Fees Associated With Buying a New Home Part 2

Here are the sort of fees you’ll be looking at when you decide to buy your new home.

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Buying a home isn’t as simple as putting down a down payment and then making your mortgage payment. There are a number of fees that come along with a home purchase, and we’ll be looking at two more of those fees today in the final section of our two-part series. To see part one, click here. Here’s what you should be prepared for: 

1. The appraisal fee. This is the third check you’ll be writing after paying for your earnest money and home inspection. The appraisal costs between $400 and $500 and is paid to the lender. Order this as quickly as possible, as you’ll likely be operating in an appraisal contingency. After paying the lender, the lender hires an appraiser who visits the home to confirm you aren’t paying too much for the property.

2. The down payment. What you pay as a down payment varies depending on your loan. It could be 0% for VA loans, 3% for some conventional loans, 3.5% for FHA loans, and higher for many conventional loans. Let’s say you’re buying a $300,000 home with 20% down—that’s a $60,000 down payment. You want to wire this payment to your closing attorney within 24 hours of closing. Your lender will have given you your final numbers a few days for closing. In this payment you send the attorney, you’ll also be including any closing costs that aren’t being covered by the seller. Needless to say, that $60,000 payment will likely be higher; however, the earnest money you’ve paid before counts toward the payment. 

If you have any more questions or would like further information, feel free to reach out to us. We look forward to hearing from you.