Closing Costs in Georgia: What Buyers Pay and When

Your down payment isn’t the only money you need to buy a home. Closing costs are the fees and upfront payments that make the purchase and the loan official. Freddie Mac says buyers should be ready to pay about 2% to 5% of the purchase price. Knowing what’s in that number ahead of time takes a lot of the stress out of closing day, so let me walk you through it.

Georgia closes with an attorney

In Georgia, a real estate closing has to be handled by a licensed Georgia attorney. The Supreme Court of Georgia has said it’s the unauthorized practice of law for anyone else to close a real estate transaction. The closing attorney handles the title search, prepares the documents, holds the money in escrow and runs the settlement, where everyone signs and the funds go where they need to go.

One tip: ask the closing attorney early whom they represent in your purchase. If you want legal advice just for you, you can hire your own attorney.

What buyers usually pay

Every purchase is different, but these are the usual items:

• Loan costs: application and origination fees (origination can include underwriting), credit report, appraisal.
• Attorney and title: the closing attorney’s fee, the title search and the lender’s title insurance, which most lenders require. An owner’s title insurance policy is optional and protects you if someone later claims a right to the home, for example over a past owner’s unpaid taxes.
• Government fees: recording fees and Georgia’s intangible recording tax (more on that below).
• Prepaid items and escrow: your first year of homeowners insurance (most lenders require it paid on or before closing day), a starting deposit into your escrow account for future property taxes and insurance, and interest until your first payment is due.

If the home has an HOA (homeowners association), ask what HOA charges will be due at closing.

Freddie Mac also lists home inspection and survey fees. An inspection isn’t required, but Freddie Mac highly recommends one. Let’s talk before you decide to skip it.

Two Georgia taxes to know

Intangible recording tax (on your new loan)

When a long-term mortgage is recorded in Georgia, the tax is $1.50 for every $500 of the loan amount (about $3 per $1,000), up to $25,000 per loan. The tax is owed by the lender (the holder of the loan), but the Georgia Department of Revenue says the lender can pass it on to the borrower. That’s why you may see it on your Loan Estimate. If you pay cash, there’s no loan, so there’s no intangible tax.

Transfer tax (on the sale)

This is $1 for the first $1,000 of the price plus 10 cents for each additional $100, or about $1 per $1,000. The Department of Revenue says the seller is liable for it, and also that the buyer and seller frequently agree in the contract that the buyer will pay. Read that part of the contract carefully.

Example: $400,000 home, $380,000 loan	Approximate tax
Intangible recording tax (on the loan)	$1,140
Transfer tax (on the price; seller unless the contract says otherwise)	$400

Example only. The closing attorney calculates the exact amounts.

How much to plan for

Using Freddie Mac’s 2% to 5% range, a $400,000 home means roughly $8,000 to $20,000 in closing costs. (For reference, Redfin reported a median sale price of $409,085 in Gwinnett County for the three months ending September 2026.) Your real number depends on your loan, the price and the credits you negotiate.

Your budget is what decides if a payment works, and the same goes for cash at closing. If saving it all feels like a lot: you don’t have to save it all at once. Gwinnett County’s Homestretch program offers down payment help to buyers who qualify, for homes under its price limits. See my Georgia down payment assistance guide.

Loan Estimate vs. Closing Disclosure: the 3-business-day rule

• Loan Estimate: a 3-page form the lender must give you within 3 business days after you apply. Every lender uses the same form, so you can compare offers side by side. My pre-approval guide shows you how.
• Closing Disclosure: a 5-page form with your final loan terms and costs. You must get it at least 3 business days before closing. Use those days to compare it with your Loan Estimate line by line and ask questions.

If, after that, your APR becomes inaccurate, the loan product changes or a prepayment penalty is added, the lender must give you a corrected Closing Disclosure and a new 3-business-day wait. Other changes can be corrected at or before closing.

Seller concessions: asking the seller to help

A seller concession (or seller credit) means the seller pays part of your closing costs. You ask for it in your offer. Each loan type sets a limit:

Loan type	Seller can contribute up to…
Conventional (Fannie Mae), primary home	3% with less than 10% down; 6% with 10% to just under 25% down; 9% with 25% or more down
FHA	HUD sets the limit in its FHA handbook. Ask your lender for the current number.
VA	No limit on credits for your loan’s closing costs; other concessions up to 4% of the home’s reasonable value

For conventional loans, Fannie Mae measures the percentage against the lower of the price or the appraised value, and the down payment tiers are really loan-to-value tiers that count any second loan. A credit can’t be more than your actual costs, and it generally can’t be used for your down payment. Keep in mind that a seller may only agree if the price reflects it. Never rely on verbal promises: make sure everything is in writing, in the contract.

Earnest money and due diligence in Georgia contracts

Earnest money is a deposit that shows the seller you’re serious. A third party holds it in escrow until it’s time to pay it out. If a real estate broker holds it, Georgia rules require the broker to keep it in a federally insured trust account registered with the Georgia Real Estate Commission. It isn’t an extra fee: if the purchase closes, it goes toward your down payment or closing costs. The amount is set in your contract.

Most Georgia purchase contracts include a due diligence period: a set number of days, agreed in the contract (state law doesn’t fix the length), to do inspections and look closely at the home. During that time you can usually end the contract for any reason with written notice and get your earnest money back. After it ends, walking away without a reason the contract allows usually means losing it. Deadlines are everything here, and I’ll track them with you.

Before you wire any money

Scammers send fake emails with “new” wiring instructions. Never follow wiring instructions from an email. Call the closing attorney’s office at a number you already have (not one from the email) to confirm the account name and number before you send anything.

Next steps

• Read my Gwinnett home buyer roadmap to see where closing fits.
• Get your First Home Plan or book a call and we’ll look at your numbers together.

This is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Confirm the details with your lender and closing attorney.