Closing costs on a Virginia mortgage typically run roughly 2% to 5% of the loan amount, though the real figure shifts with the loan type, the lender, and the locality where the home sits. If you are asking how much are closing costs on a mortgage, the useful answer is a dollar range for your price point and a clear picture of which charges are fees, which are taxes, and which are simply your own money being set aside in escrow. Below is a line-by-line breakdown, a worked example, the costs unique to Virginia, how each loan program changes the math, and the practical ways to lower the cash you bring to the table, including no-out-of-pocket closing options.
The Percentage Range and a Worked Virginia Example
The 2% to 5% rule of thumb is widely repeated across the lending industry. Treat it as an estimate, not a guarantee. Some purchases land below it and some, especially those that count prepaid items and escrow deposits, land above it.
Here is arithmetic, not a market statistic. Suppose you buy a $400,000 home in Henrico County with 5% down. Your down payment is $20,000 and your loan amount is $380,000. At 2%, closing costs would be $7,600. At 5%, they would be $19,000. That is an $11,400 spread, which is why a single percentage is a poor budgeting tool and a written Loan Estimate is a good one.
The range is wide for several reasons:
- Loan type: FHA, VA, USDA, conventional, and jumbo loans each carry different upfront charges.
- Price and loan size: Title insurance, recording taxes, and percentage-based lender fees all scale with the numbers.
- Location: Taxes and title costs differ between Richmond, Northern Virginia, Hampton Roads, and smaller markets.
- Lender pricing: Origination charges and discount points vary a lot from one lender to the next.
- What is counted: Some quotes include prepaids and escrow deposits, and some do not. A “3%” estimate from one source and a “4.5%” estimate from another may describe the same transaction.
Buyers and sellers also pay different things. The buyer covers lender fees, appraisal, title insurance for the lender, and the prepaids. The seller typically pays the real estate commissions negotiated in the sale and certain Virginia transfer-related taxes. When you hear a seller’s net sheet figure, it will not match your cash-to-close number.
Lender Fees, Third-Party Fees, and Prepaids: What Each Line Pays For
Closing costs are not one pile of lender profit. Many charges go to appraisers, title agents, insurers, and government offices. Sorting them into three groups makes the Loan Estimate far easier to read.
Here is how the three categories compare:
- Lender charges. Examples: origination or underwriting fee, processing fee, discount points. Who sets the price: the lender, and these are the most negotiable and comparable charges.
- Third-party fees. Examples: appraisal, credit report, title search and title insurance, survey, flood certification. Who sets the price: the vendors, with the lender often selecting some of them.
- Prepaids and escrows. Examples: first-year homeowners insurance premium, prepaid interest, and initial property tax and insurance escrow deposits. Who sets the price: the insurer, the locality, and the calendar.
The third group causes the most sticker shock. Prepaids and escrow deposits are not fees in the usual sense. They are your own future homeownership costs paid in advance, and the escrow money is held in your account to pay your tax and insurance bills when they come due. A buyer who sees $9,000 of “closing costs” may find that $4,000 of it is simply taxes and insurance being funded early.
Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure
The Loan Estimate is a standardized three-page form the lender must deliver within three business days of receiving your application. It shows projected costs. The Closing Disclosure is the final version, and under the CFPB’s TRID rule you must receive it at least three business days before closing. If certain major changes occur after that, such as a change to the APR beyond the allowed limit, a new three-day wait can be triggered. Confirm the details on the CFPB website, since the agency maintains the current guidance.
What can change between estimate and closing
CFPB tolerance rules sort fees into buckets. Lender charges and fees for services where the lender controls the provider generally cannot increase at all. Certain recording fees and transfer taxes can increase only by a small percentage in aggregate. Fees for services you shop for yourself, along with prepaid interest, insurance premiums, and escrow deposits, can change more freely, because they depend on outside pricing and on your closing date. Ask your loan officer which bucket each line item falls into.
