The Brink Report

Austin Real Estate News & Advice

Earnest Money vs the Option Fee in Texas: Two Deposits, Two Jobs, and Which One You Can Get Back

James Brinkman

Published on: 10/09/2026

In Texas, the option fee and earnest money are two separate deposits with two different jobs. What each one buys, which one you can get back, when they are at risk, and how both are credited at closing, from a Northwest Austin broker.

earnest moneyoption feeoption periodTexas real estate contractTREC contractNorthwest Austinbuying a home

Title Commitment and Survey in a Texas Home Purchase: What to Read and What Can Kill a Deal

James Brinkman

Published on: 08/09/2026

The title commitment and survey are where a clean-looking Texas home deal quietly dies. How to read Schedules A-D, when you need a new survey and a T-47, the area-and-boundary exception, and how the objection clock protects your earnest money.

title commitmentsurveyT-47TREC contractTexas title insuranceNorthwest Austinbuyer guideclosing

Property Tax Proration in Texas: What Actually Happens to Your Taxes at Closing

James Brinkman

Published on: 07/09/2026

How Texas property tax proration works at closing: why the seller credits the buyer, where the pre-bill estimate comes from, the TREC reproration clause, and the reset that can make your second-year Northwest Austin tax bill jump.

property taxesclosingprorationnorthwest austinhomestead capTREC contract