Closing costs are the thousands of dollars in fees associated with a mortgage, typically amounting to 2 percent to 5 percent of the loan principal. There are various closing cost components and they vary from state to state. Some closing-related items can be negotiated by the borrower.
Closing costs usually include an appraisal, credit check and title search, and you donât only have to pay them when you buy a house. If you refinance your mortgage or tap your home equity, youâll have to pay closing costs again.
How much youâll pay in closing costs depends on the price of the home and the location. The average total for closing costs on single-family homes in the U.S. in 2019 was $5,749, including taxes, according to ClosingCorp, a real estate data firm. A survey by the firm determined that the highest closing costs were usually paid on the coasts, including the District of Columbia ($25,800), Delaware ($13,273), New York ($12,847), Washington ($12,406) and Maryland ($11,876). States with lower closing costs included Indiana ($1,909), Missouri ($2,063), South Dakota ($2,159) and Iowa ($2,194).