Jeffrey Johnson is a legal writer with a focus on personal injury. He has worked on personal injury and sovereign immunity litigation in addition to experience in family, estate, and criminal law. He earned a J.D. from the University of Baltimore and has worked in legal offices and non-profits in Maryland, Texas, and North Carolina. He has also earned an MFA in screenwriting from Chapman Univer...

Full Bio →

Written by

UPDATED: May 2, 2012

Advertiser Disclosure

It’s all about you. We want to help you make the right legal decisions.

We strive to help you make confident insurance and legal decisions. Finding trusted and reliable insurance quotes and legal advice should be easy. This doesn’t influence our content. Our opinions are our own.

Editorial Guidelines: We are a free online resource for anyone interested in learning more about legal topics and insurance. Our goal is to be an objective, third-party resource for everything legal and insurance related. We update our site regularly, and all content is reviewed by experts.

The closing is the meeting between the buyer and the seller, at which time all remaining documents relating to the sale are signed. The deed to the house is transferred from the seller to the buyer. Title insurance is paid, the mortgage papers are signed by the buyer, and possible transfer taxes are paid to the state. In addition, the buyer will pay the seller for any miscellaneous expenses, such as appliances or furniture that had been previously agreed upon, the remaining oil in the oil tank, or any real estate taxes that the seller had prepaid.

Often the closing is held through an “escrow” and with a title company. There is a written statement of charges to be approved by both parties and there is title insurance covering the deed and any loan.