Buying a home is one of the biggest investments you may ever make, but the 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 getting a mortgage, like home appraisal and credit check fees. One other big factor that impacts your closing cost tab: where you’re buying.

Average closing costs on a house

Closing costs are the upfront fees you pay when obtaining a mortgage and finalizing a home sale. In 2021, the national average closing costs for purchasing a single-family home were $6,905 including transfer taxes and $3,860 without, according to ClosingCorp.

In general, closing costs cover:

• Credit check
• Title search and insurance
• Appraisal
• Attorney’s fees
• Origination fee
• Application fee
• Underwriting fee
• Transfer taxes, if applicable

Together, these fees and costs typically range between 2 to 5 percent of the amount you’re borrowing for your mortgage.

You’ll also pay closing costs when you refinance your mortgage. Those costs, however, tend to be much lower: an average of $2,375 in 2021, according to ClosingCorp.

Average closing costs on a home by state

Here are the average closing costs by state as of 2021 (in order of highest closing costs for a purchase), according to ClosingCorp:

States with no transfer taxes

One of the expenses that adds to closing costs: real estate transfer or conveyance taxes, which cover the cost of transferring a title or deed from the seller to the buyer. These states have no transfer taxes:

• Alaska
• Arizona (charges $2 fee instead)
• Idaho
• Indiana
• Louisiana
• Kansas
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Montana
• New Mexico
• North Dakota
• Oregon (unless you’re buying in Washington County)
• Texas
• Utah
• Wyoming

Markets with the highest average closing costs