Virginia-Specific Closing Costs: Recordation Tax, Transfer Tax, and Title Practices
Virginia adds state and local charges that national calculators often miss. As of 2026, you should confirm current rates with the Virginia Department of Taxation and the Virginia Courts system, because these figures are set by statute and can be adjusted.
The state recordation tax applies when a deed or deed of trust is recorded. On a purchase, the buyer typically pays the recordation tax on the deed of trust securing the loan, and the tax scales with the loan amount. Virginia also imposes a grantor’s tax on the seller when the deed transfers. Because the seller normally pays the grantor’s tax, it will show up on the seller’s side of the settlement statement rather than yours, but you should still know it exists when you negotiate the contract.
Some regions add more. Localities in Northern Virginia, and certain other transportation districts, carry additional regional recordation or transportation-related taxes, and the details differ by jurisdiction. Verify which localities are covered and the current rate with the local circuit court clerk. In practice, a buyer in Fairfax or Loudoun may see a different tax line than a buyer in Richmond, Charlottesville, Fredericksburg, or Virginia Beach, even at the same loan amount.
Closings in Virginia are handled through title companies, settlement agents, and attorneys, and the state requires that the closing be supervised in a way that complies with its settlement agent rules. In practice, you will usually work with a title company or law office. The Loan Estimate designates which services you may shop for. When title services are on that list, you can compare quotes on settlement and title insurance instead of accepting the first provider offered.
Two more local variables affect your cash to close. Property tax proration depends on the locality’s rate, and Virginia counties and independent cities set their own, so the same home value produces different tax bills in different places. Homeowners insurance also varies sharply by region, with coastal Hampton Roads and the Northern Neck often priced differently from the Richmond suburbs or the Piedmont. Both feed directly into your prepaids and escrow deposits.
How Loan Type Changes Your Closing Costs
Every program has its own upfront charges. These figures are generally current as of 2026, but confirm each one with HUD, VA.gov, and USDA before you rely on it.
- Conventional: No upfront mortgage insurance premium on most loans. If your down payment is under 20%, private mortgage insurance is paid monthly or sometimes as a single premium at closing. See our conventional loan options.
- FHA: An upfront mortgage insurance premium of 1.75% of the base loan amount, which can be financed into the loan, plus an annual premium paid monthly. On a $380,000 base loan, 1.75% is $6,650. Learn about FHA loans in Virginia.
- VA: A funding fee that depends on service history, down payment, and whether it is your first or a later use. Some veterans with service-connected disabilities are exempt. It can be financed. Check the current chart on VA.gov. See VA loans in Virginia.
- USDA: An upfront guarantee fee and an annual fee, both set by USDA and adjusted periodically. Eligible rural areas include parts of the Northern Neck and the Shenandoah Valley. See USDA loans.
- Jumbo: No program insurance charge in most cases, but expect a larger appraisal cost, stricter reserve requirements, and higher title and recording charges tied to the loan size. See jumbo loans in Virginia.
VA loans work a little differently. VA rules limit which fees a veteran may be charged and restrict certain items to the seller or lender. That structure can lower a veteran’s out-of-pocket costs compared with a similar conventional loan, though the funding fee still applies unless waived. Verify the allowable fee list against current VA guidance when you compare offers.
The takeaway is that two buyers with identical prices and identical down payments can have very different closing costs depending on the program. Ask for Loan Estimates on more than one loan type if you qualify for more than one.
How to Lower What You Pay at Closing
There are several levers, and they can be combined. Start with the contract and work down.
Seller concessions
Sellers can agree to pay part of your closing costs, but each program caps the amount. Conventional limits depend on your down payment and whether the home is a primary residence or an investment property. FHA and VA have their own rules, and VA treats some items differently from general concessions. Check current limits with Fannie Mae, HUD, and VA before writing the offer, because a concession above the cap can be disallowed.
Lender credits versus discount points
You can accept a slightly higher interest rate in exchange for a lender credit that offsets closing costs, or pay discount points to buy a lower rate. To compare them, divide the cost of the points by the monthly payment savings. That gives the break-even in months. If you expect to sell or refinance before that point, taking the credit usually makes more sense.
