Real Estate Contract Review Checklist Before Closing

You've negotiated the offer, handled the inspection, and navigated the appraisal. The closing date is on the calendar. Everything looks good — until someone at the closing table notices the seller never signed the repair addendum, or the earnest money was deposited a day late, or the closing date in the contract doesn't match what the title company has.

These aren't hypotheticals. They happen every day — they're among the most common contract mistakes that kill deals. The agents who avoid last-minute disasters are the ones who run a systematic contract review before closing — not once, but at multiple checkpoints throughout the transaction. Here's the checklist.

Pull every document in the contract package: the purchase agreement, every addendum, every amendment, every disclosure. For each document, confirm that all required parties have signed and dated. Check that names are consistent across all documents — the same spelling, the same legal entity. If the buyer is using a trust or LLC, the entity name and authorized signer must match.

This sounds tedious because it is. But an unsigned addendum discovered at closing is a red flag that can delay the deal by days or kill it entirely. A name mismatch between the contract and the deed can trigger title issues that take weeks to resolve.

Compare the contract's financial terms against the most recent lender documents. Purchase price, loan amount, down payment, earnest money credit, seller concessions — every number should match. If there have been price changes through amendments, trace them to make sure the final numbers are correct.

Verify the earnest money was deposited on time and confirm the receipt with the escrow holder. Check that any seller credits or concessions are accurately reflected and don't exceed lender limits (most conventional loans cap seller concessions at 3-6% depending on the down payment).

Go through every contingency in the contract and confirm its current status. Has the inspection contingency been satisfied or waived? Is there documentation? Was the financing contingency met — is there a clear-to-close from the lender? Has the appraisal been completed and accepted?

For each contingency, check that any required notifications were sent within the deadline. If the buyer needed to deliver an inspection objection by day 10, confirm it was delivered and acknowledged. A contingency that expired without action may have been automatically waived — make sure your client understands that.

If the inspection resulted in a repair agreement, verify that repairs have been completed. Get documentation — receipts, photos, or a re-inspection report. If the seller agreed to a credit in lieu of repairs, confirm the credit amount matches what was negotiated and that it's reflected in the closing disclosure.

This is one of the most common sources of closing-day disputes. The buyer thinks the roof was supposed to be fixed. The seller thinks they agreed to a $2,000 credit. The addendum says something slightly different from what either party remembers. Review the actual documents, not anyone's memory.

Review the title commitment for any exceptions, liens, or encumbrances. Common issues: unpaid property taxes, HOA liens, contractor liens, or easements that weren't disclosed. These should have been flagged earlier in the transaction, but a pre-closing review catches anything that slipped through.

Confirm the buyer has secured homeowner's insurance and that proof has been sent to the lender. Verify that the title insurance policy matches the purchase price and covers the correct parties.

When the closing disclosure (CD) arrives, compare every line item against the contract terms. Purchase price, loan amount, interest rate, closing costs, seller credits, prorated taxes, HOA dues — all of it. The CD should be a financial mirror of the contract. If anything doesn't match, resolve it before closing day.

Pay special attention to prorations. Property taxes, HOA dues, and prepaid items are calculated based on the closing date. If the closing date changed during the transaction, the prorations may need to be recalculated.