Video Transcript

It depends on where you are. In some counties, for instance Pinellas County, it's customary for the seller to choose the closing agent. Whereas, right next door in Manatee County and Sarasota County, the buyer may choose the closing agent. Under the law, really it's up to the parties to decide. It's a completely negotiable term. Each party or each side has an interest in choosing the closing agent.

For the seller, they're the ones that have to provide clear title at the seller's table. They want to work closely with that closing agent to understand what do they need to do in order to provide that clear title. The buyer on the other hand, they want to make sure that there's no defects down the road. They may want to be in close contact with the closing agent to make sure that all of the issues that come up are in fact clear. But, with the power to choose the closing agent comes the responsibility to pay for certain costs.