What's the difference between cash to close and the down payment?
The down payment is just one line item. Cash to close is the full amount you need to bring: down payment plus lender fees, Florida doc stamps and intangible tax, title insurance and settlement services, and prepaid items like insurance and escrow. On a financed deal, cash to close typically runs several thousand dollars above the down payment alone.
What are Florida documentary stamp taxes at closing?
Florida charges two separate doc stamp taxes. On the deed, it's $0.70 per $100 of purchase price in most counties, $0.60 per $100 in Miami-Dade for a single-family home. On the mortgage note, it's $0.35 per $100 of the loan amount, plus an intangible tax of $0.20 per $100. The deed stamp is customarily a seller cost; the note stamp and intangible tax fall on the buyer as the borrower.
Who pays for owner's title insurance in Florida?
It depends on the county. In most of Florida the seller customarily pays for the owner's title policy. In a handful of counties, including Miami-Dade, Broward, Collier and Sarasota, the buyer customarily pays instead. Either way this is local custom, not law, and it's fully negotiable in the purchase contract.
How is Florida's promulgated title insurance rate calculated?
Florida sets title insurance premiums by statute, the same for every title company. The rate is tiered: $5.75 per $1,000 on the first $100,000 of price, $5.00 per $1,000 on the next $900,000, then $2.50 per $1,000 above $1,000,000, stepping down further at higher price tiers. Because it's regulated, title premium shopping won't save you money, service and closing speed are where title companies actually differ.
Does paying cash avoid Florida closing costs?
A cash purchase skips every loan-related cost: no doc stamps on a note, no intangible tax, no lender origination, underwriting, appraisal or credit-report fees. On a typical deal that can mean $5,000 to $10,000 saved versus financing the same purchase. You can still borrow against the property later through a delayed-financing cash-out refinance.
Which Florida closing costs can I actually negotiate?
Doc stamps, intangible tax, and title insurance premiums are state-regulated and essentially fixed no matter which provider you use. What you can negotiate: lender origination fees, the closing or settlement fee, survey cost, and who pays owner's title insurance if your county's custom favors the seller. Compare Loan Estimates line by line on sections A and C.
What are prepaids and escrow at a Florida closing?
Prepaids cover costs due right after closing, collected upfront: typically 12 months of homeowners and wind insurance, roughly 5 months of property tax reserves in escrow, and about 15 days of prepaid interest depending on your closing date. These aren't fees, they're funds building your escrow cushion and prepaying your first insurance term.
How accurate is this estimate compared to a real Loan Estimate?
This tool uses Florida-typical figures for lender, settlement, and inspection fees, so it's built for planning ahead of an offer. Actual costs vary by lender, title agent, property, and contract terms. A real Loan Estimate is the federal disclosure with your actual fees, locked within 3 days of application, that's the document that matters once you're under contract.