The rules that actually cost you money as a Midwood seller are the transfer taxes you pay at closing, roughly 1.825% of the sale price on a typical house. Most of the famous “NYC rules” people search, the 30% rule, the 80/20 rule, the mansion tax, are really buyer-side or renter-side. They still matter to you, though, because they shape who can buy your home and how hard they push on price. We walk every seller through these closing costs up front, so the net check at the end holds no surprises.
Here’s what each one means for you, starting with the one that hits your wallet first.
As a Midwood seller you pay combined New York City and New York State transfer taxes of about 1.825% on a sale over $500,000, before your agent commission and attorney fees. On a $1 million house, that’s roughly $18,250 in transfer taxes alone.
| Seller cost | Rate / amount |
|---|---|
| NYC transfer tax (over $500K) | 1.425% |
| NY State transfer tax | 0.4% |
| Agent commission (total, post-NAR) | ~4–6% |
| Attorney + payoff/admin | Varies |
Who pays the mansion tax, me or the buyer? The buyer does. It starts at 1% on sales of $1 million or more, and climbs from there for pricier homes. Does it affect my sale? Yeah, indirectly. A Midwood house priced just over $1 million triggers that extra 1% for your buyer, so we factor that threshold into pricing and negotiation.
The 30% rule says a buyer or renter should keep housing costs under 30% of gross income. It matters to you because it sets the ceiling on what your buyer pool can afford. To comfortably carry a $1 million Midwood house, a buyer needs roughly $200,000-plus in household income, which is exactly the dual-income and community buyer we market to.
Should I price around the 30% rule? Not literally, no. But knowing your buyer’s affordability ceiling helps us set a realistic asking price that pulls in qualified offers instead of lowballs.
The “80/20 rule” isn’t a home-pricing rule, and it trips up a lot of sellers. It points to one of two things: a co-op tax requirement that at least 80% of a co-op’s income come from shareholders, or the 80/20 affordable-housing development program, where 80% of a building’s units are market-rate and 20% are affordable. Neither one touches the sale of a regular Midwood house.
And the “4-hour rule”? There’s no standard “4-hour rule” in NYC home selling. The phrase usually points to unrelated labor or building-staffing rules, not your sale, so don’t let it worry you. So what should I actually focus on? Your real levers are correct pricing, clean disclosures, and a strong marketing launch, not internet rules of thumb. We keep the focus on the handful of things that move your net proceeds, including transparent post-NAR commissions, which we break down in our Midwood commission guide.
Sources: NYC Department of Finance (RPTT); NY State transfer and mansion tax schedules; CooperatorNews 80/20 co-op rule; 30% affordability rule (Redfin, Earnest). This is general information, not legal or tax advice.
