What Happens After You Accept an Offer on Your House in Georgia?

Quick answer

Once you and the buyer sign, you have a binding contract, and the next 30 to 45 days in a financed Georgia sale follow a set order. The buyer delivers earnest money and starts a due diligence period (often 7 to 14 days) when they can inspect and walk away for any reason. After that comes the appraisal, the buyer’s loan approval, and title work run by a Georgia closing attorney, then a final walkthrough and closing, where you sign the deed and the attorney pays off your mortgage and wires your proceeds.

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Your first week under contract

The day both sides sign is the Binding Agreement Date, and almost every deadline in a Georgia contract counts from it. I put every date on one calendar for my sellers the same afternoon, because the dates are negotiated in each contract rather than set by state law, and two contracts on the same street can run on different clocks.

Here is what usually happens in those first days:

• Earnest money goes to the holder named in the contract, often the buyer’s brokerage or the closing attorney. It sits there until closing, and it does not go to you unless the buyer defaults after due diligence ends. My post on how earnest money works in Georgia covers when a buyer can lose it.
• A due diligence fee, if the buyer offered one, is paid to you directly. How it is handled if the deal falls apart depends on how the contract is written, so I would read that section with your agent before you count on it.
• The closing attorney opens the file and orders the title search. If you have a mortgage or a home equity line, expect a request for your loan details so the attorney can get a payoff.
• The buyer schedules inspections. You’ll need to give access, and most sellers plan to be out of the house for a few hours.

What due diligence means for you as the seller

Georgia is a little unusual here. During the due diligence period, the buyer can terminate for any reason or no reason, and you can’t. That is the trade you make for a clean contract on the other end, and it is why the first two weeks feel the most uncertain.

Most buyers use this window to inspect, get insurance quotes, and confirm the numbers with their lender. If the inspection turns up issues, they usually send an amendment asking for repairs, a price reduction, or a credit at closing. You can agree, counter, or decline. If you decline and they don’t accept your answer, they can still walk before the deadline.

Here is what I tell sellers who ask how to handle the repair request: respond to the items that matter to a lender or an appraiser first (roof leaks, active water, electrical or safety items), and think of everything else as a negotiation about money rather than a punch list. A credit is often simpler than a repair, because you don’t have to schedule contractors before closing, though some loan programs limit how much a seller can contribute. My guide to negotiating repairs after an inspection walks through the buyer’s side of that conversation.

Once due diligence ends without a termination, the contract gets much firmer. The buyer can still back out under a financing or appraisal contingency if they negotiated one, but they can no longer leave just because they changed their mind.

The appraisal and the buyer’s loan

If the buyer is financing, their lender orders an appraisal, usually within the first couple of weeks. You’ll need to give the appraiser access, and I would have a short list of upgrades and the dates you made them ready to hand over.

If the appraisal comes in at or above the contract price, nothing changes for you. If it comes in low, the buyer may ask you to lower the price, cover part of the gap, or they may bring extra cash. Whether they can walk away over it depends on whether the contract includes an appraisal contingency. I wrote a separate guide on what to do if your home appraises low.

While underwriting runs, you mostly wait. Your job is to keep the house in the condition it was in when they made the offer, keep the utilities on, and not make changes to the property without the buyer’s written agreement.

Title work and your payoff

Georgia closings are run by attorneys, not title or escrow companies. The closing attorney searches the public records to confirm you can deliver clean title, then orders payoff figures for every lien on the property: your mortgage, any home equity line, and anything unexpected, such as an old contractor’s lien or a judgment that attached to the property.

Surprises here are the most common reason I see closings slip a few days. If you know of anything (a lien you paid off but never saw released, an HOA balance, a name change since you bought), tell the attorney’s office early.

Before closing, the attorney sends a settlement statement showing every line on your side: your loan payoff, the commission agreed in your listing agreement, any seller contributions or credits, prorated property taxes, and Georgia’s transfer tax of $1 per $1,000 of the sale price, which sellers typically pay. My guide on what Atlanta sellers actually net breaks those costs down.

Your number at the end depends on your price, your payoff, and what you agree to during due diligence, and that is where a pricing conversation before you list pays for itself.

The last week: walkthrough, closing and keys

A day or two before closing, the buyer does a final walkthrough to confirm the house is in the condition the contract requires and any agreed repairs are done. Leave receipts for repair work on the counter. The buyer’s checklist in my final walkthrough guide is a useful preview of what they’ll look at.

At closing you sign the deed and the settlement statement. Many Atlanta closing attorneys can arrange for sellers to sign separately from the buyer, and some allow a mail away closing if you’ve already moved. Under a standard Georgia contract, the buyer gets possession at closing unless you’ve negotiated a separate temporary occupancy agreement to stay a few days longer.

Your proceeds are usually wired after the documents are signed and the buyer’s loan funds. Confirm your wiring instructions by phone with the attorney’s office using a number you looked up yourself, never one from an email.

Can the sale still fall apart?

Yes, though it gets less likely as you move through the steps. The most common reasons I see are a buyer walking during due diligence after an inspection, a low appraisal the two sides can’t bridge, the buyer’s financing falling through, or a title problem that can’t be cleared in time.

As the seller, you have far fewer ways out. If you’re having second thoughts, read my post on whether a seller can back out after accepting an offer before you do anything.

Accepting an offer FAQs

Next steps

Accepting an offer starts the real work: a short window where the buyer can walk, then appraisal, title, and closing. If you’re planning a sale and want to know what you’d likely net before you sign anything, request a pricing analysis for your home and we can go through the numbers together.

This post is general information, not legal advice. For questions about your specific contract, talk with a Georgia real estate attorney.