We are purchasing a home and want to know if it is normal practice for seller and buyer to split closing costs 50/50?

Hi Cathy, when you say 50/50 I am drawn to the part of the purchase contract that mentions the seller and the buyer will pay one half by buyer and one half by seller, if so that part if for title closing fee only. Otherwise if not, it will depend on what you and the seller agreed to when you made your offer. Depending on the type of loan you are receiving the seller can pay anywhere from $0 to 6% of the sales price towards your closing costs. The seller does not have to pay closing costs ever, unless they agree to it as it does reduce from their bottom line. No matter what you should be calling your real estate agent today to confirm what if any costs are being paid. Best wishes, Sean

It really depends on what closing costs you are talking about and what state you are in. It differs from area to area.

To make this as simple as possible: Sean is correct - you normally see the Buyer and Seller splitting the "Settlement Fee" at closing (which is the cost you pay the title company to use their facility and/or facilitator to close your loan). When you break it all down, the Buyer and Seller then agree to what other fees will be paid by whom such as the title work (in a purchase, the Owner's Policy is paid for by the Seller in most cases, while the Lender's policy is paid for by the Buyer since they chose the lender 9x out of 10).If you are completely confused, have a representative from your title company call you. They will gladly explain your specific situation. Unfortunately, without seeing your purchase agreement, I cannot fully explain it to you. I like to do this when consulting my borrowers upfront. Your loan officer should always explain the fees to you - after all, that is his/her job! Let me know if that helps. Thanks!