A sum of money paid towards estimated initial mortgage processing expenses such as appraisal and credit report.
Application fees are very common and are generally non-refundable.
Application fees are just one of the many initial out of pocket fees you may be expected to pay in a purchase. You should also be prepared to pay a deposit fee or earnest money deposit with the bid on a house, if you get a home inspection, radon test, pest inspection, appraisal, etc. you may be expected to pay the fee for those services up front as well.
Your application fee should be disclosed on the good faith estimate that you recieve after you have applied for your loan.
Often you can negotiate your application fees.
Application fees generally range anywhere in price from $200 to $1000.
Not all mortgage providers have application fees, check with your loan professional about their policy.