Here’s the deal, the whole home-buying process boils down to this: you pay money and the seller get money. So no matter what everyone else says, you and the seller both pay for everything. Sometimes you’ll hear that the seller pays for the buyers agent… yeah, but that’s kind of like saying that you don’t pay for the County judge, taxes do.
There is no set way for real estate transactions to happen, most very part is negotiable, but below is a very typical way.
The seller will pay his listing agent a fee (usually around 6% of the purchase price). The seller’s agent, usually, will then pay your agent a fee (usually 1/2 of the fee they received, or 3% of the purchase price).
Professional fees, like an appraisal and any inspections you do, you will usually pay for. Inspections will usually be paid for at the time you receive the service. The appraisal will usually be rolled into the closing balance sheet.
There will be a whole mess of other fees that are part of closing. Some you can shop for or negotiate and some you cannot. When you get pre-approved, you will get a loan estimate form. This is a standardized form and will allow you to compare all these costs among various mortgages.