Closing costs by state
Closing costs in Utah
Closing costs in Utah run about 2% to 5% of the price for a buyer, made of lender fees, title and settlement, recording, prepaid interest and escrow reserves; on a $400,000 home the worked example below comes to $10,055. Utah has no state-level real estate transfer tax.
Last verified ·Sources:treasurer.utah.gov·insurance.utah.gov
The rules
What Utah does differently
- State transfer tax
- None at the state level.
- Who pays it
- Not applicable.
- County and city add-ons
- None; county recording is a flat per-document fee (Utah Code § 17-21-18.1). A 2024 proposal to write a ban on new transfer taxes into the constitution (SJR 2) passed the Senate but not the House.
- Attorney at closing
- Utah does not require an attorney at closing; a title or escrow company usually conducts it, and an attorney is optional.
- Owner’s title policy
- The seller customarily pays for the owner’s title insurance policy in Utah; the buyer pays for the lender’s policy.
- Notes
- The Tax Commission's TC-23 revenue report (May 2026, hosted by the State Treasurer) itemizes every tax and fee the Commission collects, and no transfer, deed or conveyance tax appears among them. Title companies conduct closings; the seller usually pays the owner's policy.
- treasurer.utah.gov — “Utah State Tax Commission Revenue Summary ... Tax/Fee: Individual Income Tax, State Sales and Use Tax, Corporate Tax, Beer Tax, Cigarette Tax, Tobacco Tax, Insurance Premium Tax, Oil and Gas Severance Tax”
- insurance.utah.gov — “The seller usually pays for the buyer's owner's policy.”
Worked example
A $400,000 home in Utah, 20% down
Loan of $320,000 at 6.5%, closing on the 15th. Lender, title and recording figures are typical line items used for illustration, the same on every state page; the transfer tax and the owner’s policy side follow Utah’s rules above. Not a quote: the calculator takes your own figures.
Buyer pays
| Loan origination, 1% of the loan | $3,200 |
| Appraisal | $550 |
| Title and settlement services | $1,800 |
| Lender’s title policy | $900 |
| Recording | $150 |
| Prepaid interest, 15 days at 6.5% | $855 |
| Escrow reserve, 3 months of tax at 1.1% | $1,100 |
| First year of homeowners insurance | $1,500 |
| Total (2.514% of price) | $10,055 |
Seller pays
| Commission, 5% | $20,000 |
| Title and escrow fees | $2,000 |
| Owner’s title policy (estimate) | $1,500 |
| Prorated property tax | $1,500 |
| Total | $25,000 |
Questions
What people ask about Utah
- Who pays the transfer tax in Utah?
- Utah has no state-level real estate transfer tax.
- Do you need an attorney to close on a house in Utah?
- Utah does not require an attorney at closing; a title or escrow company usually conducts it, and an attorney is optional.
- Who pays for the owner’s title policy in Utah?
- The seller customarily pays for the owner’s title insurance policy in Utah; the buyer pays for the lender’s policy.
- How much are seller closing costs in Utah?
- On a $400,000 sale with a 5% commission, the worked example on this page comes to $25,000 for the seller, before the mortgage payoff and any concessions or repairs. The seller net sheet calculator shows the walk-away figure.
Last reviewed September 8, 2026 by the EstatePass editorial team. Formulas and program limits are checked against the published rules; figures on this page are arithmetic, not market statistics.
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