Ask Erin: Who pays for what?

It is a common question of both buyers and sellers - who pays for what fees during the purchase or sale transaction of a home. There are many many fees - Title Insurance, Escrow fees, City/County Transfer tax, etc. The short answer is that all fees are completely negotiable in ever individual transaction...general practices vary from County to County.

Sacramento is customarily a "Seller Pay" county - where the sellers generally foot the bill for Escrow fees, the Owner's Title Insurance, and County Transfer Tax, and split 50-50 with buyers the City Transfer Tax, if it is applicable.

In Placer County, the buyer and seller customarily split 50-50 the Escrow fees, and the seller pays the Owner's Title Insurance, and County Transfer Tax...there is generally no city transfer tax...

Links:
http://www.placertitle.com/docs/WhoPaysCounty.pdf