Mortgage closing costs may have gone down recently, which means good news for new buyers. As great news as this is, there are still ways to maximize the advantages you get from these low fees. Here are some ways for you to be able to pay less overall fees than other buyers would:
Share the closing costs
Here's a thought, why not ask the seller to pay a part of the closing costs? Most of the time, it is the buyer that is responsible for the entire closing costs - it is the industry standard agreement after all. But just because this is what we all have been used to, it doesn't mean that we should always stick to this idea. You can always negotiate with your seller and see if they are willing to help you with some of the closing costs. Take note that it is up to the seller to honor your request, which is why you can also add in an incentive in exchange for your request. You can tell them that they can choose the closing date, or you can accept their home as it is without demanding for repairs.
Use the saved cash for your annual fees
Lower closing costs should mean extra cash for you to save or spend. If you opt to save the money, the best way for you to take advantage of the lower closing costs is by using the extra cash to pay for your mortgage. Most lenders allow one lump sum per year without penalty. If you take advantage of this lender offer, you can save a bunch of cash from interest payments. So the idea here is that as you save on closing costs, you'll save even more money if you pay lump sums without interest. It's actually double the saving.
As a conclusion, you can always lower your expenses if you want to. Reducing the closing costs is easy if you negotiate with the seller properly, and lowering your entire mortgage fee is also possible if you take advantage of penalty-less lump sum payments. Talk to your agent to get more specific advice about mortgage payments and closing costs.