Every task from acceptance to recording — 43 of them, in order, each with the deadline rule it runs on. Built for the Ohio REALTORS / local board Residential Purchase Contract (Columbus REALTORS + Columbus Bar Association). Free, no email required.
State
Ohio
32 states live — each one built on that state's own contract and deadline rules, not a renamed copy of this one.
Put your closing date in and get the real dates
Most checklists tell you "3 days before closing" and leave you to count. This one counts — business days, federal holidays, and the observed weekday when a holiday lands on a weekend.
Contract date
mm/dd/yyyy
Closing date
mm/dd/yyyy
43 tasks across 6 phases
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● Send accepted contract to title + lender
Distribute the accepted contract and addenda. Every deadline below runs from the DATE OF ACCEPTANCE.
Buyer's agent
1 day after the contract date
Deliver prequalification letter
Columbus/CBA ¶3.2(a): within the stated calendar days after acceptance — 2 if left blank.
Buyer
2 days after the contract date
● Open file with closing/escrow agent
Title / escrow
2 business days after the contract date
● Deliver earnest money to the listing broker
Columbus/CBA ¶3.1: within the stated number of calendar days after acceptance — 5 if the blank is left blank. Held by the Seller's Broker, not an escrow company.
Buyer
On the earnest money due date
● Confirm Residential Property Disclosure Form received
O.R.C. §5302.30. If it was NOT provided before the contract, the buyer may rescind — but only before ALL THREE of: closing, 30 days after acceptance, and 3 BUSINESS days after finally receiving the form. Whichever comes first ends the right. Check which of the three is nearest before advising anyone.
Buyer's agent
3 days after the contract date
Confirm earnest money received
Buyer's agent
1 business day after the earnest money due date
● Buyer makes formal loan application
Columbus/CBA ¶3.2(b): within the stated calendar days after acceptance — 7 if left blank. Naming the loan type (Conventional / FHA / VA / USDA) is part of it.
Buyer
7 days after the contract date
Disclosure rescission window closes (30 days after acceptance)
The outer limit of the §5302.30 right. It can end sooner — at closing, or 3 business days after the form is finally delivered — so treat this as the LAST possible date, not the deadline.
Buyer's agent
30 days after the contract date
● Schedule inspections (Ohio-licensed inspector)
O.R.C. Chapter 4764: a home inspection must be performed by an inspector licensed by the Ohio Department of Commerce. Radon, mold, lead-based paint and pest are enumerated separately in the contract.
Buyer's agent
5 days before the inspection deadline
Order radon test
Buyer's agent
4 days before the inspection deadline
Lead-based paint inspection / disclosure
Enumerated in the contract as its own inspection. The federal disclosure obligation applies to homes built before 1978 — check the year before deciding this is optional.
Buyer's agent
3 days before the inspection deadline
Order pest / wood-destroying insect report
Buyer's agent
3 days before the inspection deadline
● Complete inspections + reports
Inspector
2 days before the inspection deadline
● Specified Inspection Period ends — submit requests to remedy
The contract is blunt: an inspection or test not completed within the Specified Inspection Period is DEEMED WAIVED, and all requests to remedy must be submitted inside it. Time is of the essence. Nothing carries over.
Buyer's agent
On the inspection deadline
Lender orders appraisal
Lender
10 days after the contract date
● Appraisal received — 5 days to terminate, WITH the appraisal attached
Columbus/CBA ¶3.2(d): if it comes in low, the buyer has 5 calendar days from receiving it to deliver written notice — and the notice must be ACCOMPANIED BY the appraisal or the lender's documentation of value. Notice alone is not enough. Missing the 5 days waives the right entirely.
Appraiser
On the appraisal deadline
Loan terms unacceptable — 3 days to object
Columbus/CBA ¶3.2(b): if the loan offered differs from the terms applied for, the buyer must deliver the lender's written notification within 3 calendar days of receiving it. Failure to deliver waives it.
Buyer's agent
3 days before the loan contingency deadline
● Loan Commitment Period ends
Columbus/CBA ¶3.2(c): the written loan commitment is due to the Seller or Seller's Broker by the end of this period.
Lender
On the loan contingency deadline
● Confirm clear to close from lender
Lender
3 business days before closing
● Check for a municipal point-of-sale inspection requirement
Not in the contract — an Ohio local-government trap. A number of municipalities (many in the Cleveland area, but not only there) require a point-of-sale inspection, a certificate of occupancy, or an escrow holdback before transfer. Confirm with the city early; the lead time is measured in weeks.
Buyer's agent
7 days after the contract date
Title commitment / prelim received
Title company issues the commitment / preliminary report.
Title / escrow
7 business days after the contract date
Request HOA documents + dues figures
Buyer's agent
10 days after the contract date
● Receive + review title commitment
Columbus/CBA ¶9: the SELLER furnishes and pays for the ALTA owner's commitment and policy. Closing extends if a defect or encroachment has to be cured or insured over.
Title / escrow
14 days after the contract date
Title review complete (Schedule B exceptions cleared)
Review the commitment; clear or resolve Schedule B exceptions.
Title / escrow
12 business days after the contract date
Payoffs / HOA demand received
Loan payoff(s) and HOA demand/estoppel received by escrow.
Title / escrow
7 business days before closing
Order home warranty
Buyer's agent
7 days before closing
Bind homeowner's insurance
Buyer
7 days before closing
CPL issued to lender
Closing Protection Letter issued to the lender.
Title / escrow
5 business days before closing
Confirm conveyance fee + closing figures
Ohio charges a county conveyance fee and requires the DTE 100 conveyance-fee statement at transfer; rates vary by county.
Title / escrow
5 days before closing
● Review Closing Disclosure (3-day rule)
Lender
3 business days before closing
Closing statement prepared & balanced
CD (financed) or ALTA settlement statement (cash) prepared and balanced.
Title / escrow
4 business days before closing
Clear to close received
Lender issues clear-to-close.
Lender
3 business days before closing
CD delivered (TRID 3-day clock started)
Closing Disclosure delivered to buyer — starts the TRID 3-business-day clock.
Title / escrow
3 business days before closing
Signing scheduled (notary / RON / in-office)
Closing appointment scheduled.
Title / escrow
2 business days before closing
● Final walk-through
Utilities stay on through possession, so a walk-through can actually test them.
Buyer's agent
1 day before closing
● Closing — sign + fund
Title / escrow
On closing
Funded (wire received & confirmed)
Funds wired and confirmed received by escrow.
Title / escrow
On closing
Confirm deed recorded
Title / escrow
1 business day after closing
Recorded (county confirmation)
Deed / mortgage recorded — county e-recording confirmation received.
Title / escrow
1 business day after closing
Deliver keys + possession
Possession is a date the parties write in, not automatically closing — check ¶15.3.
Buyer's agent
1 day after closing
Send closing documents to buyer
Buyer's agent
2 days after closing
Disbursed / policy issued / file closed
Proceeds disbursed, title policy issued, escrow file closed.
These are real statutory deadlines and they change. If something here is wrong or out of date, we'd genuinely rather hear it.
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