Closing Costs in Florida: Who Pays What

On top of the purchase price, every Florida closing has a stack of fees: title search and insurance, lender origination and appraisal, recording fees, taxes, and the closing or settlement fee itself. Buyers routinely underestimate these, and sellers are often surprised by which county customs assign to them.

The good news is the majority of these costs are both predictable and, to some degree, negotiable in the contract. Here is how to think about them.

Buyers customarily pay their loan-related costs: origination points, appraisal, credit report, and lender processing. Buyers also pay the lender's title insurance policy, which protects the mortgage lender, plus any inspection fees they order, the survey if one is ordered, and recording fees on the deed and mortgage.

Because Florida is an attorney or title agency state, there is a settlement fee for the closing itself, and the parties usually split the cost of the closing company's services according to county custom.

Sellers customarily pay the real estate commission, the owners' title insurance for the buyer in many counties, the documentary stamp taxes on the deed and any mortgage being paid off, and the cost to record the satisfaction of the old mortgage. Sellers also typically pay for any HOA or condo estoppel letters and the termite letter if the contract requires one.

Every one of these line items appears on the settlement statement, so you can see exactly where the money goes before you sign.

I give every client a written estimate of their likely closing costs before we write an offer or a listing, so the number is never a mystery on closing day. County customs differ, and in a few Florida counties the buyer customarily pays the owner's title policy instead of the seller. I walk my clients through all of it, because the closing statement should confirm what the contract said, never surprise you.

Ask for the estimate early. A well-prepared buyer is a confident buyer.