Editorial Standards

Purpose

Florida Closing Guide publishes educational information about real estate closings in Florida. Guides focus on Florida law, Florida rules, and Florida county practice. Nothing on the site is legal, tax, or financial advice. Your contract, your lender, and your closing agent or attorney control the details of your transaction.

Sources

We use primary sources first:

• Florida Statutes, including Chapter 201 (documentary stamp tax) and Chapter 199 (the nonrecurring intangible tax on mortgages);
• the Florida Administrative Code, including the rule that sets promulgated title insurance premium rates (Rule 69O-186.003);
• Florida recording fee law and county clerk fee schedules for recording costs.

When a guide states a rate, fee, or rule, it names the statute or rule behind it, with a link to the official text where one is available. Where a practice is a local custom rather than a law, such as which party customarily pays for the owner's title policy in a county, the guide says so.

How calculator figures are labeled

Each line in the closing cost calculator carries a label that shows where the figure comes from:

• Statute: set by Florida law, such as documentary stamp tax and the intangible tax.
• Florida rule: set by state rule, such as promulgated title insurance premiums.
• Customary: based on common practice in the county, such as which party usually pays a cost. Your contract can change this.
• Estimate: a typical figure or your own entry for items that vary by company, lender, or transaction.

Calculator results are estimates. Actual costs vary, and your Closing Disclosure or settlement statement shows your real figures.

Dates

Each guide shows the date it was published. A "Last updated" date appears only when a guide has been changed after its publication date. We do not add "Last reviewed" dates unless a real, substantive review of the guide took place.

Neutrality and independence

• We do not rank or rate title companies, lenders, real estate agents, or other providers.
• No company pays for placement in guides or in the title company directory.
• The site currently has no sponsored content. If that changes, sponsored content will be clearly labeled where it appears.
• Florida Closing Guide is created by Title & Key, a Florida title agency. See Disclosures for details.

Corrections

If you find an error, email fcg@titleandkey.com. We review each report. When we correct a factual error in a guide, we update the guide and add a short note at the end describing what changed and when.

Comments and contact

The site does not have reader comments. To ask a question, suggest a topic, or report a problem, email fcg@titleandkey.com.