When Does the Buyer Get Possession of the House?
3 min read · Last updated 2026-10-07
The buyer gets possession at closing under Florida's AS IS contract, the Florida Realtors/Florida Bar form, unless the box for leases or occupancy after closing is checked. Texas's resale contract has two boxes: possession upon closing and funding, or under a written lease. Either way, the contract you sign sets the day you hand over the keys. So pick your move-out day before you sign. Cash Flow Deals makes two offers, and the choice is yours. Whichever one you take, closing comes in 45 days or less, and you help pick the date.
| A buyer from your listing | Premium offer | Cash offer | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who buys | The buyer your listing brings in | A real FHA or conventional buyer, through novation | Cash Flow Deals buys the house as-is |
| Listing and showings | Listed, with showings | Your home may be listed during inspection. A licensed agent brings each buyer. Showings are scheduled ahead and take 10 to 15 minutes | No listing. One walk-through by our team |
| Inspection period | The days written into your contract | 15 business days | 15 business days |
| Closing date | The date in your contract | 45 days or less, on a date you help pick | 45 days or less, on a date you help pick |
| Where your possession terms are set | The contract you sign with your buyer | The new contract your buyer signs directly with you | Your contract with Cash Flow Deals |
| If the buyer's financing falls through | Your contract's financing terms decide what happens next | You can still take the Cash offer | Not applicable: we're the buyer |
Decide the Day the Buyer Gets the Keys
On both forms below, possession is a term of the purchase contract. You settle it when you sign.
Paragraph 6(a) of the Florida Realtors/Florida Bar AS IS contract has you hand over occupancy and possession at closing, free of tenants and occupants, unless the box in paragraph 6(b) is checked. That box covers leases and occupancy after closing. If you'll stay on after closing yourself, the form sends you to Rider U, Post-Closing Occupancy by Seller.
Texas's resale contract, TREC form 20-19, uses two checkboxes in paragraph 10A: possession upon closing and funding, or under a TREC temporary residential lease form or another written lease. Stay past closing without a written lease, and the form says you've created a tenancy at sufferance with the buyer.
Your state may use a different form. Look for its possession paragraph, then decide before you sign: out by closing day, or a written agreement to stay.
Have the House Empty Before the Walk-Through
Book your move so you're out before the buyer's walk-through.
The Florida AS IS form says that by closing, you've removed all personal items and trash. You hand over all keys, garage door openers, access devices and codes. And you keep the property, lawn and pool included, in the condition it was in on the contract's effective date, except for ordinary wear and tear and casualty loss.
If the buyer does a walk-through, it comes the day before the closing date, or on closing day before the time of closing. The buyer picks which. So being packed out by the day before closing covers both options. The form limits the walk-through to two checks: the personal property included in the sale is still there, and you've kept up that maintenance standard and met your other contract obligations.
Texas's form 20-19 adds a smart-device step: when you deliver possession, you give the buyer written access codes, usernames, passwords and apps for the home's smart devices. You also remove every access and connection your own phones and computers have to the house and its accessories.
Pick a Closing Date You Can Move By
Your move-out plan hangs on one date. Pick the path whose closing date you can meet. Cash Flow Deals puts two offers in front of you, and the choice is yours:
1. Cash offer. We make an as-is number, and Cash Flow Deals buys the house and closes. Nothing gets listed. Our team walks through once.
2. Premium offer. The number is higher, and a real FHA or conventional buyer pays it through novation. You sign with us at a number we both agree on, and we bring in a buyer to take our place. Your home may be listed during the 15 business days of inspection. A licensed agent brings each buyer. Showings are scheduled ahead and take 10 to 15 minutes. Your buyer then signs a new contract directly with you. Their lender funds the loan, and title goes from you to that buyer once. Our pay shows up as its own line item on the closing statement. If that buyer's financing falls through, the Cash offer is still yours to take.
3. Inspection period. Either offer gives you 15 business days.
4. Closing. On either offer, closing comes in 45 days or less, on a date you help pick.
In our view, honest timing counts both windows: the inspection period and the time to close. Plan your move around both. We also think a higher number comes from putting a listing in front of financed buyers.
Common questions
Which appliances stay with the house?
On the Florida AS IS form, the items it lists stay with the house: the range, refrigerator, dishwasher, ceiling fans and the rest, if you own them and they were there on the date of the first offer. The contract can exclude them. The form says that personal property is left for the buyer.
When exactly does closing happen?
On the Florida AS IS form, closing happens when the closing agent has received and collected all the funds needed and each side has delivered its closing documents. The contract names the date. The closing agent sets the time.
Can the buyer move in before closing?
On the Florida AS IS form, it takes Rider T, Pre-Closing Occupancy by Buyer. From the day the buyer moves in, the buyer carries all risk of loss to the property and is responsible for maintenance. The buyer also accepts the property in its existing condition as of that day.
Does my insurance cover me if I stay after closing?
It may not. Texas's form 20-19 tells both sides to talk to their insurance agent before ownership and possession change, because coverage may be limited or terminated. It adds that going without a written lease or the right insurance may expose both sides to economic loss.
Is anything binding before I sign with you?
No. Until you and Cash Flow Deals both sign a written contract, nothing is binding. You can read it with an attorney first.