Tag Archives: Title

Closing Costs

Who Pays the Closing Costs?

Leave a reply

So you’ve found the perfect new house, and are ready to make an offer… Great! Naturally, you want to make your offer as attractive as possible. But as you comb through your budget, it occurs to you… Who pays the closing costs? 

It’s at this time that you begin to frantically research a topic that you now wish you had looked at beforehand: Closing costs. What are they, and who pays them? 

Closing costs are the fees paid upfront at closing by both the buyer and the seller. They cover expenses such as the title search, property taxes, real estate fees, inspections, title insurance, and closing fees. In Florida, these expenses are shared by buyers and sellers. Buyers frequently pay the fees associated with home inspections and obtaining a mortgage. Sellers usually pay the agents’ commissions and taxes. In most cases, buyers can expect to pay roughly 2.5% to 3.5% of the total sale price in upfront closing costs.

Buyer closing costs cover items such as:

  • Survey Fees
  • Appraisal Fees
  • Inspections
  • Recording Fees
  • Loan Origination Fees
  • Credit Report
  • HOA Fees

Seller closing costs pay for:

  • Agent Commission
  • Taxes
  • Promissory Note
  • Title Search

Closing costs are due upfront, meaning they usually can’t be rolled into the mortgage. Although there are scenarios where the lender might pay for some of the closing costs in exchange for a higher interest rate, this is rarely in the buyer’s favor. Because of this, it’s important to plan ahead and be ready to pay closing costs in addition to your down payment.

With that said, if adding closing costs to the bottom line of your “cash due at closing” puts you just out of reach of your dream home, could you ask the seller to pay more of the closing costs in your offer? Sure – go ahead! You can always ask. …Or you could ask for that same $5,000 to be taken off of the sale price, and enjoy lower payments over the lifetime of the loan. Depending upon what you can swing upfront, the latter might be the wisest choice.

Regardless of whether you approach closing from the buyer’s perspective or the seller’s, a bit of pre-planning will help to make the reality of closing costs less of a strain. If you have questions about the closing process, feel free to contact the team at Turner Title! We’re here to help, and can’t wait to guide you through the process of purchasing (or selling) your home.  

What is a Short Sale (And Is it Right for You as a Buyer?)

Leave a reply

A short sale occurs when a property sells for less than what is still due on the homeowner’s mortgage. Thus, the seller will come up “short” when paying off his or her lender. Buyers may think they’ve nabbed a bargain. But the wary home buyer will consider all of the factors involved in a short sale, including those that are less often discussed.

Approval From the Seller’s Lender

Because the short sale is likely occurring due to financial distress that makes it difficult for the seller to pay off his mortgage, the seller’s lender will need a say in the process. If you’re wondering why a lender would ever agree to a short sale, it does happen… on occasion. If the loss from a short sale would be less than the loss resulting from initiating a foreclosure, then the lender might agree. However, be ready for a long and arduous approval process. While a traditional home purchase process will usually take a month or so from offer to closing, some short sales take up to a year to finalize!

Fixer-Upper Central

If you’re handy, a fixer-upper might be just the opportunity you want! But for those of us with two left hands, a short sale may prove to be more expensive than we’d originally thought. Because of the nature of short sales, the sellers won’t likely be coming from a place of wanting to sink their own capital into repairs and maintenance. Be ready for some added repair costs after closing. 

All That Work for Nothing

It is entirely possible that at the end of an extremely long process, the sale might fall through. Or you might receive a counter offer at a much higher price than you can afford. Nothing is more frustrating than waiting months for a response to your offer letter, only to finally be told “no”. If you’re a frequent real estate investor, a little bit of lost time may not be a big issue for you. But if you’re shopping for a home for your family to live in, don’t forget to factor the potential cost of futile efforts into the equation. 

Is a short sale right for you? It all depends! As with all real estate deals, go into it with your eyes open, and with a good realtor at your side. 

Who Pays the Closing Costs?

Leave a reply

So you’ve found the perfect new house, and are ready to make an offer… Great! Naturally, you want to make your offer as attractive as possible. But as you comb through your budget, it occurs to you…

Who pays the closing costs? 

It’s at this time that you begin to frantically research a topic that you now wish you had looked at beforehand: Closing costs. What are they, and who pays them? 

