Butler County closing costs
The county-specific transfer tax and deed recording fees for Butler County, Ohio - the local details that change your total beyond the statewide rate.
- Effective transfer tax
- 0.2%
- ≈ $800 on a $400,000 home
- Typical lender + 3rd-party fees
- $5,021
- median of 3,679 purchase loans · HMDA 2023
Butler County compared with Ohio counties
In the verified Ohio county records we have, Butler County's effective transfer-tax rate ranks #7 of 9 by highest rate. At $400,000, the county-specific transfer tax is $800, which is $400 above the state-level calculation before city surtaxes.
- County rank
- #7 of 9
- within verified Ohio county pages
- Tax at $400,000
- $800
- state baseline $400
- HMDA fee sample
- 3,679
- purchase loans in 2023
Butler County transfer-tax data: official source linked on this page, reviewed 2026-Q2.
Transfer tax in Butler County
RATE BREAKDOWN: Butler County total conveyance fee = $3.00 per $1,000 of sale price ($0.30 per $100, rounded up to next $100). Of this, Ohio's mandatory STATE conveyance fee is $1/$1,000 (0.001); the COUNTY permissive portion on top of the state fee is $2/$1,000 = 0.002 (the value reported in county_transfer_tax_rate). Plus a $0.50 per-parcel transfer fee. Butler's permissive rate is below the Ohio max ($3/$1,000), so its total ($3/$1,000) is lower than the more common $4/$1,000 in many OH counties. WHO PAYS: Ohio conveyance fee is customarily paid by the SELLER. PROCESS: The Auditor stamps the deed with the transfer/conveyance stamp before the Recorder will record it; recording fees (paid at recording) rose to $39 first two pages effective 1/1/2025 via SB 94 ($5 surcharge for document preservation/digitization). No municipal transfer tax exists for Butler County cities (Hamilton, Middletown, Fairfield, West Chester).
Recording fees in Butler County
Deed/document recording (effective Jan 1, 2025 per SB 94, ORC 317.32): $39.00 for the first two pages, $8.00 each additional page. Reference/marginal notation fees of $4.00 and standardization guidelines still apply. (Prior rate before 2025 was $34.00 first two pages.)
Official recorder: Butler County recorder ↗ — the authoritative source for the current recording fee schedule.
What lenders actually charge in Butler County
Across 3,679 home-purchase mortgages originated in Butler County in 2023, the median total loan costs — lender fees plus third-party services such as appraisal and title, excluding prepaids and escrow — were $5,021, of which about $2,134 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 39017, ODC-BY 1.0). Median total loan costs exclude prepaids and escrow.
Estimate your Butler County closing costs
Pre-set to Ohio. County-level taxes above may add to this estimate.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the transfer tax in Butler County?
Butler County (Ohio): the applicable real-estate transfer tax works out to about 0.2%. RATE BREAKDOWN: Butler County total conveyance fee = $3.00 per $1,000 of sale price ($0.30 per $100, rounded up to next $100). Of this, Ohio's mandatory STATE conveyance fee is $1/$1,000 (0.001); the COUNTY permissive portion on top of the state fee is $2/$1,000 = 0.002 (the value reported in county_transfer_tax_rate). Plus a $0.50 per-parcel transfer fee. Butler's permissive rate is below the Ohio max ($3/$1,000), so its total ($3/$1,000) is lower than the more common $4/$1,000 in many OH counties. WHO PAYS: Ohio conveyance fee is customarily paid by the SELLER. PROCESS: The Auditor stamps the deed with the transfer/conveyance stamp before the Recorder will record it; recording fees (paid at recording) rose to $39 first two pages effective 1/1/2025 via SB 94 ($5 surcharge for document preservation/digitization). No municipal transfer tax exists for Butler County cities (Hamilton, Middletown, Fairfield, West Chester).
What are recording fees in Butler County?
Deed/document recording (effective Jan 1, 2025 per SB 94, ORC 317.32): $39.00 for the first two pages, $8.00 each additional page. Reference/marginal notation fees of $4.00 and standardization guidelines still apply. (Prior rate before 2025 was $34.00 first two pages.)
How much are closing costs in Butler County?
Closing costs in Butler County follow Ohio'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 Butler County?
In 2023, the median total loan costs — lender fees plus third-party services like appraisal and title, excluding prepaids and escrow — across 3,679 home-purchase mortgages in Butler County were about $5,021, of which roughly $2,134 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.
Closest Ohio county comparisons
Sibling links are ordered by nearby verified effective transfer-tax rate, so each county page connects to genuinely comparable counties.