Florida closing costs: who pays what, line by line
Most closing-cost articles give you a range and stop there. This one works through the lines on a Florida closing statement one at a time: which ones the state sets by statute or rule (so they're the same at every title company), which ones you can shop, and who customarily pays each. The dollar figures come from the same engines that run this site's calculators, so you can check any of them yourself.
Three kinds of closing cost
Every line on a Florida Closing Disclosure falls into one of three groups, and knowing which group a line is in tells you whether you can do anything about it:
- Set by the state. Documentary stamp taxes, the intangible tax, county recording fees and the title insurance premium all come from a statute or an administrative rule. Two title companies quoting the same deal should show the same amounts for these lines. If they don't, ask why.
- Set by the market. The lender's charges (origination, appraisal, credit report), the title or closing agent's settlement fee, the survey, inspections and the HOA's estoppel certificate are priced by whoever provides them. This is where comparing quotes actually pays off.
- Not really costs at all. Prepaid interest, the first year of homeowners insurance, the escrow deposit and the property-tax proration are money moving to its eventual destination, or between buyer and seller. They raise your cash to close, but no one is charging you for a service.
The state-set lines, one by one
Deed documentary stamps (seller, by custom)
Florida taxes the deed at 70 cents per $100 of the price (Fla. Stat. §201.02), rounded up to the next $100. On a $400,000 sale that's $2,800.00, usually the seller's largest government charge. Miami-Dade is the one exception: 60 cents per $100 ($2,400.00 on the same sale), plus a 45-cent surtax that applies only to property other than a single-family residence (§201.031). The doc stamp calculator handles the rounding and the Miami-Dade split.
Mortgage stamps and the intangible tax (buyer)
If there's a loan, the note is taxed at 35 cents per $100 (§201.08), and the mortgage carries a one-time intangible tax of 2 mills, which is $2 per $1,000 (§199.133). These come with the loan, so the borrower pays them. On a $360,000 loan that's $1,260.00 plus $720.00. A cash buyer owes neither. See the intangible tax calculator.
Title insurance premium (depends on the county)
The premium is promulgated: set by rule (Fla. Admin. Code R. 69O-186.003) and charged the same by every title agent in the state. The owner's policy on a $400,000 purchase is $2,075.00. When the lender's policy is issued at the same time it costs $25.00 up to the owner's coverage amount, not a second full premium. Who pays for the owner's policy is a matter of county custom: in most of Florida the seller does, but in Miami-Dade, Broward, Collier, and Sarasota the buyer customarily pays and usually chooses the title agent too. The title insurance guide has the full rate card and the reissue credit.
Recording fees (buyer, mostly)
The county clerk charges $10 for the first page and $8.50 for each page after that (§28.24), so a two-page deed costs $18.50 to record and a typical 15-page mortgage costs $129.00. Recording the buyer's own documents is the buyer's cost. Recording the release of the seller's old mortgage is the seller's. Use the recording fee calculator for other page counts.
Worked example: the same house in two counties
Take a $400,000 single-family home bought with a $360,000 loan, first in Orange County and then in Miami-Dade. Only the state-set lines are shown; lender and settlement fees are left out because they depend on who you hire.
| Line | Amount | Customary payer |
|---|---|---|
| Deed documentary stamps | $2,800.00 | Seller |
| Owner's title policy premium | $2,075.00 | Seller |
| Lender's title policy (simultaneous issue) | $25.00 | Buyer |
| Mortgage documentary stamps | $1,260.00 | Buyer |
| Nonrecurring intangible tax | $720.00 | Buyer |
| Recording the deed (2 pages) | $18.50 | Buyer |
| Recording the mortgage (15 pages) | $129.00 | Buyer |
| Buyer total (these lines) | $2,152.50 | |
| Seller total (these lines) | $4,875.00 |
| Line | Amount | Customary payer |
|---|---|---|
| Deed documentary stamps | $2,400.00 | Seller |
| Owner's title policy premium | $2,075.00 | Buyer |
| Lender's title policy (simultaneous issue) | $25.00 | Buyer |
| Mortgage documentary stamps | $1,260.00 | Buyer |
| Nonrecurring intangible tax | $720.00 | Buyer |
| Recording the deed (2 pages) | $18.50 | Buyer |
| Recording the mortgage (15 pages) | $129.00 | Buyer |
| Buyer total (these lines) | $4,227.50 | |
| Seller total (these lines) | $2,400.00 |
The two totals land in different places. In Miami-Dade the seller saves on the lower deed rate, but the buyer takes on the owner's policy, which moves $2,075.00 onto the buyer's side for the same house. Both are customs, not laws. The FR/BAR contract most Florida sales use lets the parties choose who picks the title agent and pays for the owner's policy, so check that box before you budget your cash to close.
