How long does it take to close on a house in Texas?

A financed Texas resale typically closes in about 30 to 45 days from the effective date, and a cash purchase in about one to two weeks. The closing date itself is whatever the parties write into Paragraph 9 of the TREC contract.

Does the Texas option period extend if it ends on a weekend?

No. The TREC contract extends only the deadlines to deliver the earnest money, option fee and additional earnest money when they land on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday. The option period itself still ends at 5:00 p.m. local time on its last day, even on a weekend.

What happens if the buyer pays the option fee late?

Under Paragraph 5D of the TREC resale contract, a buyer who pays the option fee late, or leaves the option fee amount blank, does not get the unrestricted right to terminate. The rest of the contract stays in force.

Who handles the closing in Texas?

Texas closings are usually handled by title companies; attorneys may also act as escrow officers. The escrow agent named in the contract holds the earnest money and option fee, and a licensed escrow officer runs the closing. Under the contract, the escrow agent may condition disbursement on receiving good funds.

Texas Real Estate Closing Timeline

How a Texas resale moves from contract to closing under the TREC forms, deadline by deadline.

Last updated October 13, 2026 · Based on the TREC One to Four Family Residential Contract (Resale) 20-19, effective July 1, 2026

Texas resales are typically written on the forms promulgated by the Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC): the One to Four Family Residential Contract (Resale), now form 20-19, plus the Third Party Financing Addendum (40-11) when the buyer is getting a loan. Form 20-19 took effect on July 1, 2026, replacing 20-18. Because the same promulgated forms are used statewide, the structure of the timeline is the same in Houston as in El Paso. What changes from deal to deal is the number of days written into each blank.

A financed Texas closing typically runs about 30–45 days; a cash purchase often closes in one to two weeks, with the title commitment usually the step that sets the pace.

A sample Texas timeline

Example: a financed resale with a 7-day option period and a 30-day closing. The 7 and 30 are illustrations; your contract’s blanks control.
When	Milestone	What happens
Day 0	Effective Date	The date of final acceptance, which the broker fills in on the signature page. Most deadlines count from here.
Day 3	Earnest money and option fee	Both delivered to the escrow agent (usually the title company) within 3 days. If day 3 is a weekend or legal holiday, the deadline moves to the next day that isn’t.
Day 7, 5:00 p.m.	Option period ends	Last moment to terminate for any reason and get the earnest money back. Does not roll past a weekend.
≈ Day 20+	Title commitment	Due 20 days after the title company receives the contract, not after the Effective Date.
Negotiated	Survey and title objections	Survey delivered within the days in Paragraph 6C; the objection window in 6D starts once the buyer has the commitment, exception documents and survey.
Negotiated	Buyer Approval (financing)	Last day to terminate under the financing addendum if the loan isn’t approved, with the lender’s written reasons attached.
Day 27	Property Approval deadline	Three days before closing: last day to terminate because the property doesn’t meet the lender’s requirements, such as appraisal.
Day 30	Closing and funding	Signing at the title company; under the contract, the escrow agent may condition disbursement on receiving good funds.

1. Effective Date

The Effective Date is the date of final acceptance. The broker writes it on the signature page of the contract, and nearly every deadline that follows is written as a number of days “after the Effective Date.” The forms don’t define business days, and practitioners count calendar days starting the day after the Effective Date.

2. Earnest money and option fee (Paragraph 5A)

The buyer must deliver the earnest money and the option fee to the escrow agent named in the contract within 3 days after the Effective Date. They can go in one payment or two. If the third day lands on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, the deadline extends to the end of the next day that is none of those. The option fee is credited to the sales price at closing, and the buyer authorizes the escrow agent to release it to the seller at any time.

The consequences of being late are different for the two payments, and agents mix them up:

Late earnest money (5C): the seller may terminate, but only by giving notice before the buyer delivers it. Once it arrives, that right is gone.
Late or blank option fee (5D): the buyer simply doesn’t get the termination option. The contract provides no cure period; the buyer stays under contract without the termination option.

3. The option period (Paragraph 5B)

The option period is Texas’s version of an inspection contingency, and it is broader than most: for the number of days written into 5B, the buyer can terminate for any reason. Notice must be given by 5:00 p.m. local time where the property is located on the last day. If the buyer terminates in time, the earnest money is refunded but the option fee is not.

The length is negotiated. Practice varies by market, from a few days in competitive markets to around ten. If the buyer needs more time, the TREC Amendment (form 39-11) lets the parties extend the option period in exchange for an additional option fee.

4. Seller’s Disclosure Notice (Paragraph 7B)

If the buyer hasn’t received the Seller’s Disclosure Notice when the contract is signed, the seller must deliver it within the number of days written into 7B. Once it arrives, the buyer may terminate for any reason within 7 days after receiving it (or before closing, if sooner), with the earnest money refunded. If it never arrives, the buyer can terminate at any time before closing.

