Refinancing a Mortgage Cost: Average Fees Explained

A refinance replaces your current mortgage with a new one. You pay off the old loan, start a new one, and the lender charges closing costs for the work. People refinance to change the interest rate, adjust the loan term, switch loan types, or take cash out of the home's equity.

The costs are worth knowing before you apply, because they affect whether a new rate is worth it. Fees can be paid at closing, rolled into the new loan, or traded for a higher rate. Each option changes what you owe over time.

Lenders and guides usually describe refinance costs as a share of the new loan, since many fees scale with the loan size. Dollar averages are also published.

Two national averages appear here, and they are not the same. Redfin reports one figure for total refinance closing costs. The American Land Title Association (ALTA), citing a LodeStar report, gives a lower figure for 2025. The gap may come from different time periods, different samples of loans, or different choices about which fees to count. The sources do not explain the difference, so treat both as rough guides to the typical dollar amount instead of a price quote.

The ALTA percentage sits at the low end of the percentage ranges quoted by other sources.

A refinance includes many of the same charges as a purchase loan. The items below come from Bankrate and Redfin.

Several of these overlap with what you paid when you bought the home. The appraisal confirms the home's value for the new lender. Title services protect the lender against ownership claims. Escrow and recording fees cover the paperwork and the county filing. A survey is only needed in some cases.

Some lenders waive an appraisal in certain situations, and some borrowers qualify for reduced title charges. Ask what applies to you.

Bankrate and Redfin report different ranges for origination fees, and Redfin's range starts at zero, which fits the fact that some lenders do not charge one. A lender that advertises no origination fee may price that into a higher rate, so compare the rate and the fees together on the Loan Estimate.

Percentage ranges are close across sources but not identical.

NerdWallet and Redfin give the same range. Bankrate's top end is lower, and CNBC Select, citing Freddie Mac, starts higher. The sources may be looking at different periods, loan sizes, or fee definitions. Whether a source includes prepaid items such as interest and escrow deposits may also move the number. The sources do not say, so check how each figure is defined before you compare.

A percentage also behaves differently from a dollar average. On a large loan, a small percentage can mean a large dollar amount, and a small loan may be dominated by fixed fees.

• Loan size. Many fees are a percentage of the amount borrowed.
• Lender. Origination, application, and underwriting fees vary.
• Location. Title, recording, and escrow charges depend on the state and county.
• Property. A survey or specialized appraisal may be needed.
• Loan type. Cash-out and government-backed refinances can carry their own charges.
• Credit and rate choice. Paying points can lower your rate while raising closing costs.

• Get Loan Estimates from several lenders and compare the fee sections line by line.
• Ask which fees can be reduced or waived.
• Shop for title services if your lender allows it.
• Ask your current lender about a streamlined option, if one exists for your loan.
• Compare paying costs upfront with rolling them into the loan. Rolling them in avoids cash at closing but increases the balance you borrow.

The answer depends on how long you plan to keep the home, how much the new loan saves each month, and what you pay to get it. A common way to check is to divide your total closing costs by the monthly savings to see how many months it takes to recover them. That calculation is a rough guide, and it leaves out changes in the loan term. A lender or a housing counselor can run the numbers for your loan.