On closing day, you pay by wire transfer or cashier’s check for the exact “Cash to Close” amount shown on the Closing Disclosure your lender sent you three business days earlier. Those are the only two payment methods nearly every settlement agent will accept, because state “good funds” laws require the money to be verified and immediately available before the deed can be recorded. Knowing how to pay at closing really comes down to three things: confirming the number, choosing between a wire and a cashier’s check, and protecting the transfer from fraud.
Confirm the Amount: Your Cash to Close
Federal regulation requires your lender to make sure you receive the Closing Disclosure no later than three business days before your loan closes.1eCFR. 12 CFR 1026.19 – Certain Mortgage and Variable-Rate Transactions The figure you care about on payment day is the “Cash to Close” line near the bottom of the form. That is the exact dollar amount you need to deliver.
The number is built from your down payment plus closing costs (title insurance, loan origination fees, appraisal charges, prepaid taxes and insurance), minus any earnest money already sitting in escrow. Title insurance typically runs 0.5% to 1% of the purchase price, and appraisal fees generally land between $350 and $550. Review every line in that three-day window. If something looks wrong, call your loan officer right away.
Three specific changes reset the three-day clock: a meaningful change in the annual percentage rate, a switch to a different loan product, or the addition of a prepayment penalty. Other corrections can be made at or before the closing table without delaying anything.1eCFR. 12 CFR 1026.19 – Certain Mortgage and Variable-Rate Transactions
Wire Transfer or Cashier’s Check
Almost every state has some version of a good funds law requiring the money used to close a real estate transaction to be verified and immediately available. In practice, that leaves two acceptable payment methods. Settlement agents cannot disburse funds to the seller, pay off existing liens, or record the deed until they’ve confirmed your money is real and present.
Wire Transfer
A wire moves money electronically from your bank directly into the settlement agent’s escrow account. Funds usually arrive the same day, and the receiving bank can confirm availability almost immediately. Your bank will charge a fee for an outgoing domestic wire, typically between $25 and $30, though some banks charge nothing for online-initiated transfers and others charge up to $40.
Start the wire at least 24 hours before your closing appointment. Same-day wires are possible if you initiate early in the banking day, but processing delays, internal compliance reviews, and Federal Reserve cutoff times can push arrival to the next business day. A buffer lets your escrow officer confirm receipt before you sit down to sign.
You’ll need the settlement agent’s wiring instructions: the receiving bank’s name and routing number, the escrow account number, and a reference line (usually your name or the property address). Your title company or closing attorney will send these to you, typically by email. Verify them by phone before sending anything — more on that below.
To initiate the transfer, visit your bank branch or log into your bank’s secure online portal. The bank will verify your identity and confirm the destination account details before releasing the funds. Once the wire is sent, you’ll receive a confirmation number. Forward that to your settlement agent so they can track the incoming transfer on their end.
Cashier’s Check
A cashier’s check is issued and guaranteed by the bank itself, not drawn against your personal account. You visit a branch the business day before closing, the teller debits your account for the exact amount, and the bank issues the check in the payee’s name. Most banks charge between $10 and $25.
Get the payee name exactly right, down to the punctuation, from your settlement agent. Bringing a cashier’s check made out to the wrong party is a common mistake that can delay closing by a full day. Keep the check secure between pickup and closing; losing a cashier’s check triggers a lengthy replacement process involving indemnity bonds and waiting periods.
One practical limitation: if a last-minute adjustment changes your Cash to Close amount after the check has been issued, you may need a second cashier’s check for the difference or a refund check from the settlement agent afterward. Wires avoid this because you can send the exact updated amount right up until the cutoff, which is one reason wires have become the default.
What Won’t Be Accepted
Personal checks, cash, and credit cards are rejected at most closings.
- Personal checks can bounce. Some states allow a personal check for small amounts, often under $1,000 or $1,500, to cover minor last-minute adjustments. For the bulk of your Cash to Close, no settlement agent will take one.
- Cash creates physical security problems and regulatory paperwork. Financial institutions must file a Currency Transaction Report for any cash transaction over $10,000, and closing offices aren’t equipped to count and secure that kind of money.2FFIEC. Assessing Compliance With BSA Regulatory Requirements
- Credit cards carry merchant fees that would be enormous on a transaction this size, and the cardholder could dispute the charge after the property has transferred. No title company wants to unwind a recorded deed over a chargeback.
Protect Your Wire From Fraud
Real estate wire fraud is one of the fastest-growing financial crimes in the country. A scammer gains access to a real estate agent’s or title company’s email account, monitors the transaction, and sends the buyer a convincing email with altered wiring instructions at exactly the right moment. The buyer sends the full Cash to Close amount to a thief’s account, and by the time anyone notices, the money is usually gone.
One rule prevents almost all of these losses: never trust wiring instructions you receive by email without verifying them by phone. Call your settlement agent or escrow officer directly using a phone number you already have from earlier in the transaction, not a number included in the email. Read the routing and account numbers back to them over the phone. If anything has changed from what you were originally told, treat it as a red flag until proven otherwise.
If you do send money to a fraudulent account, speed matters more than anything else. Contact your bank immediately to request a wire recall. Then file a report with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). The odds of full recovery drop sharply after the first 24 to 48 hours, because stolen funds are typically moved through multiple accounts and withdrawn quickly.
Where Your Money Comes From Matters Too
Your lender doesn’t just care that you have the money; they want to see where it came from. For a purchase, Fannie Mae guidelines require bank statements covering the most recent two full months of account activity.3Fannie Mae. Verification of Deposits and Assets If a large deposit appears during that window that doesn’t match your regular income pattern, expect to produce a letter of explanation, deposit receipts, or other documentation showing the source.
Money that’s been in your account at least 60 days generally won’t raise questions. A sudden $30,000 deposit two weeks before closing will. The lender is confirming you didn’t take out an undisclosed loan to fund the down payment.
If a family member is helping, the lender will require a gift letter stating the dollar amount, confirming no repayment is expected, identifying the donor’s relationship to you, and including the property address. Both you and the donor sign it. The lender will also verify the donor’s account actually had the funds. Gifts from anyone involved in the transaction, such as the seller, agent, or builder, are almost always prohibited. If the gift money hasn’t been transferred to your account before closing, the donor can send it directly to the closing agent, but only as a wire transfer, cashier’s check, or other certified instrument. The same good funds rules apply.4Fannie Mae. B3-4.3-04, Personal Gifts
After You Pay
Once the settlement agent confirms all funds are present and verified, you sign the final deed and closing documents. The agent then disburses the money: the seller gets their proceeds, any existing mortgage on the property is paid off, and third-party vendors receive their fees. The deed and mortgage are sent to the county recorder’s office, and the legal transfer of ownership is complete once they’re recorded.
If your wire came in slightly over the Cash to Close amount, which happens when last-minute prorations change the final number, the settlement agent will issue you a refund check, typically within a few business days to a couple of weeks. Don’t send extra on purpose, though. Settlement agents prefer exact amounts.
Bring a government-issued photo ID. The settlement agent verifies the identity of every signer, and without valid identification the signing cannot proceed. If you’re closing through a remote online notarization platform, now permanently authorized in 45 states plus the District of Columbia, you’ll complete identity verification digitally and wire your funds. Cashier’s checks don’t work for fully remote closings, since there’s no physical table to hand one across.