Your closing appointment: what to bring, what you sign and when the house is yours

What the appointment is, in a few sentences

At a closing appointment you review and sign the documents that transfer the property and, if there is a loan, the loan package; bring a valid government-issued photo ID, and make sure your funds have been sent and confirmed the way your escrow officer instructed. Sellers sign the deed and the documents needed to clear title; buyers sign the loan documents and the settlement statement. The house does not change hands at the moment you sign. That happens when the transaction funds and the deed is recorded.

We at Capital Title hold closings at our office at Preston and Lovers in Dallas, and the appointments that go smoothly have one thing in common: the work was done before anyone sat down. This guide covers what should be finished beforehand, what to bring, what happens in the room and what happens after.

The days before: what should already be settled

If you are borrowing, your lender must deliver your Closing Disclosure at least three business days before closing, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. That window exists so you can compare the final terms and costs with your Loan Estimate and ask questions. Use it. The appointment is the wrong place to discover that your rate or cash to close is not what you expected.

In those same days, confirm your homeowners insurance is bound and the lender has the proof, finish your final walkthrough, and confirm with your escrow officer exactly how and when your funds should arrive. Call to verify wiring instructions using a phone number you already have, never one from an email. My guide on avoiding wire fraud with closing funds explains why this one phone call matters more than anything else on this list.

Do the final walkthrough as close to closing as you can, ideally the day before or that morning. Check that agreed repairs were made, that the appliances and fixtures in the contract are still there, and that nothing has been damaged during the seller's move. Problems found at the walkthrough are far easier to resolve before signing than after funding.

What to bring with you

Every escrow officer will tell you their own requirements, so treat this as a starting point and confirm with yours a day or two ahead.

Names cause more delays than anything else on this list. If you have married, divorced or simply use a middle name differently from one document to the next, tell your escrow officer before closing so the documents can be prepared correctly. If you are buying through a trust or a company, the trust or entity documents need to be reviewed in advance, not handed over at the table.

• A current, valid government-issued photo ID for every person signing, with the name matching how it appears on the documents
• Confirmation that your wire has been sent, or other funds in the form your escrow officer approved
• Your Closing Disclosure or the latest figures, so you can check them against the documents
• Keys, garage remotes, gate codes and alarm information if you are the seller
• Any trust, power of attorney or entity documents your escrow officer asked for in advance
• Reading glasses and enough time; rushing is how mistakes get signed

Who signs what

Buyers and sellers often sign at separate appointments, and the stacks look different. Under the standard TREC resale contract, the seller delivers a general warranty deed and tax statements or certificates showing no delinquent taxes, and the buyer pays the sales price in good funds acceptable to the escrow agent. Both sides sign the notices, affidavits and other documents reasonably needed for the closing and the title policy.

Sellers usually want to know how they will be paid. Your proceeds are disbursed after funding according to instructions you give your escrow officer ahead of time, and those instructions should be confirmed by phone, never changed by email. If you have a mortgage, its payoff comes out of your proceeds first, along with the other seller charges on the statement.

• Seller: the general warranty deed, the settlement statement, affidavits the title company requires, and payoff authorizations
• Buyer with a loan: the promissory note, the deed of trust, the Closing Disclosure and the lender's other required forms
• Both: the settlement statement, plus any tax, HOA or survey documents the file needs
• Spouses: in some cases a spouse who is not on title still has to sign, especially when the property is a homestead

Signing is not the same as owning

After a buyer with a loan signs, the documents go back to the lender for review. When the lender is satisfied, it releases its funds to the title company. That step is called funding. Only when every dollar on the settlement statement is in our escrow account do we disburse: paying off the seller's loan, paying the agents, the taxes and the other charges, and sending the seller's proceeds.

Then we record the deed and the lender's deed of trust with the county. Funding and recording, not the signatures, are what complete the transfer. Cash purchases move faster because there is no lender review, but the sequence is the same. Your escrow officer will tell you when your file has funded, and that is when keys typically change hands, subject to the possession terms in your contract.

When someone cannot be in the room

People travel, get sick and live in other cities. All of that is manageable with notice. Signings can happen at another title office or with a mobile notary, and a power of attorney can work if the lender and title company approve it in advance. Tell your escrow officer at least a week out, not the morning of closing.

Be aware that the Texas Department of Insurance warns about seller impersonation fraud and lists a seller who will not appear for closing, or who insists on their own remote notary, among the red flags. That is why title companies ask questions when a seller cannot be present. It is not personal; it is how we protect the buyer and the true owner.

If a power of attorney is part of your plan, send it to your escrow officer early. The lender and the title company both need to review it, and it may need to be recorded with the deed. A power of attorney that arrives on closing day, or one that is too general for a real estate transaction, can delay everything.

How long it takes and who is in the room

A typical signing is your escrow officer or a closer, the buyers or sellers, and often their agents. Many sellers sign separately and earlier. The length depends mostly on the loan package and on how many questions you bring, and both are fine. Your escrow officer can explain what each title and settlement document does, but questions about loan terms belong to your lender, and legal questions belong to your attorney.

If something on the statement looks wrong, say so before you sign. Every line should trace back to the contract, the lender or a recorded document. My guide on what drives title and closing costs can help you read the statement ahead of time.

Small things make a signing smoother. Arrive a few minutes early, bring the people who need to sign rather than planning for them to stop by later, and silence your phone. If you are bringing children, bring something for them to do. None of this is formal; it simply gives you the attention to read what you are signing.

Moving day, keys and possession

Possession is set by the contract, not by the title company, and it is usually tied to closing and funding. If you are the seller and need a few days after closing, that needs a written agreement, typically a lease addendum, before closing day.

If you are buying and selling at the same time, your two closings may not line up perfectly, and that is common. A Dallas mover's guide on what to do when your closing dates do not line up covers storage and timing options so the last-minute logistics do not land on your closing appointment.

Utilities are the other piece people forget. Buyers should arrange to transfer electricity, water, gas and internet into their names effective on the possession date, and sellers should schedule their final readings for the same day. Change the locks or rekey soon after you move in, because you never know how many copies of the old keys exist.

After the signatures

Once the deed is recorded, the property is officially yours in the public record. The owner's title policy, if you bought one, is effective from closing, although TDI notes you will not receive the paper copy until roughly 30 days later. Keep it with your deed and closing documents.

The recorded deed comes back from the county after closing. Keep it with the settlement statement, the survey and your loan documents in one folder, because you will want all of them the next time you refinance or sell. If anything about the property or your name changes in the meantime, those papers are where the story starts.

If you are under contract and want to talk through your own closing, call our office at Preston and Lovers, open weekdays 8:30 to 5. We will confirm what to bring, how your funds should arrive and whether you and the other party will sign together or separately.

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