As housing prices drop, closing costs are rising
Industry says new regulations demanding documentation for mortgages increases their workload -CNBC
Nationwide, the average origination and title fees on a $200,000 purchase mortgage totaled $4,070, according to Bankrate’s annual survey of closing costs. That’s an 8.8 percent jump compared to 2010 when the average closing costs totaled $3,741.
For the second year in a row, the states with the highest closing costs are New York, where costs average $6,183; Texas at $4,944; followed by Utah with $4,906. Next was California, where average closing costs in San Francisco totaled $4,832. New York and Texas have dominated the top spots for five years.
The cheapest places to get a mortgage are Arkansas, North Carolina and Indiana. In each of these states, the average closing costs are close to $3,400.
What exactly has gone up?
Most of the jump in closing costs is tied to fees charged directly by lenders.
On average, lenders charged about $1,614 in origination fees this year, up 10.3 percent from last year. Origination fees include lender charges for services such as underwriting and processing.
Fees imposed by third parties, including title, appraisal, postage/courier and survey charges, averaged $2,456, up 7.9 percent from 2010.
While some third-party fees rose, title insurance premiums changed little compared to last year. The survey excludes property taxes, homeowners insurance and recording fees.
Why are fees rising?
Many lenders and mortgage professionals claim that origination fees have increased because of stricter mortgage regulations that the government has implemented in the last two years.
“New regulations require more staffing and cost more money,” says Jason Auerbach, division manager of First Choice Loan Services in New York City.
Auerbach says some of the “new” regulations — which vary from having to take extra steps to verify a borrower’s income and employment to disclosure forms and licensing-related matters — have been in place for a couple of years already, but the mortgage industry takes them more seriously now. New forms and regulations that are still in discussion are influencing lenders already.
“Banks are self-regulating,” Auerbach says. “They want to make sure there is nothing in that loan that is going to make Fannie and Freddie uncomfortable.”
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac buy most mortgages and have almost no tolerance for missing documents or errors in paperwork.
Neil Garfinkel, a New York real estate attorney with AGMB Law, says he has noticed firsthand the increased caution, as he has been retained to help several smaller banks seeking counseling related to mortgage compliance issues.
“It does cost them more, and I’m sure the costs have to be passed on to the consumer,” Garfinkel says.
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