Two to five percent of the loan amount, spread across a dozen line items. Some are fixed by third parties. Some are the lender's margin, and those are negotiable.
Rough figure: 2% to 5% of the loan amount. On a $340,000 refinance, that is roughly $7,000 to $17,000.
| Item | Typical range | Negotiable? |
|---|---|---|
| Origination or lender fee | 0.5%–1% of loan | Yes |
| Appraisal | $300–$800 | Sometimes waived |
| Title search and insurance | $700–$2,500 | You may shop for it |
| Credit report | $30–$100 | No |
| Recording fees | $50–$250 | No, set by the county |
| Discount points | 1% per point | Optional entirely |
| Prepaid interest and escrow | Varies | Not a fee — your own money |
Some of these are fees you pay to someone. Others are prepayments of your own expenses — property taxes and insurance going into a new escrow account.
That second group is not a cost of refinancing. You would pay it either way, and your old servicer refunds the balance of your existing escrow account within a few weeks. When comparing offers, look at fees, not the total cash to close, or you will compare two different things.
Lender fees. Origination, underwriting, processing, and application fees are the lender's own charges. Bring a competing Loan Estimate and ask them to match it. This works more often than people expect.
Title services. Federal rules let you shop for some title services rather than accepting the lender's provider. The Loan Estimate marks which ones.
Points. Buying down the rate is optional. It only pays off if you keep the loan long enough, and that is a separate break-even calculation from the refinance itself.
Run your own numbers
See the break-even month and what a refinance costs across the whole loan.
Every lender must give you a Loan Estimate on the same standardized form. Page 2 lists the fees; section A is the lender's own charges, which is where the real difference between offers usually sits.
Get at least three. Request them within a short window so the credit inquiries count as a single event for scoring purposes, and compare the same loan type and term across all of them.
Most lenders will add closing costs to the balance rather than asking for cash. It is convenient, and it means you pay interest on those costs for the life of the loan. On $8,000 rolled into a 30-year loan, the interest can approach the cost itself.
If you have the cash and no better use for it, paying at closing is cheaper. If not, rolling it in is not a disaster — just count it in the break-even.