How the state-set charges grow with price
Stamps rise in step with the price. The title premium rises more slowly because its per-$1,000 rate drops in higher brackets. That's why title is a big share of the cost on a starter home and a small share on a large one:
| Price | Deed stamps (most counties) | Deed stamps (Miami-Dade, single-family) | Mortgage stamps + intangible tax | Owner's title premium |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $250,000 | $1,750.00 | $1,500.00 | $1,100.00 | $1,325.00 |
| $350,000 | $2,450.00 | $2,100.00 | $1,540.00 | $1,825.00 |
| $500,000 | $3,500.00 | $3,000.00 | $2,200.00 | $2,575.00 |
| $750,000 | $5,250.00 | $4,500.00 | $3,300.00 | $3,825.00 |
| $1,000,000 | $7,000.00 | $6,000.00 | $4,400.00 | $5,075.00 |
Refinancing: what's different
A refinance has no deed, so there are no deed stamps and no owner's policy. The new loan still pays mortgage stamps, the intangible tax, recording and a new lender's policy. For a $300,000 refinance that's $1,050.00 in stamps, $600.00 in intangible tax and $129.00 to record, plus the lender's policy. At the full rate the policy is $1,575.00, for a total of $3,354.00. If the earlier policy qualifies for the rule's reissue rate (here, a $320,000 policy from the original purchase), the premium drops to $930.00 and the total to $2,709.00. Ask the title agent about the reissue rate and hand over your old policy, because they won't always look for it. If you're refinancing with the same lender and borrowing no new money, the note may qualify as a renewal under §201.09 and owe stamps only on any new amount. Your closing agent can confirm whether it does.
The market-priced lines: where comparing pays
- Lender charges. These are on the Loan Estimate in Section A (origination charges) and Section B (services you can't shop for). Compare Loan Estimates from more than one lender on the same day, because pricing moves daily.
- Settlement and title-agent fees. The premium is set by the state, but the agent's closing fee, search fee and courier or e-recording charges are not. They show up in Section C (services you can shop for) if the lender lets you choose the title agent.
- Survey, inspections, wind-mitigation report. These are the buyer's, priced by the provider. A wind-mitigation inspection can lower your homeowners insurance premium, so it often pays for itself.
- HOA or condo estoppel certificate. This states what the seller owes the association at closing. The fee is capped by statute, and the contract says who pays it.
What Florida buyers actually paid for these lines, county by county: our closing costs by county study, from federal mortgage data.
The pass-through lines
- Property-tax proration. Florida bills property taxes in arrears, so the seller still owes for the days they owned the home this year and hands that amount to the buyer as a credit. The proration calculator computes it by closing date.
- Escrow deposit. Lenders usually collect a few months of taxes and insurance up front so the first bills can be paid from escrow. Federal rules limit the cushion to one-sixth of a year's escrowed charges.
- Prepaid interest and the first insurance year. These are paid at closing but would be owed anyway.
Putting it together
To get your own numbers, start with the closing cost worksheet, which combines the state-set lines above for any price, loan and county. Sellers should use the seller net sheet. To check a lender's Loan Estimate, compare its Section E ("Taxes and other government fees") with the stamp and recording figures here. They should match to the dollar.
Quick answers
Who pays closing costs in Florida, the buyer or the seller?
Both, for different lines. By custom the seller pays the deed documentary stamps and, in most counties, the owner's title policy. The buyer pays the mortgage stamps, the intangible tax, the lender's title policy and the lender's fees. In Miami-Dade, Broward, Collier, and Sarasota the buyer customarily pays the owner's policy as well. The contract can change any of this.
What are the state-set closing costs on a Florida purchase?
On a $400,000 purchase with a $360,000 loan in Orange County, the state-set lines total $2,152.50 for the buyer and $4,875.00 for the seller: deed stamps, mortgage stamps, intangible tax, title premiums and recording. Lender and settlement fees come on top and vary by provider.
Can I shop for title insurance in Florida?
You can shop for the title agent but not the premium. The premium is set by state rule and is the same everywhere. What differs between agents is their settlement and search fees, and whether they apply the reissue rate when you qualify.
Data verified as of October 2026.