Average closing costs on a house in 2024
Key takeaways
- Closing costs can vary significantly by state, ranging from less than 1 percent of the home's sale price to 5 percent or more.
- Washington, D.C. has the highest average closing costs in the country, while Missouri has the lowest.
- Homebuyers can potentially negotiate certain closing costs to lower their upfront costs.
Buying a home is one of the biggest investments you may ever make, but the asking price doesn’t offer the complete picture of how much you’ll need to get the keys. You’ll also have to account for closing costs, which are the fees associated with finalizing a real estate deal, like home appraisal and credit check fees.
One big factor that impacts your closing cost tab is where in the U.S. you’re buying — typical costs can vary widely from one state to another. If you’re in the process of buying a house, or just starting to think about it, keep reading for details on the average closing costs by state.
How much are average closing costs?
Closing costs are the upfront fees you pay when getting a mortgage and finalizing a home purchase. The national average closing costs for purchasing a single-family home come to $6,905 including transfer taxes, and $3,860 without, according to the most recent data from CoreLogic’s ClosingCorp (which covers the year 2021).
You’ll also pay closing costs when you refinance your mortgage. Those costs, however, tend to be much lower: an average of $2,375, according to ClosingCorp.
In general, closing costs for a home purchase cover expenses and fees including:
- Credit check
- Title search and insurance
- Appraisal
- Attorney fees
- Origination fee
- Application fee
- Underwriting fee
- Transfer taxes, if applicable
Closing costs by state
Depending on what state you’re in, ClosingCorp’s data shows that these fees can amount to anywhere from less than 1 percent of the home’s sale price to more than 5 percent at the highest end of the range.
| State | Closing costs for home purchase (including taxes) | Percentage of average home sale price (including taxes) |
|---|---|---|
| Source: ClosingCorp | ||
| Washington, D.C. | $29,888 | 3.9% |
| Delaware | $17,859 | 5.4% |
| New York | $16,849 | 3.1% |
| Maryland | $14,721 | 3.7% |
| Washington | $13,927 | 2.4% |
| Pennsylvania | $10,634 | 4.3% |
| Connecticut | $8,821 | 2.1% |
| Florida | $8,554 | 2.3% |
| New Hampshire | $8,183 | 2.3% |
| Massachusetts | $7,964 | 1.3% |
| California | $7,953 | 1.0% |
| New Jersey | $7,915 | 1.7% |
| Vermont | $7,906 | 2.6% |
| Hawaii | $7,463 | 0.9% |
| Nevada | $6,383 | 1.5% |
| Virginia | $6,346 | 1.7% |
| Illinois | $5,929 | 2.1% |
| Michigan | $5,714 | 2.7% |
| Rhode Island | $5,568 | 1.4% |
| Utah | $4,837 | 1.0% |
| Arizona | $4,701 | 1.2% |
| Texas | $4,548 | 1.5% |
| Maine | $4,420 | 1.3% |
| Oregon | $4,327 | 0.9% |
| Ohio | $4,223 | 2.0% |
| Idaho | $4,082 | 1.0% |
| Minnesota | $4,011 | 1.4% |
| Tennessee | $3,911 | 1.4% |
| Colorado | $3,881 | 0.7% |
| Georgia | $3,762 | 1.3% |
| Louisiana | $3,711 | 1.7% |
| Alaska | $3,581 | 1.0% |
| New Mexico | $3,513 | 1.1% |
| Wisconsin | $3,459 | 1.5% |
| South Carolina | $3,447 | 1.2% |
| North Carolina | $3,406 | 1.1% |
| West Virginia | $3,406 | 1.8% |
| Montana | $3,337 | 0.8% |
| Iowa | $3,146 | 1.6% |
| Arkansas | $3,115 | 1.5% |
| South Dakota | $3,105 | 1.3% |
| Alabama | $2,986 | 1.4% |
| Oklahoma | $2,893 | 1.5% |
| Kentucky | $2,802 | 1.4% |
| Kansas | $2,793 | 1.0% |
| Nebraska | $2,781 | 1.2% |
| Mississippi | $2,756 | 1.0% |
| Wyoming | $2,589 | 0.7% |
| North Dakota | $2,501 | 1.0% |
| Indiana | $2,200 | 0.9% |
| Missouri | $2,061 | 0.8% |
States with no transfer taxes
One of the expenses that adds to closing costs is real estate transfer taxes, which cover the cost of transferring a title or deed from the seller to the buyer. However, some states do not charge a transfer tax:
- Alaska
- Idaho
- Indiana
- Kansas
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- New Mexico
- North Dakota
- Oregon (most counties)
- Texas
- Utah
- Wyoming
Markets with the highest average closing costs
| (*With taxes) Source: ClosingCorp | |
| 1. Vineyard Haven, Massachusetts | $28,724 |
| 2. Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, Washington | $16,003 |
| 3. Salisbury, Maryland-Delaware | $15,723 |
| 4. Dover, Delaware | $13,799 |
| 5. New York-Newark-Jersey City, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania | $13,596 |
| (*Without taxes) Source: ClosingCorp | |
| 1. Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, California | $7,063 |
| 2. Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, Hawaii | $7,016 |
| 3. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California | $6,412 |
| 4. Santa Cruz-Watsonville, California | $6,363 |
| 5. Stockton, California | $6,137 |
FAQs
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Closing costs are the fees and charges associated with completing a real estate sale. For homebuyers, the costs mostly cover lender-related fees (such as charges for loan origination and credit checks), professional fees for services like the home inspection and legal representation, as well as filing or recording fees for necessary paperwork. Home sellers have their own closing costs to cover too.
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Most of the time, both the buyer and seller pay closing costs of some form. The specific fees and expenses will vary by location, financing, price and other factors.
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The amount varies widely depending on what state you’re in, the price of the home and other factors. For homebuyers, the fees typically add up to between 2 and 5 percent of the loan amount, according to data from Freddie Mac.
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Though many of these fees are fixed, many closing costs are also negotiable. There might be some wiggle room with your lender regarding their fees, for example. You could strategically plan your closing date, as well, to lower the upfront per diem interest costs on the mortgage.
