What happens at a Texas real estate closing?

At a Texas closing the title company acts as escrow agent. The parties sign the deed, note and closing disclosure, the buyer wires funds, the lender funds the loan, and the title company records the deed. Signing is not closing — the deal closes when it funds and records. No attorney is required.

The title company runs it

In Texas, residential closings happen at a title company, and the title company does the work that in some other states falls to an attorney. It serves as escrow agent, runs the title search, issues the title commitment and then the title policy, prepares the closing documents, collects and disburses funds, and records the deed.

Hiring an attorney is optional, not required. Nothing about a Texas residential closing depends on one being present.

The title company is neutral. It represents neither buyer nor seller. It cannot give either side legal advice and it cannot decide a dispute between them — which is exactly why escrowed earnest money cannot be released without mutual agreement or a court order.

Before the signing appointment

The closing is the last step of a chain that has been running since the effective date.

The title company opens the file and orders the title search, then issues the title commitment — which lists what the policy will cover, what it excepts, and what has to be cleared before it will insure.

That has a deadline. Paragraph 6B of the contract requires the seller to furnish the commitment "within 20 days after the Title Company receives a copy of this contract," along with legible copies of the exception documents at the buyer's expense. If it is not delivered in time, delivery is "automatically extended up to 15 days or 3 days before the Closing Date, whichever is earlier." If it still has not arrived, "Buyer may terminate this contract and the earnest money will be refunded to Buyer" (TREC form 20-19, ¶6B).

Once it arrives, the buyer's objection clock under ¶6D starts. Objections are due by the earlier of the closing date or a stated number of days after receiving the commitment, exception documents and survey, and failure to object in time "will constitute a waiver" of the right, except as to the Schedule C requirements. If the seller does not cure timely objections within the 15-day cure period, the buyer has 5 days after that period ends to terminate with earnest money refunded, or waive.

Liens get payoff statements ordered. Tax certificates get pulled. The survey question gets resolved under ¶6C — either the seller's existing survey plus a T-47 Affidavit or T-47.1 Declaration is accepted, or a new survey is ordered (TDI T-47). The HOA is contacted for the resale certificate and transfer amounts if there is one.

On the lender's side, underwriting finishes, the appraisal comes in, and the loan gets a clear to close. The lender issues the Closing Disclosure, which itemizes the final loan terms and costs and must reach the borrower in advance of consummation under federal rules — your lender will tell you the exact timing for your loan.

The buyer's side has its own tasks: homeowner's insurance bound and the binder delivered to the lender, the wire set up, a government-issued photo ID ready, and the final walkthrough scheduled.

Any one of these can move the closing date. The one that moves it most often is the lender.

What gets signed

The stack varies with the loan, but the core documents are consistent.

Seller signs

The deed conveying title to the buyer
The settlement statement
Affidavits required by the title company, which may include a T-47 or T-47.1 and a no-lien affidavit
Tax and identity forms, including IRS reporting forms where applicable
Any FIRPTA-related certification

Buyer signs

The promissory note — the promise to repay
The deed of trust — the lien securing the note against the property
The Closing Disclosure
The settlement statement
Loan affidavits and disclosures, occupancy certification, and the tax authorization forms

A deed and a deed of trust require notarization. Whoever is signing has to have valid identification and has to be present, physically or by an accepted remote method the title company offers.

Sellers and buyers frequently sign separately, hours or days apart. There is no requirement that everyone sit at the same table, and on many transactions nobody does.

Signing is not closing

This is the single most misunderstood part of a Texas closing, and it is where people get caught.

Signing is the buyer and seller executing documents. Closing is when the transaction funds and records. The deal is not done when the pen goes down.

The sequence after signing:

The title company confirms it has every required item — all signatures, the buyer's funds, the seller's payoff figures, the lender's loan package.
The lender reviews the executed package and funds — wires the loan proceeds.
The title company records the deed and the deed of trust with the county clerk in the county where the property sits. For Boerne that is Kendall County, not Bexar County.
Only then does the title company disburse — payoff to the existing lender, proceeds to the seller, commissions, the county's recording fees, and any credits.

Funds are not disbursed and documents are not recorded until all required items are received. A missing signature page, a payoff that arrived short, a wire that has not landed, or a lender that did not release funding will hold everything. The file sits signed and unclosed.

This is why the answer to "can I get the keys right after I sign?" is no. Possession transfers at closing and funding, per the contract, unless the parties agreed otherwise in writing — a temporary residential lease, for instance, using the promulgated forms 15-7 or 16-7 (TREC contract forms).

It is also why Friday afternoon closings are structurally risky. If anything stalls after signing, the title company and the lender are closed until Monday and the money sits in limbo across the weekend.

