New York State Ranks #1 Highest Mortgage Closing Costs in the US for the Third Straight Year

Bankrate Releases 2007 National Closing Cost Survey

 Bankrate, Inc. (NASDAQ:RATE) announced today that New York State is the most expensive location in the country to close a mortgage transaction. The average closing cost in New York is $3,830, compared to Indiana (least expensive state) at $2,339. The survey compared the costs of lender fees, title fees and settlement fees in 51 geographic locations. Included in the study is a detailed listing of average closing fees by state, and a printable worksheet for consumers to compare average costs to their lenders` fees. To view the survey, go to www.bankrate.com/closingcosts.

"Consumers armed with information can make better deals," said Holden Lewis, senior reporter at Bankrate.com. "Many fees are fixed costs, but others are negotiable. Doing homework can save consumers money in the end," Mr. Lewis added. The Bankrate survey includes tips and advice on saving money on closing costs.

Bankrate`s Closing Cost Survey was conducted in June of 2007 by obtaining four to nine good faith estimates from the Web sites of online lenders. Researchers picked a ZIP code in some of the largest cities in each state and requested information on the closing costs for at $200,000 loan. They requested fees on a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage for a borrower with a 20 percent down payment and good credit to buy a single-family house. Bankrate`s survey includes lenders` origination fees and title and settlement fees, and not taxes or prepaid items.

                                                            2007
                                                           Closing
  2007 Rank          2006 Rank        State                 Costs

     1                   1            New York             $3,830
     2                   2            Texas                $3,413
     3                   5            Florida              $3,175
     4                  12            Pennsylvania         $3,169
     5                   4            Ohio                 $3,047
     6                   3            Hawaii               $3,008
     7                  13            New Jersey           $2,996
     8                  11            Oklahoma             $2,978
     9                   8            New Mexico           $2,922
    10                  25            Delaware             $2,904
    11                   6            Connecticut          $2,858
    12                  14            Massachusetts        $2,849
    13                  18            Louisiana            $2,844
    14                  16            Mississippi          $2,836
    15                  21            Tennessee            $2,832
    16                   7            Alaska               $2,811
    17                  17            Calif. - LA          $2,779
    18                  27*           Rhode Island         $2,768
    19                  38            Maryland             $2,755
    20                  32*           Virginia             $2,727
    21                  49            New Hampshire        $2,724
    22                  46*           District of Columbia $2,722
    23                  36            North Dakota         $2,719
    24                  23*           Colorado             $2,705
    25                  50            Michigan             $2,694
    26                  30            Minnesota            $2,692
    27                  41            West Virginia        $2,692
    28                  35            Arkansas             $2,687
    29                  27*           Maine                $2,671
    30                  29            Vermont              $2,666
    31                  20            Georgia              $2,655
    32                  32*           Utah                 $2,646
    33                  19            Idaho                $2,627
    34                  48            Montana              $2,619
    35                   9            Kentucky             $2,602
    36                  40            Iowa                 $2,583
    37                  23*           South Carolina       $2,558
    38                  37            Washington           $2,555
    39                  10            Alabama              $2,552
    40                  42            South Dakota         $2,532
    41                  15            Oregon               $2,532
    42                  44            Kansas               $2,521
    43                  39            Nebraska             $2,515
    44                  26            Wisconsin            $2,508
    45                  51            Missouri             $2,496
    46                  45            Arizona              $2,489
    47                  34            North Carolina       $2,487
    48                  22            Nevada               $2,467
    49                  31            Illinois             $2,401
    50                  46*           Wyoming              $2,390
    51                  43            Indiana              $2,339

  About Bankrate, Inc.

Bankrate, Inc. (NASDAQ:RATE) ("Bankrate") owns and operates Bankrate.com, a leading Internet consumer banking marketplace. Bankrate.com is a destination site of personal finance channels, including banking, investing, taxes, debt management and college finance. Bankrate is the leading aggregator of more than 300 financial products, including mortgages, credit cards, new and used auto loans, money market accounts and CDs, checking and ATM fees, home equity loans and online banking fees. Bankrate reviews more than 4,800 financial institutions in 575 markets in 50 states. In 2006, Bankrate.com had nearly 53 million unique visitors. Bankrate provides financial applications and information to a network of more than 75 partners, including Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) , America Online (NYSE:TWX) , The Wall Street Journal (NYSE:DJ) and The New York Times (NYSE:NYT) . Bankrate`s information is also distributed through more than 400 national and state publications. In addition to Bankrate.com, Bankrate also owns and operates Bankrate Select, an Internet lead aggregator, Mortgage-calc.com, which provides consumers with financial calculators, and Mortgage Market Information Services, Inc. and Interest.com, Inc., each of which publishes mortgage guides and financial rates and information.

  For more information contact:

  Kayleen J. Keneally
  Senior Director, Corporate Communications
  kkeneally@bankrate.com
  (917) 368-8677

CONTACT: Kayleen J. Keneally, Senior Director, Corporate Communications
of ankrate, Inc., +1-917-368-8677, kkeneally@bankrate.com

Source: Bankrate, Inc.

Web site: http://www.bankrate.com/