Home buyer tax calculator
The one-time state and local taxes you pay when you buy a house: transfer tax, recordation tax and mortgage tax, for every state.
Taxes on buying a house, by state
| State | What the buyer pays | On a $400,000 home, 20% down |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Deed tax on the cash part, mortgage tax on the loan | $560 |
| Alaska | None | $0 |
| Arizona | None | $0 |
| Arkansas | Half the transfer tax | $660 |
| California | None | $0 |
| Colorado | Documentary fee of $0.01 per $100 | $40 |
| Connecticut | None | $0 |
| Delaware | Half the 4% transfer tax | $8,000 |
| District of Columbia | Recordation tax of 1.1% or 1.45% | $5,800 |
| Florida | Two taxes on the mortgage (0.55% of the loan) | $1,760 |
| Georgia | Intangible tax of 0.3% of the loan | $960 |
| Hawaii | None | $0 |
| Idaho | None | $0 |
| Illinois | None, except in Chicago and some suburbs | $0 |
| Indiana | None | $0 |
| Iowa | None | $0 |
| Kansas | None | $0 |
| Kentucky | None | $0 |
| Louisiana | None, except $325 on a mortgage in New Orleans | $0 |
| Maine | Half the transfer tax | $880 |
| Maryland | Half of the transfer and recordation taxes | $4,780 |
| Massachusetts | None | $0 |
| Michigan | None | $0 |
| Minnesota | Mortgage registry tax of 0.23% of the loan | $736 |
| Mississippi | None | $0 |
| Missouri | None | $0 |
| Montana | None | $0 |
| Nebraska | None | $0 |
| Nevada | None | $0 |
| New Hampshire | Half the transfer tax (0.75%) | $3,000 |
| New Jersey | None | $0 |
| New Mexico | None | $0 |
| New York | Mortgage recording tax, and mansion tax from $1 million | $3,200 |
| North Carolina | None | $0 |
| North Dakota | None | $0 |
| Ohio | None | $0 |
| Oklahoma | Mortgage tax of 0.1% of the loan | $320 |
| Oregon | None, except half of 0.1% in Washington County | $0 |
| Pennsylvania | Half the transfer tax (1% in most places) | $4,000 |
| Rhode Island | None | $0 |
| South Carolina | None | $0 |
| South Dakota | None | $0 |
| Tennessee | Transfer tax of 0.37%, plus mortgage tax | $1,845.70 |
| Texas | None | $0 |
| Utah | None | $0 |
| Vermont | Property transfer tax: 0.5%, then 1.47% | $3,940 |
| Virginia | Recordation tax on the deed and on the loan | $2,400 |
| Washington | None | $0 |
| West Virginia | None | $0 |
| Wisconsin | None | $0 |
| Wyoming | None | $0 |
Figures use each state's base rate. Open a state for city and county rates and the official source.
Which taxes a buyer can face
In most states the buyer pays no tax on the purchase at all, because the seller covers the transfer tax. The exceptions fall into three kinds. Some states split the transfer tax or put it on the buyer. Some charge a recordation tax when the deed is recorded. And some tax the mortgage itself, which means a cash buyer avoids it.
No state charges sales tax on a house. Property tax is a separate, yearly bill; at closing you only settle your share of the current year with the seller.