How much are closing costs in Georgia?

Very few people buy houses with cash. Most of the time, you get a mortgage and pay only a portion of the home’s price in cash upfront. These closing costs may include a down payment, loan origination fees, appraisal and inspection fees, credit report fees, taxes, and more. Ultimately, you’ll need more cash than just your down payment at the closing table to make the purchase official.

How much you’ll pay in closing costs largely depends on the home’s price and location. For instance, if you’re buying a home in Georgia, you will pay slightly less than the national average in closing costs.

Average closing costs in Georgia

According to the most recent data available from CoreLogic’s ClosingCorp, the national average for mortgage closing costs on a single-family home, excluding transfer taxes, was $3,860 in 2022. In Georgia, this number is $2,863, which represents 1.3% of the average home sale price. Georgia levies transfer taxes, however, which raises the average closing cost with taxes to $3,762.

Nationwide, the average closing cost for buyers ranges from 1% to up to 6% of the home’s purchase price, while sellers should expect to pay between 6% to 10% of the purchase price. That’s because sellers are usually on the hook for real estate commissions.

Fortunately, it’s pretty easy to calculate your estimated closing costs. To make a conservative estimate, use 3% of the home’s purchase price as a standard. So, if you’re buying a house for $400,000, multiply 400,000 by 0.3 to get your estimated closing costs: $12,000.

Most lenders will give you a detailed report of what you can expect to pay at the closing table, too, but if you don’t want to wait, this math is a good estimate.

Who pays closing costs in Georgia?

Like most states, both buyers and sellers pay closing costs in Georgia. Also like most states, buyers and sellers usually do not split closing costs evenly; there are different costs associated with buyers and sellers.

Buyer closing costs

Buyers usually pay less in closing costs than sellers do in Georgia, but there are quite a few costs covered by buyers. This is what buyers can expect to pay:

• Lender-related application and origination fees: These include loan application and loan origination fees, as well as charges incurred when the lender checks your credit.‍
• Appraisal fee: A lender will also get an appraiser to assess the home’s value and ensure the home is worth what you’re buying it for. Buyers pay this fee back to the lender at the closing table.‍
• Home inspection: Many buyers waive home inspections in competitive markets these days. However, if you’re getting an inspection or making an offer contingent on the results of a home inspection, buyers typically pay for it at the closing table. Getting a home inspection is always a good idea but it’s not always plausible in a competitive market.‍
• Prepaid costs: Buyers often pay for a number of costs upfront at the closing table, including including homeowners insurance, private mortgage insurance premiums, or prepaid interest.‍
• Discount points: Some buyers choose to pay additional fees upfront to lenders to lower their interest rate. These are called discount points, and if you’re getting them, you’ll pay for them at the closing table. Most buyers don’t get discount points because it’s almost never worth the upfront expense.‍
• Title insurance and search: Buyers usually pay for a title insurance policy for both themselves and the lender in Georgia. This protects against any potential ownership claims that can arise in a state as old as Georgia.

Seller closing costs

Georgia has transfer taxes which, along with real estate commissions, contribute to a bulk of closing costs. These are the closing costs that sellers in Georgia can expect to pay.

• Transfer taxes: Georgia’s real estate transfer tax is billed at a rate of $1 for every $1,000 in home value. So, if the home sells for $400,000, there’s a $400 transfer tax. Sellers usually cover this cost.
• Outstanding property taxes and HOA fees: If there are any property taxes or homeowners’ association (HOA) fees yet to be paid, the seller must pay these at the closing table rather than pass on the burden to the buyer. Likewise, if selling in an HOA community, sellers must provide a copy of the HOA bylaws to the buyer, which may have a cost as part a HOA transfer fee.
• Real estate agent commissions: Most of the time, sellers pay both the seller and buyer agent fees, which are usually 3% per agent for a total of 6% of the home’s sale price.
• Seller concessions: During negotiation, a seller may agree to pay some of the buyer’s closing costs to facilitate the transaction. These costs could include prorated property taxes or covering the home inspection fee. A seller can concede a maximum of 9% of the home’s purchase price to a buyer.

→ Learn more about seller closing costs

Shared closing costs

Most closing costs are negotiable between buyer and seller, even the ones above. The following closing costs, however, are usually split evenly between buyers and sellers in Georgia.

• Escrow fees: Escrow companies process the money involved in a home sale and send it where it needs to go. As this benefits both parties, both buyers and sellers pay this cost.
• Attorney fee: Georgia requires that an attorney supervises the entire closing process. Both the choice of real estate attorney and who pays for them is negotiable between buyer and seller, but it makes the most sense to split the cost evenly.
• Municipal lien search: Similar to a title search, a lien search verifies that there are no liens on the property for code violations or improper building permitting which could hold up a sale.
• Recording fees: In most closing transactions, the buyer pays recording fees for filing home mortgages and deeds with the county. The seller pays an additional recording fee to update records if they resolve unpaid bills or liens, which makes this potentially a share cost.

How to save on closing costs in Georgia

When it comes to the dollar amounts in a home sale, every little bit saved helps. Buyers want to have as much financial flexibility as possible to make their new home perfect, while sellers want to pocket as much of a profit as possible. Here are some ways to save on closing costs in Georgia.

• Lender credits: Lender credits won’t save you money in the long run, but they will save you money upfront. Rather than pay the closing costs at the closing table, a lender credit allows you to roll them into your mortgage amount, plus interest. Over the length of your loan, you’ll pay far more than the actual credited amount.
• Negotiation: It’s a seller’s market, but that doesn’t mean there’s no room for negotiation. Your real estate agent can help you find negotiable points and maximize your potential savings at the closing table.
• State assistance: Like most states, Georgia offers a number of homebuying programs, especially for first-time homebuyers. Some of these programs include the Georgia Department of Community Affairs’ (GDCA) Georgia Dream program which offers down payment assistance up to $7,500 in the form of a zero-interest, no-monthly payment second loan, due when you sell your home or refinance your first mortgage for eligible first-time homebuyers. There are also down payment assistance programs in the Atlanta metro area, Savannah, Macon, and more. Between state and local programs, it’s likely you can find some assistance if you’re strapped for cash at the closing table.