Middlesex County closing costs
The county-specific transfer tax and deed recording fees for Middlesex County, Massachusetts - the local details that change your total beyond the statewide rate.
- Effective transfer tax
- 0.46%
- ≈ $1,824 on a $400,000 home
- Typical lender + 3rd-party fees
- $5,189
- median of 10,030 purchase loans · HMDA 2023
Middlesex County compared with Massachusetts counties
In the verified Massachusetts county records we have, Middlesex County's effective transfer-tax rate ranks #1 of 1 by highest rate. At $400,000, the county-specific transfer tax is $1,824, which is the same as the state-level calculation before city surtaxes.
- County rank
- #1 of 1
- within verified Massachusetts county pages
- Tax at $400,000
- $1,824
- state baseline $1,824
- HMDA fee sample
- 10,030
- purchase loans in 2023
Middlesex County transfer-tax data: official source linked on this page, reviewed 2026-Q2.
Transfer tax in Middlesex County
No county-level transfer tax: Massachusetts levies a state deed excise tax of $2.28 per $500 (0.456% of price) on all counties except Barnstable; Middlesex uses the standard 0.456% rate, customarily paid by the SELLER. No municipality in Middlesex County (including Cambridge, Somerville, Newton, Lowell) currently has an enacted local transfer fee, though Cambridge, Somerville, and others have passed home rule petitions seeking a future fee (up to ~1-2% on high-value/investor sales) — all still pending and not yet approved by the Massachusetts Legislature as of mid-2026. Middlesex County is split into two recording districts: Middlesex South Registry (Cambridge) and Middlesex North Registry (Lowell), depending on the town.
Recording fees in Middlesex County
Massachusetts recording fees are flat, per-document amounts set statewide by the Secretary of the Commonwealth (no first-page/per-additional-page structure for deeds), and apply uniformly at both Middlesex registries (South and North): Deed = $155; Mortgage = $205; Declaration of Homestead = $35; Municipal Lien Certificate = $80; all other documents = $105. All surcharges are already bundled into these flat amounts. (Norfolk and some registries quote $1 higher, e.g. deed $156, reflecting an included $1 mailing cost; the statewide base used by Middlesex is $155.)
Official recorder: Middlesex County recorder ↗ — the authoritative source for the current recording fee schedule.
What lenders actually charge in Middlesex County
Across 10,030 home-purchase mortgages originated in Middlesex County in 2023, the median total loan costs — lender fees plus third-party services such as appraisal and title, excluding prepaids and escrow — were $5,189, of which about $1,440 was the lender’s own origination charges. That is reported loan-level data from every lender under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act — not a national average — so it reflects what buyers in this county actually paid. Lender fees vary widely, so comparing a few rate quotes is the single biggest lever on your closing total.
Source: FFIEC HMDA Data Browser ↗ (2023 purchase originations, FIPS 25017, ODC-BY 1.0). Median total loan costs exclude prepaids and escrow.
Estimate your Middlesex County closing costs
Pre-set to Massachusetts. County-level taxes above may add to this estimate.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the transfer tax in Middlesex County?
Middlesex County (Massachusetts): the applicable real-estate transfer tax works out to about 0.46%. No county-level transfer tax: Massachusetts levies a state deed excise tax of $2.28 per $500 (0.456% of price) on all counties except Barnstable; Middlesex uses the standard 0.456% rate, customarily paid by the SELLER. No municipality in Middlesex County (including Cambridge, Somerville, Newton, Lowell) currently has an enacted local transfer fee, though Cambridge, Somerville, and others have passed home rule petitions seeking a future fee (up to ~1-2% on high-value/investor sales) — all still pending and not yet approved by the Massachusetts Legislature as of mid-2026. Middlesex County is split into two recording districts: Middlesex South Registry (Cambridge) and Middlesex North Registry (Lowell), depending on the town.
What are recording fees in Middlesex County?
Massachusetts recording fees are flat, per-document amounts set statewide by the Secretary of the Commonwealth (no first-page/per-additional-page structure for deeds), and apply uniformly at both Middlesex registries (South and North): Deed = $155; Mortgage = $205; Declaration of Homestead = $35; Municipal Lien Certificate = $80; all other documents = $105. All surcharges are already bundled into these flat amounts. (Norfolk and some registries quote $1 higher, e.g. deed $156, reflecting an included $1 mailing cost; the statewide base used by Middlesex is $155.)
How much are closing costs in Middlesex County?
Closing costs in Middlesex County follow Massachusetts's structure plus this county's specific transfer-tax and recording fees. Use the calculator below for an estimate; for the exact recording schedule, the county recorder is the authoritative source.
What do lenders charge in fees in Middlesex County?
In 2023, the median total loan costs — lender fees plus third-party services like appraisal and title, excluding prepaids and escrow — across 10,030 home-purchase mortgages in Middlesex County were about $5,189, of which roughly $1,440 was the lender's own origination charges. This is reported loan-level data under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act; actual fees vary by lender, so comparing quotes matters.