A survey announced today indicates borrowers in The Empire State pay the highest closing costs, while residents of The Equality State pay the lowest.

Bankrate Inc. announced the results of its new Closing Cost Survey, which compared average closing costs in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

"This "new data further evens the playing field, allowing consumers to comparison shop the whole deal, not just the rates," said Daniel P. Ray, Bankrate.com editor in chief, in the announcement.

The survey, which presents averages for 21 fees typically charged at closing and consists of responses from nine to 15 lenders in each state, showed that the "biggest differences among states came from the varying costs for title insurance, fees for settlement services and title searches," Bankrate said. While the origination costs differed from lender to lender, they did not vary much from state to state.

In estimating the closing costs on a $180,000 single-family home loan to a borrower with excellent credit history and downpayment of at least 20 percent, New York charges an average of $3,907 -- the highest average in the nation.

The second highest closing fees are reportedly paid by borrowers in Hawaii, who can expect to pay an average $3,628, and with $8 less than that, Alaskans pay the third largest amount, according to the announcement.

Florida's average closing costs of $3,196 were the fifth largest, Pennsylvania's $3,033 came in seventh, followed by California's $3,022, and the 10th highest were Ohio's $2,990, Bankrate reported.

Illinois was listed as the state with the 40th highest average at $2,533.

Wyoming borrowers can expect to pay $2,101 -- the lowest average in the nation -- which is preceded by South Dakota's $2,251 and Kansas' $2256, Bankrate said.