Assistance programs
Virginia Housing offers down payment and closing cost assistance for eligible buyers, and Duane Buziak also works with DPA options such as Dynamo DPA and Turbo DPA through his wholesale lenders. Terms, minimum credit scores, and eligibility change, so confirm current details before counting on any figure. Used well, these programs can create no-out-of-pocket closing options, meaning the costs are covered through assistance, seller concessions, or lender credits, not that the costs disappear.
Timing and shopping
Prepaid interest runs from your closing date to the end of that month. Suppose you close on the 3rd versus the 28th: the first scenario prepays roughly four weeks of interest, the second only a few days. Closing near month-end lowers cash to close, though your first payment date moves accordingly. Finally, get competing quotes on title services and homeowners insurance when the Loan Estimate allows it.
Why Duane Buziak Compares 500+ Wholesale Lenders to Cut Your Costs
A single bank prices from its own shelf: its fee schedule, its rate sheet, its credits. As an independent broker with access to 500+ wholesale lenders, Duane Buziak is not paid to push one institution’s products. He compares fee structures and lender credits side by side for your exact scenario, which is how a buyer in Glen Allen or Chesapeake can see meaningfully different closing cost totals for the same loan. Wholesale pricing often runs below retail pricing at the same institution.
The track record is public. Duane Buziak, NMLS #1110647 (Coast2Coast Mortgage LLC, NMLS #376205), has been named Virginia Broker of the Year for 2024 and 2025, ranked #114 nationally on the Scotsman Guide Top Originator list for 2025 ($44.4M) and again in 2026 ($51.2M), and earned UWM PRO ELITE status in 2025. He holds more than 1,400 five-star reviews and is licensed in Virginia, Florida, Tennessee, and Georgia.
Cost estimates should not cost you credit points. Through the NoTouch Credit Pull, Duane Buziak runs a soft credit pull mortgage review that works as a no hard inquiry mortgage pre-approval. As a soft pull mortgage broker, he lets you complete a no credit hit mortgage application and see estimated closing costs before any credit score impact. That is a mortgage pre-approval without hard pull, and it means you can compare scenarios without worrying about repeated inquiries.
Large online lenders can advertise attractive rates, but a rate means little until you see the fee sheet next to it. Ask for the Loan Estimate and compare the totals.
Closing Costs FAQ for Virginia Buyers
Can I roll closing costs into my loan?
On a purchase, generally not, since the loan is limited to a percentage of the price or appraised value. You can reduce what you bring through lender credits or seller concessions. Refinances can sometimes finance costs into the new balance, depending on the program and your equity, so verify with your loan officer.
How much are closing costs on a refinance in Virginia?
Typically in a similar percentage-of-loan range as a purchase. There is no seller, so no seller-side transfer taxes, but the recordation tax on the new deed of trust still applies. Confirm current rates with the Virginia Department of Taxation and your local clerk.
When do I pay closing costs, and what is the cash-to-close figure?
You pay at closing. Your Closing Disclosure shows the cash-to-close total, and you should receive it at least three business days beforehand. Before wiring funds, call the title company at a phone number you already trust to verify the instructions, since wire fraud is a known risk.
Can the seller pay my closing costs?
Yes, if the contract says so and the amount stays within your loan program’s cap. The terms of your offer matter, because sellers weigh concessions against the price and other terms.
Is the appraisal fee refundable?
Generally no. It is paid upfront for the work performed, whether or not the loan closes. If the deal falls through, you typically do not get it back.
Getting Your Own Number Before You Make an Offer
Expect roughly 2% to 5% of the loan amount, but your exact figure depends on loan type, locality, and lender. The only way to turn that range into a real budget is a Loan Estimate built on your scenario.
Ready to see what Virginia’s top-ranked mortgage broker can do for you? Duane Buziak offers a no-hard-pull pre-approval so you can explore your options with zero credit impact. With access to 500+ wholesale lenders, you get better rates than any single bank can offer. Get your free mortgage review today.