Form 20-19 added a parallel right in Paragraph 7I for the new Seller’s Disclosure about groundwater and surface water rights: delivered after signing, it also gives the buyer 7 days to walk away. And if the property is in a mandatory owners’ association, the HOA addendum (36-11) gives the buyer 3 days after receiving the subdivision information to terminate, if the addendum’s option 1 or 2 is checked. Late disclosures can therefore work like a second option period — track the delivery dates.

5. Financing: Buyer Approval and Property Approval

The Third Party Financing Addendum splits the financing contingency in two, with very different clocks:

Buyer Approval (2A) — whether the lender approves the buyer’s income, assets and credit. If it doesn’t, the buyer may terminate within the number of days after the Effective Date written into 2A. Since the 2025 revision, the notice must include the lender’s written statement of its reasons. If the buyer doesn’t terminate in time, the contract is no longer subject to Buyer Approval.
Property Approval (2B) — whether the property satisfies the lender, including appraisal and insurability. There is no blank to fill in: the buyer may terminate on or before the 3rd day before the Closing Date, again with the lender’s written reasons. FHA and VA appraisal protections in Paragraph 4 aren’t subject to that deadline.

6. Title commitment, survey and objections (Paragraph 6)

The title clocks are the ones most often mis-calendared, because they don’t all start at the Effective Date:

Commitment: the seller must furnish the title commitment and exception documents within 20 days after the title company receives the contract. If it’s late, the deadline extends automatically by up to 15 days, or to 3 days before closing if that is sooner.
Survey: depending on the box checked in 6C, the seller provides an existing survey with a T-47 affidavit or T-47.1 declaration, or a new survey is ordered, within the days written in.
Objections: the buyer must object in writing within the days written into 6D, counted from when the buyer has received all of the commitment, the exception documents and the survey (or by closing, if sooner). The seller then has 15 days to cure, and the buyer has 5 days after that to terminate or waive.

7. Closing and funding (Paragraph 9)

Closing happens on or before the date written into Paragraph 9, or within 7 days after title objections are cured or waived, whichever is later. The contract builds in a few extensions — during the seller’s title cure period, for unfinished repairs, and after a casualty loss — but none for a slow lender. Lender delays are typically handled by amending the closing date with TREC form 39-11 before it passes.

Texas closings are usually handled by title companies; attorneys may also act as escrow officers. Under the contract, the escrow agent may condition disbursement on receiving good funds, so confirm early with the title company how the buyer’s funds must arrive — some will require a wire rather than a cashier’s check.

How Texas counts days

The TREC forms say “days” with no business-day definition, and practitioners count calendar days, starting the day after the Effective Date.
The only weekend and holiday extension, in Paragraph 5A(2), covers delivery of the earnest money, option fee and additional earnest money. The option period, financing deadlines, title deadlines and closing date can all end on a weekend.
“Legal Holiday” is narrow: the national holidays listed in Texas Government Code §662.003(a), plus Juneteenth and the Friday after Thanksgiving. Texas-only holidays such as Texas Independence Day or San Jacinto Day don’t extend anything.
Paragraph 5 is expressly “time is of the essence,” so its deadlines require strict compliance.

Texas deadlines that trip agents up

Assuming the option period rolls to Monday like the option fee does. It doesn’t.
Letting the Buyer Approval date pass quietly: the Buyer Approval contingency ends without anyone signing anything (Property Approval still runs to 3 days before closing).
Calendaring the title commitment from the Effective Date instead of from the title company’s receipt of the contract.
Forgetting that a late Seller’s Disclosure, water rights disclosure or HOA package reopens a window for the buyer to walk away.
Using superseded forms. Form 20-19, the HOA addendum 36-11 and the Amendment 39-11 all took effect July 1, 2026; the financing addendum remains 40-11.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to close on a house in Texas?: A financed Texas resale typically closes in about 30 to 45 days from the effective date, and a cash purchase in about one to two weeks. The closing date itself is whatever the parties write into Paragraph 9 of the TREC contract.
Does the Texas option period extend if it ends on a weekend?: No. The TREC contract extends only the deadlines to deliver the earnest money, option fee and additional earnest money when they land on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday. The option period itself still ends at 5:00 p.m. local time on its last day, even on a weekend.
What happens if the buyer pays the option fee late?: Under Paragraph 5D of the TREC resale contract, a buyer who pays the option fee late, or leaves the option fee amount blank, does not get the unrestricted right to terminate. The rest of the contract stays in force.
Who handles the closing in Texas?: Texas closings are usually handled by title companies; attorneys may also act as escrow officers. The escrow agent named in the contract holds the earnest money and option fee, and a licensed escrow officer runs the closing. Under the contract, the escrow agent may condition disbursement on receiving good funds.