Buying a home in Texas from another state involves three main sets of documents: those required by Texas law or a promulgated contract, those required by the lender or title company, and those that come from local practice. The distinction matters because each category carries a different level of obligation and can affect how quickly the transaction moves toward closing.
Out-of-state buyers should know which documents are legally required, who is responsible for providing them, and which deadlines are fixed by statute or contract. Lender and title-company requirements can vary by institution, while local practices may differ by transaction or location. Treating every request as a legal requirement, or assuming a statutory deadline can be negotiated, can create avoidable delays and confusion.
Which documents does Texas law require?
These are fixed by statute, TREC rule, or the promulgated contract.
Written buyer representation agreement: Texas Occupations Code § 1101.563 requires a license holder to have a written agreement with a prospective residential buyer before showing any property. The agreement must state how the buyer's broker will be compensated.
The promulgated TREC contract: TREC No. 20-18, adopted at 22 Texas Administrative Code § 537.28, became mandatory for license holders on January 3, 2025; TREC 20-19 is mandatory from July 1, 2026.The version prints in the lower-right corner.
Seller's Disclosure Notice: Texas Property Code § 5.008 requires the seller of a residential property with no more than one dwelling unit to deliver written notice in the prescribed form on or before the effective date.
Information About Brokerage Services: Texas Occupations Code § 1101.558(b-1), implemented by TREC Rule 22 TAC § 531.20, requires written notice at the license holder's first substantive communication about specific real property, not at closing.
HOA resale certificate and subdivision information package: Texas Property Code § 207.003(a) requires the association to deliver current restrictions, bylaws and rules, and a resale certificate no older than 60 days, within 10 business days of a written request whose authority the association may verify under Section 207.003(a-1).
Option fee and earnest money, with a dated receipt: Paragraph 5 requires delivery to the escrow agent within 3 days after the effective date. Since a 2021 TREC rule change, both go to the title company.
Existing survey plus the T-47: Paragraph 6C(1) obligates the seller to furnish the existing survey and a Residential Real Property Affidavit or Declaration promulgated by the Texas Department of Insurance, within the days written into the contract.
Closing Disclosure, on a financed purchase: Under Regulation Z § 1026.19(f)(1)(ii)(A), the borrower must receive the Closing Disclosure at least three business days before consummation. If it is not delivered by hand, receipt is generally presumed three business days after it is sent.
Recorded power of attorney, where one is used: Texas Estates Code § 751.151 requires a durable POA used for a recordable real property instrument to be recorded with the property county's clerk within 30 days after that instrument is filed.
What do your lender and title company require as policy?
Each item below will stop a closing, but comes from an institution rather than a statute, so it varies.
Photo identification for every signer: No Texas statute prescribes which credentials a title agent must accept at an in-person closing. Ask the escrow officer in writing.
Good funds. The requirement is statutory; only the accepted form is set by the title company. Texas Insurance Code § 2651.202(a) bars disbursement until good funds sufficient for all disbursements are received and deposited, through TDI Procedural Rule P-27. Texas appellate authority confirmed the rule does not oblige an insurer to accept every listed form. Expect a wire.
The lender's income, employment, asset, credit, and liability set: Fannie Mae's Selling Guide, Subpart B3, is the agency baseline most lenders build from. A jumbo file runs on investor guidelines, which no agency promulgates.
Reserves and appraisals on a jumbo file: Reserves are liquid assets left after closing, counted in months of full PITIA, and guideline sets diverge: one requires 12 months above $806,500 and 18 between $1.5M and $2.0M; another sets 6, 9, and 24.
Relocation and employment documentation: For a job not yet started: the fully executed offer, a start date within 30 days before or 90 days after the note date, the most recent pay stub before loan delivery, and a verbal verification of employment. If the departing home has not closed, its executed sales contract plus confirmation that financing contingencies cleared keep that payment out of the debt ratio.
Evidence of insurance before funding: A binder or declarations page showing the correct named insured and address, coverage effective on or before closing, an adequate dwelling limit, and the lender's mortgagee clause exactly as provided. Flood coverage is separate in a Special Flood Hazard Area.
Entity or trust authority package: No statute lists these. Typically, the certificate of formation or home-state charter, the operating agreement, a certificate of good standing, a resolution authorizing the purchase and naming the signer, and a certification of trust.
