Siri Stafford/ Getty Images; Illustration by Austin Courregé/Bankrate

Buying a home is one of the biggest investments you may ever make, but the asking price doesn’t offer the complete picture of how much you’ll need to get the keys. You’ll also have to account for closing costs, which are the fees associated with finalizing a real estate deal, like home appraisal and credit check fees.

One big factor that impacts your closing cost tab is where in the U.S. you’re buying — typical costs can vary widely from one state to another. If you’re in the process of buying a house, or just starting to think about it, keep reading for details on the average closing costs by state.

How much are average closing costs?

Closing costs are the upfront fees you pay when getting a mortgage and finalizing a home purchase. The national average for closing costs is $4,661 including recording and taxes — or approximately 1.6 percent of the average sales price of $438,236 — according to data analysis from LodeStar Software Solutions. Without recording and taxes, the typical closing cost tab comes to $3,042.

You’ll also pay closing costs when you refinance your mortgage. Those costs, however, tend to be lower: an average of $2,403 with recording and taxes and a modest price tag of $1,870 without, according to LodeStar.

In general, closing costs for a home purchase cover expenses and fees including:

• Credit check
• Title search and insurance
• Appraisal
• Attorney fees
• Origination fee
• Application fee
• Underwriting fee
• Transfer taxes, if applicable

Closing costs by state

Depending on what state you’re in, closing fees can amount to anywhere from less than 1 percent of the home’s sale price to nearly 3 percent at the highest end of the range, according to LodeStar data.

States with no transfer taxes

One of the expenses that adds to closing costs is real estate transfer taxes, which cover the cost of transferring a title or deed from the seller to the buyer. However, some states do not charge a transfer tax:

• Alaska
• Idaho
• Indiana
• Kansas
• Louisiana
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Montana
• New Mexico
• North Dakota
• Oregon (most counties)
• Texas
• Utah
• Wyoming

FAQs

• What are closing costs?
  

  Closing costs are the fees and charges associated with completing a real estate sale. For homebuyers, the costs mostly cover lender-related fees (such as charges for loan origination and credit checks), professional fees for services like the home inspection and legal representation, as well as filing or recording fees for necessary paperwork. Home sellers have their own closing costs to cover too.

• Who pays closing costs?
  

  Most of the time, both the buyer and seller pay closing costs of some form. The specific fees and expenses will vary by location, financing, price and other factors.

• How can you save on closing costs?
  

  Though many of these fees are fixed, many closing costs are also negotiable. There might be some wiggle room with your lender regarding their fees, for example. You could strategically plan your closing date, as well, to lower the upfront per diem interest costs on the mortgage.