You're done when: The walkthrough is complete and anything found has been resolved in writing.
The final walkthrough is the buyer's last check before signing. They confirm the agreed repairs are done, the home is in the promised condition, and nothing changed during your move-out.
How to do it
- Have every agreed repair complete, with invoices and photos ready.
- Keep the utilities on through closing. Buyers test HVAC, water, and appliances during the walkthrough, and utilities off can be grounds to pause closing.
- Remove all your personal property except the items that convey.
- Dispose of rubbish, hazardous materials, and anything left in the attic, garage, or shed.
- Leave manuals, warranties, paint colors, and spare parts for the buyer.
- If the buyer flags something, take it seriously. The usual options are repair now, credit at closing, or an escrow holdback - and any change to the closing figures goes in writing to your closing team.
Worth knowing
- Broom-clean is the minimum standard in most purchase agreements.
- Damage that happened during your move-out - a scratched floor, a broken sconce - is fair game at the walkthrough. What counts as damage against normal wear gets negotiated.
- Set your utility and insurance cancellations for the day AFTER closing, so there is no gap for the buyer.
- Escrow holdbacks are a standard tool when timing is tight, except on FHA, VA, and USDA safety items.
- What it costs
- Free, unless something is found
- Where to check
- Your own walk-through of the empty house, before theirs
2Verify wire instructions by phone
You're done when: You have verified your wire delivery by phone, using a number you already trusted.
This is one of the most important steps of the whole sale. Criminals send fake wire instructions impersonating title companies, and one misdirected wire can take your entire proceeds. Losses hit $275 million in 2025 across 12,368 victims.
How to do it
- Call your title company or attorney on a phone number you looked up yourself. Not one from an email, and not a callback number in a message.
- Verbally verify your wire delivery instructions on the morning of closing.
- If the proceeds are coming to you, check with your own bank that they arrived the same day.
- Never act on emailed updated or corrected wire instructions without a phone check, however legitimate they look.
- If anything feels off, stop. There is no deadline worth this.
Worth knowing
- Fraudsters monitor real estate email threads for weeks and time the fake message carefully. Assume any email about money could be spoofed.
- If money is misdirected, call your bank's wire department immediately, then file at ic3.gov. The FBI's recovery team reports getting the money back in a little over half of the cases that reach it fast. This is measured in hours.
- Remind the buyer to phone-verify their own wire before sending funds. It is standard practice and it protects your closing too.
- What it costs
- Free
- Where to check
- A phone call to a number you looked up yourself, on the morning of closing
You're done when: You are at the closing with everything you need.
Turning up without the right identification, or missing something, delays a closing that everyone has spent weeks arranging.
How to do it
- Bring government-issued photo ID, unexpired. Everyone on title brings theirs.
- Bring every key, remote, garage-door opener, gate key, and access fob.
- Bring any documents your closing agent asked for.
- Bring your verified written wire instructions, if you are being paid by wire.
- Bring a pen, and expect to be there 60 to 90 minutes.
Worth knowing
- If you cannot attend, a mail-away closing or Remote Online Notarization are the usual alternatives.
- Everyone on title normally signs. If a co-owner cannot attend, arrange a Power of Attorney in advance rather than on the day.
- An expired driver's license is a genuine reason a closing gets postponed. Check it now.
- What it costs
- Free
- Where to check
- Your closing agent's own list of what to bring
You're done when: Every document is signed.
You are signing the deed, the settlement statement, and a set of affidavits. These are the documents that transfer ownership.
How to do it
- Present your ID and get started.
- Let the closing agent or attorney walk you through each document. Read what you are signing and ask questions.
- Sign the deed transferring ownership to the buyer.
- Sign the settlement statement, after checking your net matches the preliminary version you reviewed.
- Sign the affidavits - non-foreign status, no undisclosed liens, and other standard items.
Worth knowing
- If a number differs from what you expected, ask. Small errors get corrected on the spot; unasked questions do not.
- If a document is unfamiliar or unexpected, pause before signing and ask the closing professional or your attorney to explain it.
- Foreign sellers face FIRPTA withholding, standard 15% of the amount realized, dropping to 10% or waivable in specific cases.
- What it costs
- Closing costs are deducted from your proceeds
- Where to check
- The settlement statement, against the preliminary one you already reviewed
5Confirm funding and possession
You're done when: You have been paid and possession has transferred.
Signing and funding are separate steps. Confirm with the closing team when funding and recording are complete.
How to do it
- After signing, the buyer's lender wires funds to the title company, usually same day or next.
- The title company then disburses your proceeds per your instructions.
- Confirm by phone that the funds have reached your account, or that the check has been issued.
- Confirm possession timing per the contract - usually at funding on closing day, sometimes a day later, sometimes governed by a written rent-back.
- Hand over the keys and access when possession officially transfers.
Worth knowing
- Wire cutoff times, usually around 3pm, decide whether funding lands today or tomorrow morning.
- If closing runs late in the day, possession and funding can slide to the next business morning.
- Nothing is fully done until the deed is recorded, typically same day or the next business day at the county.
- What it costs
- $15-35 for an outgoing wire, sometimes waived
- Where to check
- Your own bank, by phone, on the day