What's Inside the Florida CRE Closing Cost Stack
Florida commercial real estate closings carry a specific cost stack that combines state-imposed transaction taxes (which most out-of-state participants underestimate), Florida-promulgated title insurance, and the standard institutional due diligence package. The calculator above models the full stack across both sides of the transaction.
Seller-Side Costs
- Deed Documentary Stamp Tax — $0.70 per $100 of purchase price (statewide for commercial). See the FL doc stamp guide.
- Owner Title Insurance Premium — Florida promulgated rate, tiered from $5.75 per $1,000 (sub-$100K) down to $2.00 per $1,000 (over $10M). Per Florida custom the seller pays, but this is negotiable.
- Title Search & Examination — typically $500-$2,500 depending on complexity.
- Listing Brokerage — if applicable, percentage of sale price.
- Estoppels, HOA, CDD payoffs — variable.
Buyer-Side Costs (Financed Acquisition)
- Mortgage Documentary Stamp Tax — $0.35 per $100 of new loan amount.
- Florida Intangible Tax — $0.002 per dollar ($2 per $1,000) of loan amount. Florida-specific. See the FL intangible tax guide.
- Lender Fees — origination (often 0.5-1.5% of loan), processing, underwriting, lender legal.
- Due Diligence Package — MAI commercial appraisal, Phase I environmental, property condition assessment, ALTA survey, lease audit. All scale with deal size.
- Real Estate Attorney — buyer-side legal.
- Title Endorsements — ALTA bundle (typically including 9, 22, 28).
- Recording Fees — Florida state-set ($10 first page + $8.50 each additional).
- Escrow / Prepaid — insurance prepaid, tax proration, interest reserve as required by lender.
- Interest Rate Cap — required on most floating-rate bridge financing. See the interest rate cap guide.
Florida-Specific Considerations
Florida documentary stamp tax + intangible tax alone run roughly 1.0-1.1% of combined transaction value on a financed acquisition — and the residential $2,450 intangible tax cap does not apply to commercial loans. For larger deals these state taxes are a meaningful underwriting line item that out-of-state sponsors and lenders frequently miss.
Title insurance follows Florida's state-promulgated rate structure, which is meaningfully different from the title insurance markets in other states. Per-thousand rates decline as insured value rises, but the absolute premium on large transactions is still material.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are typical closing costs on a Florida commercial real estate transaction?
Florida CRE closing costs typically run 2-5% of the combined transaction value when buyer and seller costs are combined. The seller side is dominated by deed documentary stamp tax ($0.70/$100 of price) and owner title insurance at the Florida promulgated rate. The buyer side includes mortgage documentary stamp tax ($0.35/$100 of loan), Florida intangible tax ($0.002/$1 of loan), lender origination, MAI appraisal, Phase I environmental, property condition assessment, ALTA survey, attorney fees, and recording. Combined Florida-specific transaction taxes (doc stamps + intangible) alone run roughly 1.0-1.1% of combined transaction value on a financed acquisition.
Who pays what at a Florida commercial closing — buyer or seller?
Florida custom (negotiable): the seller pays the deed documentary stamp tax, the owner title insurance premium, title search/exam, and seller-side brokerage. The buyer pays the mortgage documentary stamp tax, Florida intangible tax, lender fees, all due diligence (appraisal, Phase I, PCA, survey, attorney), title endorsements, and recording. On structured transactions, allocation is part of the broader negotiated economics.
How is Florida title insurance calculated on a commercial property?
Florida title insurance is calculated at the state-promulgated rate (Rule 69O-186): $5.75 per $1,000 up to $100,000; $5.00 per $1,000 from $100,000 to $1,000,000; $2.50 per $1,000 from $1M to $5M; $2.25 per $1,000 from $5M to $10M; and $2.00 per $1,000 above $10M. The rate is tiered — each tier applies only to the portion of insured value within that bracket. On a $5,000,000 commercial property, the base title insurance premium is approximately $15,575.
What due diligence costs apply on a Florida commercial acquisition?
Typical Florida CRE buyer due diligence costs (which scale with deal size): MAI commercial appraisal $3,500-$15,000+, Phase I environmental site assessment $2,500-$6,000, property condition assessment $3,500-$10,000, ALTA/NSPS survey $2,000-$8,000+, real estate attorney $3,500-$15,000+, lease audit / rent roll verification $2,500-$8,000. Larger and more complex deals push toward the high end of each range.
Does Miami-Dade County have different doc stamp rates than the rest of Florida?
Miami-Dade is the only Florida county with a different rate — but the difference applies only to single-family residential transfers, which pay $0.60 per $100 plus a $0.45 per $100 surtax. Commercial real estate transactions in Miami-Dade pay the same $0.70 per $100 deed doc stamp as the rest of Florida. The Miami-Dade rate split affects only residential transactions.
How much should I budget for closing costs on a $5 million Florida CRE acquisition?
For a typical $5 million Florida commercial real estate acquisition with a $3.5 million loan and full institutional due diligence: seller costs typically run $50,000-$60,000 (deed stamps + title + search + estoppels), and buyer costs typically run $60,000-$80,000 (mortgage stamps + intangible + lender fees + DD package + attorney + recording). Combined closing costs typically run 2.5-3.0% of the transaction value. Use the calculator above to model your specific deal.