Arlington County closing costs
The county-specific transfer tax and deed recording fees for Arlington County, Virginia - 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
- $6,535
- median of 1,670 purchase loans · HMDA 2023
Arlington County compared with Virginia counties
In the verified Virginia county records we have, Arlington County's effective transfer-tax rate ranks #3 of 6 by highest rate. At $400,000, the county-specific transfer tax is $800, which is $200 below the state-level calculation before city surtaxes.
- County rank
- #3 of 6
- within verified Virginia county pages
- Tax at $400,000
- $800
- state baseline $1,000
- HMDA fee sample
- 1,670
- purchase loans in 2023
Arlington County transfer-tax data: official source linked on this page, reviewed 2026-Q2.
Transfer tax in Arlington County
Virginia's transfer/recordation taxes are set by state statute, not by an independent Arlington ordinance. The only true price-based seller (grantor) charge above the baseline state grantor tax is the Northern Virginia regional add-on: because Arlington County is a member of the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority (NVTA, Planning District 8), two state-mandated, grantor-paid fees apply at closing -- the WMATA Capital Fee of $0.10/$100 (Va. Code 58.1-802.3) and the Regional Congestion Relief Fee of $0.10/$100 (Va. Code 58.1-802.4), together = $0.20/$100 = 0.002 of price. That 0.002 is reported here (matching the encoding used for Prince William/Fairfax/Loudoun). Separately, the statewide state grantor tax is $0.50/$500 (0.10%) under 58.1-802, also seller-paid. The BUYER (grantee) customarily pays the state recordation tax of $0.25/$100 plus a local recordation tax of 1/3 of the state amount (58.1-814), plus clerk recording fees. By statute the grantor pays the regional fees and grantor tax, but grantor and grantee may contractually shift them. Arlington County contains no incorporated cities or towns, so there is no municipal/city transfer tax (city_transfer_tax_rate=null); the independent cities of Alexandria and Falls Church are separate jurisdictions with their own FIPS.
Recording fees in Arlington County
Clerk of Circuit Court recording fee (Arlington uses the uniform statewide statutory schedule, Va. Code 17.1-275): deeds $23.00 for 1-10 pages, $37.00 for 11-30 pages, $57.00 for 31+ pages (these document fees include the $3.50 State Library/Public Law Library fee and the $5.00 Technology Trust Fund fee under 17.1-279). Per-deed add-ons that generate a recordation tax: $20.00 Deed Processing Fee, plus the $1.00 transfer fee and $3.00 open-space preservation fee. eRecording/credit-card convenience surcharges may apply. Recordation taxes (separate from the clerk fee) are calculated via the Virginia Circuit Court Deed Calculation system (ccdeedcalc.courts.state.va.us). Source: Arlington Clerk of Circuit Court, Land Records Division (1425 N. Courthouse Rd., Suite 6200), with fee amounts per Va. Code 17.1-275.
Official recorder: Arlington County recorder ↗ — the authoritative source for the current recording fee schedule.
What lenders actually charge in Arlington County
Across 1,670 home-purchase mortgages originated in Arlington County in 2023, the median total loan costs — lender fees plus third-party services such as appraisal and title, excluding prepaids and escrow — were $6,535, of which about $2,270 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 51013, ODC-BY 1.0). Median total loan costs exclude prepaids and escrow.
Estimate your Arlington County closing costs
Pre-set to Virginia. County-level taxes above may add to this estimate.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the transfer tax in Arlington County?
Arlington County (Virginia): the applicable real-estate transfer tax works out to about 0.2%. Virginia's transfer/recordation taxes are set by state statute, not by an independent Arlington ordinance. The only true price-based seller (grantor) charge above the baseline state grantor tax is the Northern Virginia regional add-on: because Arlington County is a member of the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority (NVTA, Planning District 8), two state-mandated, grantor-paid fees apply at closing -- the WMATA Capital Fee of $0.10/$100 (Va. Code 58.1-802.3) and the Regional Congestion Relief Fee of $0.10/$100 (Va. Code 58.1-802.4), together = $0.20/$100 = 0.002 of price. That 0.002 is reported here (matching the encoding used for Prince William/Fairfax/Loudoun). Separately, the statewide state grantor tax is $0.50/$500 (0.10%) under 58.1-802, also seller-paid. The BUYER (grantee) customarily pays the state recordation tax of $0.25/$100 plus a local recordation tax of 1/3 of the state amount (58.1-814), plus clerk recording fees. By statute the grantor pays the regional fees and grantor tax, but grantor and grantee may contractually shift them. Arlington County contains no incorporated cities or towns, so there is no municipal/city transfer tax (city_transfer_tax_rate=null); the independent cities of Alexandria and Falls Church are separate jurisdictions with their own FIPS.
What are recording fees in Arlington County?
Clerk of Circuit Court recording fee (Arlington uses the uniform statewide statutory schedule, Va. Code 17.1-275): deeds $23.00 for 1-10 pages, $37.00 for 11-30 pages, $57.00 for 31+ pages (these document fees include the $3.50 State Library/Public Law Library fee and the $5.00 Technology Trust Fund fee under 17.1-279). Per-deed add-ons that generate a recordation tax: $20.00 Deed Processing Fee, plus the $1.00 transfer fee and $3.00 open-space preservation fee. eRecording/credit-card convenience surcharges may apply. Recordation taxes (separate from the clerk fee) are calculated via the Virginia Circuit Court Deed Calculation system (ccdeedcalc.courts.state.va.us). Source: Arlington Clerk of Circuit Court, Land Records Division (1425 N. Courthouse Rd., Suite 6200), with fee amounts per Va. Code 17.1-275.
How much are closing costs in Arlington County?
Closing costs in Arlington County follow Virginia'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 Arlington County?
In 2023, the median total loan costs — lender fees plus third-party services like appraisal and title, excluding prepaids and escrow — across 1,670 home-purchase mortgages in Arlington County were about $6,535, of which roughly $2,270 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 Virginia county comparisons
Sibling links are ordered by nearby verified effective transfer-tax rate, so each county page connects to genuinely comparable counties.