The list depends on who you are and how you are paying. Pick buyer or seller, mortgage or cash, who is signing, and where the seller lives, and the checklist narrows to what your closing needs. Each item says who asks for it and links the rule behind it.
Decision tool 3
What to bring to your closing
Answer four questions and the list narrows to what your closing needs. Each item says who asks for it and links the rule behind it. Print it or copy it for the week of closing.
Before closing day the week before
Confirm the wiring instructions by phone
Wire fraud targets closings. Call the attorney’s office at a number you found yourself before sending money.
Who asks for it: Your closing attorney’s office
CFPB, 'Buying a home? Beware of mortgage closing scams' one-page handout (PDF), checked 2026-10-19
Arrange good funds for your cash to close
Georgia’s good-funds law limits how closing money may be paid, including a $5,000 cap on ordinary checks. Ask the attorney’s office which forms of payment it accepts.
Who asks for it: Your closing attorney’s office
O.C.G.A. 44-14-13 (2025 Georgia Code), via Justia, checked 2026-10-19
Read your Closing Disclosure against your Loan Estimate
You must receive it at least three business days before closing.
Who asks for it: Your lender
CFPB, Ask CFPB: What is a Closing Disclosure? (page last modified Sept. 6, 2024), checked 2026-10-19
Bind homeowner’s insurance
Ask your lender what proof of homeowner’s insurance it needs, and by when.
Who asks for it: Your lender
Send payoff details for your current mortgage
Ask the closing attorney’s office what it needs to request the payoff on your current loan.
Who asks for it: Your closing attorney’s office
Complete the nonresident withholding affidavit or plan for withholding
Georgia requires withholding on many sales by sellers who do not live in Georgia unless an exemption applies.
Who asks for it: Your closing attorney and tax professional
O.C.G.A. 48-7-128 (2025 Georgia Code), via Justia, checked 2026-10-19
Get the power of attorney approved in advance
Send the power of attorney to the closing attorney and lender well before closing and ask whether they will accept it.
Who asks for it: Your closing attorney and lender
Gather the entity’s authority documents
Ask the closing attorney which documents show who may sign for the LLC or trust.
Who asks for it: Your closing attorney
At the closing table
Government-issued photo ID
A Georgia deed is signed before an officer, such as a notary, and one other witness.
Who asks for it: The closing attorney
O.C.G.A. 44-5-30 (2024 Georgia Code), Justia page via Internet Archive capture of 2025-05-12 (also matches FindLaw text), checked 2026-10-19
Your funds, in the form the attorney approved
Bring or send exactly what the settlement statement shows, as instructed.
Who asks for it: Your closing attorney
O.C.G.A. 44-14-13 (2025 Georgia Code), via Justia, checked 2026-10-19
Keys, garage openers and codes
Hand-over terms are set by your contract.
Who asks for it: Your agent
After closing
Look up your recorded deed
The Lumpkin County Clerk keeps the county’s land records.
Who asks for it: Lumpkin County Clerk of Superior Court
Lumpkin County, Ga. official website, Clerk of Superior Court page, checked 2026-10-19
Apply for the homestead exemption
You qualify for a tax year if you own and live in the home on January 1. The county’s tax flyer lists April 1 as the filing date.
Who asks for it: Lumpkin County Tax Commissioner or Assessor
Lumpkin County Tax Commissioner, '2026 Tax Information Flyer' ('Important Tax Information', Mike Young, Tax Commissioner), PDF (image; read visually), checked 2026-10-19
Keep your owner’s title policy and closing papers
An owner’s policy protects you against claims to the home from before your purchase.
Who asks for it: You
CFPB, Ask CFPB: What is owner's title insurance? (page last modified Aug. 5, 2024), checked 2026-10-19
Ask Gold Peach Realty about your closing
A planning list, not legal advice. Your closing attorney’s written instructions decide what you bring.
Photo ID
Bring a current government-issued photo ID for everyone who signs. Deeds are signed in front of an officer, such as a notary, and a witness, and they need to know who is signing. Ask the attorney’s office how many forms of ID it wants and whether yours will work.
A Georgia deed to land must be in writing, signed by the maker, attested by an officer (such as a notary) and attested by one other witness. (O.C.G.A. 44-5-30 (2024 Georgia Code), Justia page via Internet Archive capture of 2025-05-12 (also matches FindLaw text), checked 2026-10-19)
Your money: good funds, not just any check
Georgia’s good-funds law controls what the settlement agent can pay out, which is why closing offices are specific about how you pay.
What Georgia’s good-funds law says
- Under Georgia's good-funds law, a settlement agent generally may not pay out closing proceeds unless the money is 'collected funds' in the agent's escrow account. O.C.G.A. 44-14-13 (2025 Georgia Code), via Justia, checked 2026-10-19
- Georgia's good-funds law lets the settlement agent disburse against ordinary checks only up to $5,000 in total per loan closing. O.C.G.A. 44-14-13 (2025 Georgia Code), via Justia, checked 2026-10-19
- Exceptions to the collected-funds rule include certain cashier's checks from federally insured institutions, attorney or broker escrow checks, and government checks. O.C.G.A. 44-14-13 (2025 Georgia Code), via Justia, checked 2026-10-19
- Georgia's good-funds law applies to purchase and refinance loans secured by Georgia real estate with no more than four residential units. O.C.G.A. 44-14-13 (2025 Georgia Code), via Justia, checked 2026-10-19
Read those carefully. The law lists certain kinds of cashier’s checks, not every one, and it caps ordinary checks. Many offices add their own rules on top. Ask your closing attorney which forms of payment they accept before you visit your bank, and do not plan to bring cash or a check until they say yes. The statute is on Justia (O.C.G.A. 44-14-13).
