Image by Ryan R Fox from Shutterstock
It can be a stressful endeavor to purchase a home. As one of the most significant investments in life, it is important to understand the steps and fees you may encounter beyond the sale price. When you are searching for a property, keep the expense of closing in mind.
What Are Closing Costs?
Closing costs are the various expenses and fees that are separate from the purchase price of your house. They apply to the end of the process. Charges include taxes, inspection, title insurance, and title search, as well as some upfront expenses such as homeowner’s insurance.
Closing costs generally range from two to five percent of the purchase price. The final fee is dependent on your location. Most of the expenses are for state and local government, lenders, and legal processing. You can save on some of these by working with a mortgage broker who is experienced and knowledgable about local laws.
What Should You Expect?
Appraisal: This fee goes towards making sure that the price of the home matches the actual worth of the property.
Escrow payment: When it comes to timely preparation of the documents, you can trust a good escrow company to take care of the paperwork on your behalf. Prompt preparation of your papers can make a significant difference as it can enable you to close on time.
Title/attorney fee: The title and attorney fees are put in place to ensure the transfer of the home's deed occurs without issue. To ensure that it all goes smoothly, work with a highly reputable title company.
Lender fees: The lender fees may include a wide range of items like transfer fees or administrative fees. A broker commission may be part of the cost.
Other fees could include loan interest and loan insurance. Your realtor can help you to save money during your closing and prepare you for the process, work closely with them to determine the fees that may be negotiable.
About the Author
Kimberly Hering
Kimberly Hering's devotion to helping people achieve their real estate goals stems from her genuine enjoyment of the process. Whatever the task, Kimberly makes it her mission to get it done, however she can, without compromising her client's needs. Often, that means thinking outside the box. After working with Kimberly, clients describe her as being Trustworthy, Creative, Patient, Highly Skilled, Attentive to the Process and having a lot of Integrity.
After spending more than 15 successful years working on Wall Street, Kimberly transitioned into Real Estate, joining Alain Pinel Realtors, then moving to Zephyr, now Corcoran Global Living, in 2018. During her career on Wall Street, Kimberly was a Vice President working as an Institutional Equity Salesperson for Montgomery Securities for 10 years. She covered the top money managers throughout the US and Canada. She joined Jefferies & Co as a Senior Vice President managing the Western Region Institutional Sales group, while continuing to cover the top money managers.
Kimberly leverages her extensive experience selling equities to top money managers throughout the US and Canada, to successfully negotiating any Real Estate transaction seamlessly for her clients. Kimberly is well versed in Marin's neighborhoods, towns, cities, and education system.
Living in the Bay Area for 35 years, 25 years in Marin and having 2 sons in local Marin schools, Kimberly spends a lot of time volunteering in the community and serving on various local Boards. Kimberly has a collection of resources ranging from the best local breakfast spots to vetted contractors. With her reliable list of valuable resources, Real Estate experience and unsurpassed knowledge of Marin's many communities, Kimberly can guide her clients through every aspect of a Real Estate transaction seamlessly.
Relocating to Marin, downsizing, upsizing, first time home buying, final home purchase or sale, or a lot to build a dream home, no matter the undertaking, Kimberly works seamlessly until the job at hand is completed with 100% satisfaction.