What is custom rather than rule?
Three items on most buyers' lists have no legal basis.
Proof of funds letter: No Texas statute or TREC rule compels a buyer to attach proof of funds to an offer. A redacted account statement or bank letter customarily accompanies a cash or jumbo offer above $1M here, but the format varies by listing agent.
The length of the option period: The length is negotiated and left blank on the form; the 5 p.m. local expiry is promulgated contract text, not custom.
Insurance lead time in exposed locations: Western Travis and Hays County Hill Country carries wildfire exposure, hail runs across the corridor, and the Blanco, Onion Creek, and Barton Creek drainages carry flood exposure. Carriers there may require inspection or roof documentation before binding.
What changes for a remote, entity, or foreign-person purchase?
Texas permits remote online notarization under Government Code Chapter 406, Subchapter C, using two-way audio and video, remote credential presentation, credential analysis, and identity proofing. The statute names both a passport and a driver's license and requires no Texas-issued one. Three acceptances are needed, often confused as one: Texas law permits it, the title company and its underwriter must permit it for this file, and the lender must permit it on its loan documents. A power of attorney splits the same way, and agency guidance bars several agent categories, including the title agency closing the loan.
For a buyer who is not a U.S. person for tax purposes, the Form W-7 package is the form, a federal tax return, and supporting documents that are originals or certified copies bearing the issuing agency's stamped seal, with a valid passport the only stand-alone document. Because the W-7 documentation rules tie the application to a return, an ITIN is not obtainable on demand.
Texas separately enacted SB 17, adding Property Code § 5.253, which bars acquisition by a governmental entity of a designated country, by companies headquartered in or controlled from one, and by individuals acting on their behalf. It turns on designated countries and control relationships, not on foreign nationality. FinCEN's reporting rule at 31 CFR § 1031.320 was vacated nationwide on March 19, 2026, so beneficial-ownership intake is now policy rather than law, and that status can shift. Route both to a Texas real estate attorney.
Where out-of-state buyers most often miss a deadline
Three patterns account for most of the avoidable damage in Travis, Williamson, and Hays counties.
Counting the HOA package in calendar days: Section 207.003(a) runs in business days, so a holiday-adjacent request can stretch to nearly two weeks.
Letting the Closing Disclosure travel by mail: The mailbox presumption adds three business days to the three-day receipt requirement.
Assuming a home-state power of attorney will work: Validity under Texas law and acceptance by the lender are separate questions, and the second is where remote closings fail.
Working through this list from another state
Real estate practices vary from state to state, and deadlines run from the effective date rather than closing. Kacy Dolce, a Broker Associate with Christie's International Real Estate Lone Star, works with buyers relocating into the metro, where subdivision-level differences in HOA, MUD, and PID documentation change what arrives and when. Her lifelong Texas roots make that sequencing familiar ground. If you are mapping a purchase from out of state, start a conversation about your file.
This article is informational only and is not legal, tax, or financial advice. Requirements described are current as of September 2026. Consult a Texas real estate attorney, your lender, your title company, or a CPA for additional information.
Frequently asked questions
Will an out-of-state driver's license work as identification at a Texas closing?
Texas remote online notarization law recognizes a passport or driver’s license as qualifying identification and does not require a Texas-issued license. For in-person closings, neither Texas law nor Department of Insurance rules specify acceptable ID, so the title company decides.
Is a cashier's check acceptable at a Texas closing?
TDI Procedural Rule P-27 lists cashier's checks among the forms of good funds, but Texas appellate authority held the rule does not require a title insurer to accept every enumerated form. Underwriters reserve the right to decide case by case, and many require a wire.
Does an out-of-state LLC have to register in Texas before closing?
A foreign entity transacting business in Texas must register with the Secretary of State. Whether buying and holding a single residence qualifies is a legal determination, not a title-company decision, and requirements for registration evidence vary by practice.
Do foreign buyers need an ITIN before purchasing?
An ITIN is not a prerequisite to purchasing a home. The need arises for federal tax filing and, most acutely, at a future resale, when FIRPTA withholding on the disposition makes the number necessary to claim a refund of any over-withheld amount. Sequence it with a CPA.