Money movement

The buyer wires. Large closing funds come by wire, not by personal check. Confirm wire instructions by calling the title company at a number you looked up independently — never from the email containing the instructions. Wire fraud in real estate closings is a persistent, active problem, and a wire sent to a fraudulent account is generally not recoverable.

Prorations settle. Paragraph 13 governs, and it is worth reading in full: "Taxes for the current year, interest, rents, and regular periodic maintenance fees, assessments, and dues (including prepaid items) will be prorated through the Closing Date. The tax proration may be calculated taking into consideration any change in exemptions that will affect the current year's taxes. If taxes for the current year vary from the amount prorated at closing, the parties shall adjust the prorations when tax statements for the current year are available. If taxes are not paid at or prior to closing, Buyer shall pay taxes for the current year" (TREC form 20-19, ¶13).

Two consequences people miss. The tax number on your settlement statement is an estimate — the parties shall adjust once the real statements come out, which can mean a check months after closing. And if the property's exemptions are changing, the proration may be computed with that in mind, so a seller's homestead or over-65 exemption does not automatically follow the property to the buyer.

Expenses split per ¶12. Paragraph 12A(1) assigns the seller lien releases with prepayment penalties and recording fees, release of seller's loan liability, tax statements or certificates, preparation of deed, and one-half of the escrow fee. Paragraph 12A(2) assigns the buyer the loan costs, the loan title policy with lender endorsements, one-half of the escrow fee, prepaid flood and hazard insurance premiums and reserves, and PMI, the VA Loan Funding Fee or FHA MIP as required by the lender (TREC form 20-19, ¶12).

Brokerage compensation is separate. Paragraph 12B: "Brokerage compensation is not set by law and is fully negotiable," and each party pays their own broker under separate written agreements.

The option fee shows as a credit. Paragraph 5A(4): "The option fee will be credited to the Sales Price at closing." Earnest money is credited to the buyer as well.

The seller nets. Payoff, compensation and seller-side costs come off the sales price, and the remainder is wired or issued to the seller after funding.

If the house burns down before closing

Paragraph 14, CASUALTY LOSS, covers damage by fire or other casualty after the effective date. The seller must restore the property "as soon as reasonably possible, but in any event by the Closing Date."

If the seller cannot, due to factors beyond the seller's control, the buyer has three options (TREC form 20-19, ¶14):

Terminate and have the earnest money refunded.
Extend the time for performance up to 15 days, with the closing date extended as necessary.
Accept the property in its damaged condition with an assignment of insurance proceeds, if the carrier permits — plus a credit from the seller at closing in the amount of the deductible.

Option three is the one worth knowing about. A buyer taking the insurance proceeds is not also stuck eating the seller's deductible; the contract makes the seller credit it. That single clause can be worth a few thousand dollars on a hail claim, and it is routinely forgotten in Hill Country storm season.

The title policy

The owner's title policy is issued after closing. It insures the buyer's title against covered defects — liens, undisclosed heirs, forgery, errors in the public record, and, if the survey exception was amended, matters a survey would disclose.

Texas title insurance premium rates are promulgated by the Texas Department of Insurance, so the premium for a given policy amount is identical at every title company in the state. The current schedule is "Texas Title Insurance Premium Rates, Rates Effective March 1, 2026" (TDI, rate table). Which title company you use changes the service and the escrow fee, not the premium.

When you do want an attorney

The contract says so itself. Paragraph 6E(1): "Broker advises Buyer to have an abstract of title covering the Property examined by an attorney of Buyer's selection, or Buyer should be furnished with or obtain a Title Policy. If a Title Policy is furnished, the Commitment should be promptly reviewed by an attorney of Buyer's choice due to the time limitations on Buyer's right to object" (TREC form 20-19, ¶6E(1)).

And Paragraph 23 is titled CONSULT AN ATTORNEY BEFORE SIGNING: "TREC rules prohibit real estate brokers and sales agents from giving legal advice. READ THIS CONTRACT CAREFULLY." The form provides printed fields for the buyer's attorney and the seller's attorney.

The title company is neutral and does not advise either side. If the transaction involves a title defect the commitment flagged, a probate or estate sale, an entity or trust taking title, a boundary dispute, a deed restriction question, community property or a divorce decree, or custom contract language, a Texas real estate attorney is the right person — and specifically during the ¶6D objection window, not at the closing table.

Questions about a specific property?

Call or text 830-446-3847 · Email heath.shepard@kw.com

This page describes the mechanics of a Texas residential closing. It is not legal advice. For title defects, estates, entity purchases or contract language, talk with a Texas real estate attorney.