Closing costs are the fees paid upfront at closing by both the buyer and the seller. They cover expenses such as the title search, property taxes, real estate fees, inspections, title insurance, and closing fees. In Florida, these expenses are frequently shared by buyers and sellers. Buyers frequently pay the fees associated with home inspections and obtaining a mortgage. Sellers usually pay the agents’ commission and taxes. In most cases, buyers can expect to pay roughly 2.5% to 3.5% of the total sale price in upfront closing costs.

Buyers usually cover items such as:

  • Survey Fees
  • Appraisal Fees
  • Inspections
  • Recording Fees
  • Loan Origination Fees
  • Credit Report
  • HOA Fees

Sellers often pay for:

  • Agent Commission
  • Taxes
  • Promissory Note
  • Title Search

Closing costs are due upfront, meaning they usually can’t be rolled into the mortgage. Although there are scenarios where the lender might pay for some of the closing costs in exchange for a higher interest rate, this is rarely in the buyer’s favor. Because of this, it’s important to plan ahead and be ready to pay all of your upfront fees in addition to your down payment.

With that said, if adding closing costs to the bottom line of your “cash due at closing” puts you just out of reach of your dream home, could you ask the seller to pay more of the closing costs in your offer? Sure – go ahead! You can always ask. …Or you could ask for that same $5,000 to be taken off of the sale price, and enjoy lower payments over the lifetime of the loan. Depending upon what you can swing upfront, the latter might be the wisest choice.

Regardless of whether you approach closing from the buyer’s perspective or the seller’s, a bit of pre-planning will help to make the reality of closing costs less of a strain. If you have questions about the closing process, feel free to contact the team at Turner Title! We’re here to help, and can’t wait to guide you through the process of purchasing (or selling) your home. 

Real Estate Market

Keeping an Eye on the 2023 Housing Market Correction

Leave a reply

Whether you are a buyer or a seller, you’re probably keeping a close eye on the recent housing marketing correction. We all want to know the answer to this all-important question: What is the Florida real estate market going to do next? We at Turner Title have done a bit of research, and have some good news for both buyers and sellers.  

Good news for buyers:

While real estate prices have been steadily rising over the past two years, prices stabilized between November of 2022 and February of 2023. The good news is that buyers who once felt pressure to snap up a house before home prices skyrocketed further, can finally slow down. 

A year ago, buyers reasoned a home that is affordable today might well be out of reach tomorrow. But as of February of 2023, we can all take a deep breath and continue our home shopping at a more relaxed tempo. With that said, the real estate market (like every other industry) is subject to the law of supply and demand.  Even though home prices are leveling off, Florida is still the fastest-growing state in the country… so if you’ve fallen in love with a specific home, it’s safer not to wait! Other buyers might have their eyes on the same property, and you don’t want to miss out on your opportunity to make an offer!

…Now we know what you’re thinking. Wait a minute. You said you had good news for both buyers and sellers. With data like this, what could possibly be good news for sellers? 

Don’t worry sellers, we’ve got you! 

Good news for sellers: 

We’ve all heard the rumors and anxiety-inducing projections of a real estate market downturn, but the data is showing the opposite. In just one year (between July 2021 and July 2022), Florida’s population increased by more than 400,000 people. The Sunshine State’s population is still growing, leading to an increase in housing demands. And even though the data shows that the growth in property values has slowed, it certainly hasn’t stalled!

Florida still has one of the fastest-moving real estate markets in the nation. The health of the real estate market is directly linked to the health of the local economy, and the numbers don’t lie. In December of 2022, Florida’s unemployment rate of 2.5% was a full percent lower than the national 3.5% unemployment rate. Not only that, but the number of available jobs in the Sunshine State also rose by 3% in 2022. Florida’s tourism industry is second to none – making investment real estate a hot commodity as well. 

The good news for sellers is that, while the market may have slowed down a bit, it’s still marching steadily forward. 

In light of everything above, keep in mind that it’s impossible to predict with certainty what the future holds for the real estate market. All we can do is use our best judgment with the knowledge and resources that we have available. (And speaking of resources, keep following us for more insight into the real estate market, as well as tips and tricks for making your closing process easy and effective!)