Wiring instructions: confirm by phone first
The CFPB routine
- The CFPB says not to use phone numbers or links from an email, and to confirm with your trusted contacts using only the numbers you saved. CFPB, 'Buying a home? Beware of mortgage closing scams' one-page handout (PDF), checked 2026-10-19
- The CFPB advises writing down contact information for two trusted people, such as your real estate and settlement agents, who can confirm payment details. CFPB, 'Buying a home? Beware of mortgage closing scams' one-page handout (PDF), checked 2026-10-19
- If you are a victim, the CFPB says to contact your bank or wire-transfer company immediately and file a complaint with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center. CFPB, 'Buying a home? Beware of mortgage closing scams' one-page handout (PDF), checked 2026-10-19
Never act on wiring instructions that arrive by email alone, and never email your own account details to anyone. See the CFPB’s closing-scam handout (PDF) and our wire fraud page.
Buyers with a mortgage
- Your Closing Disclosure, read against your Loan Estimate. Bring questions for the lender, not the closing table.
- Proof of homeowner’s insurance. Ask your lender what it needs and by when.
- Anything your lender’s final conditions list asked for.
Your lender must give you the Closing Disclosure at least three business days before you close on the mortgage loan. (CFPB, Ask CFPB: What is a Closing Disclosure? (page last modified Sept. 6, 2024), checked 2026-10-19)
Sellers
- Photo ID for every owner on the deed. The deed is your signature, so every owner signs it.
- Information for the payoff of your current mortgage. Ask the closing attorney’s office what it needs to request it.
- Keys, garage openers and codes, handed over as your contract says.
- If you live outside Georgia, the withholding affidavit or a plan for withholding. Nonresident seller withholding.
When a nonresident of Georgia sells Georgia real property, the buyer generally must withhold 3 percent of the purchase price and send it to the Georgia Department of Revenue. (O.C.G.A. 48-7-128 (2025 Georgia Code), via Justia, checked 2026-10-19)
Signing for someone else, or for a company
If someone will sign under a power of attorney, or you are signing for an LLC or trust, send the papers to the closing attorney and the lender well before closing and ask whether they will accept them. Remote and power-of-attorney closings.
After closing: what to keep
Keep the signed closing package and, if you bought one, your owner’s title policy.
Owner's title insurance protects the homeowner if someone sues claiming an interest in the home from before the purchase. (CFPB, Ask CFPB: What is owner's title insurance? (page last modified Aug. 5, 2024), checked 2026-10-19)
To qualify for a tax year, you must own the home and live in it as your legal residence on January 1. Lumpkin County’s tax flyer lists April 1 as its filing date. State law now also allows filing through the 45-day appeal window on your assessment notice. Check with the Lumpkin County Tax Commissioner or Assessor before relying on a later date. Homestead and property taxes in Lumpkin County.
Homestead timing
- Georgia DOR says a homeowner generally gets a homestead exemption if they owned the home and it was their legal residence as of January 1 of the tax year. Georgia Department of Revenue, Property Tax Homestead Exemptions page, checked 2026-10-19
- Lumpkin County's 2026 tax flyer says homestead applications are filed with the County Tax Commissioner up to and including April 1, and applications received later may apply to the next year's tax bill. Lumpkin County Tax Commissioner, '2026 Tax Information Flyer' ('Important Tax Information', Mike Young, Tax Commissioner), PDF (image; read visually), checked 2026-10-19
- Georgia DOR says homeowners can now apply for homestead beyond the historic April 1 deadline, up to the end of the 45-day window to appeal their assessment notice. Georgia Department of Revenue, Property Tax Homestead Exemptions page, checked 2026-10-19
Questions buyers ask
What ID do I need at a Georgia closing?
Bring government-issued photo ID. A Georgia deed must be signed by the maker and attested by an officer, such as a notary, and one other witness. Ask the closing attorney’s office what forms of ID it accepts.
Can I pay my closing costs with a personal check?
Only within a limit. Georgia’s good-funds law lets the settlement agent disburse against ordinary checks only up to $5,000 in total per loan closing. Ask your closing attorney which forms of payment they accept.
Is a cashier’s check fine for closing?
Not automatically. The good-funds exceptions include certain cashier’s checks from federally insured institutions, attorney or broker escrow checks and government checks. Ask your closing attorney before you get one.
I got an email with new wiring instructions. What do I do?
Do not use phone numbers or links from the email. Confirm with your trusted contacts using only the numbers you saved before.
Source: CFPB, 'Buying a home? Beware of mortgage closing scams' one-page handout (PDF)
Education, not legal advice. Statutes, fees and forms change; every rule on this page links to the law or office that sets it. Your closing attorney and your contract decide what applies to your closing.
