A cash home sale in Texas runs through four pieces of paper and one neutral party. You get a written offer, both sides sign a purchase contract, a title company opens the file and checks the title, and at closing you sign the deed while the title company pays off what you owe and sends you the rest. The money never goes from the buyer straight to you, and the deed never goes to the buyer before you're paid. The title company sits in the middle of both.
This guide slows that down, so you know which document you're looking at and where the money is sitting at every step.
The short answer
In a Texas cash sale, the title company is the referee. It holds the earnest money, searches the county records, gets payoff figures from your lender, prepares the settlement statement, collects the buyer's funds, and only then pays everyone. If anyone suggests you hand over the deed first and wait for money later, that's not how a normal Texas sale works.
Step 1: The offer
A real offer is a written number with the terms spelled out: the price, the closing date, who pays which closing costs, and any conditions, like an inspection period. A number said over the phone is a starting point, not an offer.
What to look at on paper:
- The price and the net. The price is what the buyer pays. Your net is what's left after the mortgage payoff, any liens, prorated property taxes, and the closing costs you agree to cover. Ask for a rough net estimate up front.
- Closing costs. Some cash buyers cover most or all of them, others split them the usual way. Either can be fair, as long as it's written down.
- The buyer's name. Confirm in writing who is actually buying and which title company will close. Our post on questions to ask any cash home buyer has the full list.
Nothing is binding yet, so you can show the offer to family, a lawyer, or another buyer and compare.
Step 2: The contract
Once you agree on terms, both sides sign a purchase contract. Most Texas home sales use a standard state-promulgated form, and a cash buyer will often use it with the financing section left out. A few pieces of it are about money:
- Earnest money. The buyer's deposit goes to the title company, not to you or the buyer's own account, and it's credited toward the price at closing.
- The option fee and option period. Many Texas contracts give the buyer a short window to back out for any reason, in exchange for a small fee paid to the seller. Check how many days it lasts.
- The title policy. Texas title insurance premiums are set by the Texas Department of Insurance, so title companies don't compete on that price. Who pays for the owner's policy is negotiated. Often it's the seller, but a cash buyer may cover it.
Texas also asks most sellers to fill out a seller's disclosure notice about the property's condition. Share what you know, and don't worry about fixing things first. Our post on selling as-is without repairs explains how that form works.
Step 3: The title company opens the file
Once the signed contract and earnest money reach the title company, the file is open, and from here you're mostly answering questions.
The title search and commitment
The title company searches the county records for anything attached to the house: your mortgage, a home equity loan, judgment or tax liens, HOA liens, old easements. It then issues a title commitment, basically a list of what has to be paid off or fixed before it will insure the sale. An old lien that was paid but never released gets caught here.
The payoff statements
The title company asks your lender for a payoff statement, the exact amount needed to pay the loan off on a specific date. Federal lending rules give your servicer a reasonable time, and generally no more than seven business days after a written request, to send an accurate payoff statement, though that can stretch for loans in bankruptcy or foreclosure. The same goes for any other lien. You don't pay these yourself before closing. They come out of the sale.
Property taxes
Texas property taxes cover the calendar year and become delinquent if they aren't paid before February 1 of the next year. So if you sell partway through the year, you'll typically credit the buyer for your share, since the buyer pays that bill. Unpaid prior-year taxes come out of the proceeds like any other lien.
Step 4: The settlement statement
A day or two before closing, the title company prepares a settlement statement, the most important page in the sale because it shows every dollar. The sale price is at the top, then each deduction: the mortgage payoff, other liens, prorated taxes, the title policy if you're paying it, recording fees, and other closing costs. At the bottom is your net.
Read it line by line before you sign. Every item should match the contract and what the buyer told you. If a fee shows up that nobody mentioned, ask the title company what it is and who agreed to it.
Step 5: Closing day
You sign at the title company's office, or many title companies can send a mobile notary to you. What you'll typically sign:
- The deed. It transfers ownership. You sign it before a notary, and the title company holds it until the deal funds.
- The settlement statement. Your signature confirms you've reviewed the numbers.
- Affidavits and tax forms. Usually a few sworn statements about the property, plus information the title company uses to report the sale to the IRS on Form 1099-S. Ask a tax professional how the sale affects your own return.
Bring a government photo ID and, if you want your money wired, your bank details.
Step 6: Funding and getting paid
Signing isn't the same as getting paid. Texas title rules say a title company can't disburse until it has good funds, meaning money that has actually arrived, like a wire or a cashier's check, received and deposited. That's one reason money and title move together in a Texas sale.
Once the buyer's funds are in, the title company:
- Pays off your mortgage and any other liens directly
- Pays the closing costs listed on the settlement statement
- Sends you your net proceeds by wire or check
- Records the deed with the county clerk, so the public records show the new owner
In a cash sale with a clear title, signing and funding often happen the same day.
Watch out for wire fraud
Scammers sometimes send fake emails that look like they're from the title company, with "updated" wiring instructions. Before any wire moves, call the title company at a number you found yourself, like on its website or the contract, and confirm the details out loud.
How this works with us
We buy for cash across Dallas, Fort Worth, and the rest of DFW. Tell us about the house, and within 24 hours you get a fair cash offer in writing, with the numbers explained line by line, including a rough net after payoffs. We tell you who's buying and which title company is closing before you sign anything.
A local title company handles the earnest money, title search, payoffs, and closing. There's no appraisal and no lender on our side. When the title is clean, we can close in as little as 10 days, or on whatever date works for you. Our post on how fast a cash home sale really closes covers what speeds that up or slows it down.
Quick answers
Who holds the money in a Texas cash home sale? The title company. It holds the buyer's earnest money, collects the rest of the buyer's funds before closing, pays off your loan and liens, and sends you what's left.
Do I have to pay off my mortgage before I sell? No. The title company gets a payoff statement from your lender and pays the loan off out of the sale proceeds at closing.
What is a settlement statement? It's the page the title company prepares before closing that lists the sale price, every payoff and closing cost, and your net proceeds. Read it line by line before you sign.
When do I actually get paid? When the sale funds. Texas title rules say the title company can't pay anyone until the buyer's money has actually arrived, and in a cash sale with a clear title that's often the same day you sign.
How do I avoid wire fraud at closing? Never trust wiring instructions that arrive by email. Call the title company at a number you looked up yourself and confirm the details before any money moves.
The bottom line
A Texas cash sale is simpler than a financed one, but it still has a paper trail, and every piece of it runs through the title company. Get the offer in writing, read the contract's money terms, let the title company handle the payoffs, and read the settlement statement before you sign. When money and the deed change hands together, you're protected. If you want a written offer with the numbers laid out, reach out through the form on our home page, and a real local person will call you within 24 hours.
This article is general information about how a cash home sale works in Texas, not legal or tax advice. For guidance on your contract, title, or the tax side of your sale, talk to a Texas real estate attorney, title company, or tax professional.