thousand, attorney fees, and preparation — there's no county transfer tax and no city tax as there is in Queens. What shapes the transaction more is the buyer's Mansion Tax, which begins at one million dollars and which nearly every Manhasset sale crosses, and which explains why offers cluster just below round thresholds. Two other items belong in the model: permit resolution if anything is open, and the nonresident withholding if you've already left New York.

What You Actually Pay

Commission is the largest line, and since August 2024 it comes in two parts: what you agree to pay your own agent, set in the listing agreement, and separately whatever you choose to contribute toward the buyer's agent, which is now negotiated within each offer rather than posted in advance. Both are negotiable, and at Manhasset prices the buyer-side decision is a five-figure sum in its own right.

The New York State Transfer Tax is four dollars per thousand of the sale price — 0.4 percent — paid by the seller and filed on Form TP-584. On a $1,500,000 sale that's $6,000. There is no Nassau County transfer tax, and no New York City Real Property Transfer Tax, which is the main cost difference between selling here and selling in Bayside or elsewhere in Queens.

Attorney fees on a residential sale generally run $1,500 to $3,500, higher where the transaction is complicated. Add preparation costs, any concessions negotiated after inspection, and property tax adjustments settled at closing, which can run in either direction depending on the billing cycle. The county closing costs pillar covers each line in more detail.

The Mansion Tax Isn't Yours, and It Still Matters

The Mansion Tax is one percent of the purchase price on residential sales of one million dollars or more, paid by the buyer in cash at closing. It isn't a seller cost. In Manhasset it shapes almost every transaction anyway, because nearly every sale crosses that threshold.

Two effects worth understanding. It reduces the cash a buyer has available at closing, on top of their down payment and closing costs, which constrains what they can offer. And it creates a genuine point of resistance at one million dollars — a buyer offering just above the line pays it on the whole price, so offers on homes priced near that level tend to cluster just beneath it.

For a seller pricing near a million, that's worth knowing before reading a lower offer as a lowball. The after-acceptance post covers how it plays out during a transaction.

Tax on the Gain, Which Is Often the Larger Number

At Manhasset prices, the tax on a long-held home frequently exceeds all the closing costs combined, and it belongs in any net proceeds model.

The federal exclusion covers $250,000 of gain for a single filer and $500,000 filing jointly, unchanged since 1997. A home bought decades ago often appreciates past that, and what reduces the taxable figure is documented capital improvements, which raise your cost basis. Find those records before clearing anything out.

If you've already moved out of New York, an estimated nonresident payment of 8.82 percent of net gain is due at closing on Form IT-2663. It's a prepayment rather than an additional tax, refundable when you file if the real figure is lower — but it reduces the amount wired to you, which catches sellers who have committed those proceeds elsewhere. The tax implications post covers the mechanics, and a CPA should look at the numbers before you set a closing date.

The Cost That Isn't on Any List

Permit resolution belongs in the model because it's common here and it has both a price and a timeline.

Manhasset spans several jurisdictions — Munsey Park, Plandome, Plandome Heights, Plandome Manor, Flower Hill, and North Hills are incorporated villages with their own building departments, and the rest falls under the Town of North Hempstead. If an addition, deck, or finished space was never signed off, resolving it typically takes six to ten weeks and involves filing fees, possibly an architect or expediter, and whatever correction an inspection requires.

Handled before listing, it's a manageable project. Discovered in the buyer's municipal search after contracts are signed, it becomes a negotiation you're conducting from a weaker position. The documents post covers which office to call.

A Worked Example

Consider a composite case — a Manhasset colonial sold at $1,600,000, bought in 1994.

The state transfer tax came to $6,400. Attorney fees were toward the middle of the usual range. Commission was negotiated on the listing side, and the accepted offer requested a contribution on the buyer's side, which the seller weighed against a slightly lower offer that requested none.

The Mansion Tax of $16,000 was the buyer's, not hers — but it had shaped where offers landed, and her agent had priced with that in mind.

Two items she hadn't anticipated. A permit from a 1990s addition that had never been closed out, resolved over about seven weeks before listing. And the tax on the gain, which her CPA reduced substantially using improvement receipts going back to the nineties — records her son found before the house was cleared.

Where to Start

Build a net proceeds estimate before you list, not after an offer. Include commission on both sides, the state transfer tax at four dollars per thousand, attorney fees, preparation, and a reserve for concessions. Call the building department that governs your address and find out whether anything is open, since that has both a cost and a timeline. Talk to a CPA about the gain, particularly if you've owned the home a long time or have already left New York. And understand where the Mansion Tax line sits relative to your price. For a starting read on value, try a quiet look at current figures.

The Honest Bottom Line

Manhasset sellers pay less in transfer taxes than Queens sellers do, and no county tax exists despite what some guidance suggests. The direct costs are straightforward.

What actually moves the number is elsewhere: the tax on decades of gain, which often exceeds every closing cost combined, and the buyer's Mansion Tax, which shapes where offers land without appearing on your settlement statement at all. Model both before pricing. For anyone working through a specific net proceeds figure, with no pressure attached, that conversation is available whenever the timing suits.

This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Rates, fees, and tax treatment vary by transaction and change over time. Consult a licensed New York real estate attorney and a CPA about your circumstances.

FAQs

Does Nassau County charge a transfer tax?

No. A Manhasset seller pays the New York State Transfer Tax at four dollars per thousand of the sale price — 0.4 percent — filed on Form TP-584. There's no Nassau County transfer tax and no New York City Real Property Transfer Tax, which is the main cost difference between selling here and selling in Queens, where sellers pay both.

Who pays the Mansion Tax in Manhasset?

The buyer, at one percent of the purchase price on residential sales of one million dollars or more, in cash at closing. It isn't a seller cost, but it shapes nearly every Manhasset transaction because most sales cross that threshold. It reduces the buyer's available cash and creates a real point of resistance at a million, which is why offers on homes priced near that line tend to cluster just below it.

What are the biggest costs of selling a Manhasset home?

Commission first, now in two parts — what you pay your own agent and what you choose to contribute toward the buyer's, negotiated per offer since August 2024. Then the state transfer tax, attorney fees of roughly $1,500 to $3,500, preparation, and any concessions. But at these prices the tax on the gain often exceeds all of those combined, which is why it belongs in the model from the start.

What is IT-2663 and does it apply to me?

It applies if you've established residency outside New York before your closing. A nonresident seller owes an estimated payment at closing of 8.82 percent of net gain, filed on Form IT-2663 with the deed. It's a prepayment against your actual New York tax liability rather than an additional tax, and refundable when you file if the real figure is lower — but it reduces the amount wired to you, so raise it with a CPA before setting a closing date.

Should I budget for permit problems?

If your home has been added to, yes. Manhasset spans several villages plus the Town of North Hempstead, and work that was never signed off surfaces in the buyer's municipal search after contracts are signed. Resolving it typically takes six to ten weeks and involves filing fees and possibly an architect or expediter. Call the office that governs your address before listing — the same work costs the same money but without the loss of leverage.

By Eric Berman, REALTOR® | The Eric Berman Team at Compass

Eric Berman | Long Island & Queens Associate Broker | Compass
1468 Northern Blvd, Manhasset, NY 11030
(917) 225-8596 | eric@ericbermanre.com | theericbermanteam.com