Alaska has NO state real estate transfer tax, and — as of 2024 — state law (SB 179, signed by Gov. Dunleavy in 2024) affirmatively bars cities and boroughs from levying any local sales/use tax on transfers of real property going forward. Multiple 2024 news reports (Alaska Beacon, Anchorage Daily News, thecentersquare.com) confirm that at the time the bill passed, "none of Alaska's local governments currently tax the sale of real property" — the law was pre-emptive, aimed at preventing municipalities from adopting transfer taxes in the future (the concern was single-family/casual sales being swept into broader municipal sales-tax bases, since individual home sales are otherwise treated as "casual and isolated" and exempt from local sales tax). One SEO source (ListWithClever) claims "Juneau has a local real property transfer tax," but this could not be corroborated in Juneau's Municode ordinances (Title 69, Chapter 69.10 covers only the annual ad valorem real/personal property tax, not a transfer tax) or in any other source — this claim appears to be inaccurate/outdated and should be treated with skepticism pending direct confirmation from CBJ Finance. Bottom line: no state transfer tax exists, and by statute no borough or city may newly impose one on real property transfers.
Because there's no transfer tax, non-commission closing costs run low relative to many other states. Seller-side (excluding commissions): roughly 2.7% of sale price on average (title/escrow fees, recording, prorated taxes, etc. — figure sourced from ListWithClever/Clever Real Estate's 2026 Alaska data). Buyer-side (excluding commissions): commonly cited as roughly 2%–5% of purchase price for loan-related and closing fees (lender fees, appraisal, inspection, title/escrow share, prepaids/escrow reserves), though narrower fee-only calculations from some sources put it closer to 0.9%–1.2%. When real estate agent commissions are folded in, total seller-side costs are typically described as 6%–10% of sale price; average total Alaska commission is reported around 5.5% (roughly 2.7% listing side / 2.8% buyer side), which is the single largest cost component for sellers.
Who typically pays: There is no transfer tax to allocate. For other closing costs, Alaska convention (per title-industry sources like Old Republic Title's "Real Estate Laws & Customs by State" and local escrow companies) is: sellers customarily pay for the owner's title insurance policy; buyers customarily pay for the lender's title insurance policy; the escrow/closing fee (roughly 1%-2% of price) is typically split between buyer and seller; and each party generally pays for their own choice of title/closing agent, though everything is negotiable and can vary by local practice and by individual purchase contract. Sellers still bear the bulk of total transaction costs overall mainly because of listing-agent and buyer-agent commissions, which are customarily seller-paid at closing (subject to the 2024 NAR settlement changes affecting buyer-agent commission negotiation nationally).
Key well-known point: Alaska is one of the states with zero real estate transfer tax, and since 2024 it has statutorily preempted local governments from creating one on real property transfers (SB 179 / signed 2024, per Alaska Beacon and ADN reporting) — this was a proactive/preventive law, not a repeal of an existing tax, since no AK municipality was taxing property sales at the time. One secondary source (ListWithClever) asserts Juneau has a local transfer tax; this could not be verified against Juneau's municipal code and conflicts with the 2024 legislative record, so treat it as unconfirmed/likely inaccurate unless corroborated directly with the City and Borough of Juneau. No other AK county/borough-level transfer tax variations were found in search results. Alaska also has no state income tax or state sales tax, which is separate context sometimes conflated with the transfer-tax question in marketing content. Figures above are drawn from multiple 2026-dated real estate closing-cost aggregator articles (ListWithClever/Clever Real Estate, iBuyer, Rocket Mortgage, HomeLight) which should be treated as industry-estimate ranges rather than official government statistics — no Alaska Department of Revenue or municipal assessor page publishes an official "average closing cost %" figure.
Facts on this page reflect research current as of 2026-07-05. Programs, rates, and laws change — confirm current figures with the relevant state agency before relying on them.