All About Closing Documents

Although some documents will differ by state, these are the documents that will usually be provided to you at your closing:

Real Estate Transfer Documents

• Deed – The official document that transfers the ownership of the property to you.
• Bill of Sale – Essentially a receipt for your home. It states that the seller agrees to sell the home to you, the buyer, at a certain price.
• Affidavit of Title – A document provided by the seller that states the status of potential legal issues involving the property or the seller.
• Purchase Contract – The fully finalized, executed, and initialed contract together with any accepted counter-offers and addenda.
• Contingency Signoffs – If you and/or the seller had to sign off on any contingencies (for example, you approved your inspection or your appraisal), the final executed signoffs.

Financing Documents

• Loan Application 1003 – Your completed loan application.
• Closing Disclosure – This is part two of the Loan Estimate document you received when you first applied for your loan. Beginning on October 3, 2015, it replaced the final Truth in Lending and HUD-1 Settlement Statement documents. This document tells you what costs to expect when you close, an itemized list of all your mortgage and closing costs, and how much money you need to bring to your closing.
• Promissory Note – The note you sign promising to pay back your loan with interest at a set schedule.
• Mortgage or Deed of Trust – The document you sign which gives the lender a security interest in the property as collateral for the loan.

Title Documents

• Title Insurance Commitment – The title company’s guarantee that they will issue title insurance on the property. Title insurance guarantees the state of title as shown on the title report, and protects you and your lender from any issues with the title, such as forgery, liens, easements, or other encumbrances, that are inconsistent with the report.
• American Land and Title Association (ALTA) Statement – An itemized list of all the fees and charges that the homebuyer and seller must pay during the settlement process.
• Compliance Agreement – Your agreement that if an error occurs in the closing documents and the lender needs to obtain your signature on another document in order to carry out the purpose and intent of the loan, you agree to sign additional documents as necessary.
• Disbursement Agreement – A document you sign allowing the title company to pay out the amount of money you mortgaged to the seller on your behalf.
• Additional Disclosures – If there are any other things to disclose about the property, the seller will include them here.