What Massachusetts Sellers Must Have Ready Before the Closing Table

Closings in Massachusetts rarely fall apart at the end. They get delayed at the end — usually by a document somebody assumed the other side was handling. Almost all of it is preventable, and almost all of it is the seller's to produce.

Here is the list, in the order you should start them.

The smoke and carbon monoxide certificate

Massachusetts requires a certificate of compliance from the local fire department confirming that smoke and carbon monoxide detectors meet code before a residential property changes hands. It is the seller's obligation, and the certificate has a limited validity period — commonly 60 days — so it is timed rather than done early.

Two things make this the single most common cause of a delayed closing:

Fire departments book out. In busy months, some towns are two or three weeks out for an inspection appointment. Call for the slot as soon as you have an accepted offer with a firm date, even though the inspection itself happens later.
Requirements have changed repeatedly. Photoelectric versus ionization, placement relative to kitchens and bathrooms, sealed ten-year batteries, hardwired interconnection in newer construction. What was compliant when you bought the house may not be compliant now.

If you fail, you re-inspect, and re-inspection means another appointment. Ask the department for their current requirement sheet before the inspector arrives, and fix everything on it first.

The final water and sewer reading

Most municipalities require a final meter reading so the bill can be settled at closing. You request it from the water department, usually a few days ahead. Some towns want notice of a week or more, and a handful still require someone to be home for the reading.

This is a small item that becomes a large one when nobody remembers it and the closing has to wait for the town to open on Monday.

The 6(d) certificate, if you are selling a condominium

Under M.G.L. c. 183A, § 6(d), a condominium unit cannot be conveyed free of the association's lien without a certificate from the association stating that common expenses have been paid. Your buyer's attorney will require it.

Request it from the management company as soon as you are under agreement. Management companies charge a fee, take days rather than hours, and some take considerably longer. If there is an outstanding balance or a special assessment in progress, you want to know now, not the week of closing.

While you are asking, get the rest of the condominium document package together — master deed, bylaws, budget, and the current financials. A buyer's lender will want them, and lender review of an association's finances is a real failure point in condominium deals.

Title 5, if you are on septic

If the house is not on municipal sewer, the system generally needs a passing Title 5 inspection within two years before transfer. Do this before you list, not after you accept an offer — the full reasoning is in Title 5 and septic systems, but the short version is that if it fails, you want three quotes and your own timeline, not a deadline and a buyer with leverage.

The municipal lien certificate

This is ordered by the buyer's attorney rather than by you, but it affects you: it shows unpaid property taxes, water and sewer charges, and betterments against the property. If something appears on it that you did not know about — an old betterment for a sewer extension, for example — it gets resolved out of your proceeds. Knowing about it early is better than discovering it at the settlement statement.

The deed, the title, and the things that surface late

Your attorney prepares the deed, but title issues are found by the buyer's side and they are found late. The ones that recur:

An old mortgage that was paid off but never discharged of record.
A deceased co-owner whose estate was never properly handled.
A boundary or easement discrepancy revealed by the survey or plot plan.
An unpermitted addition that shows on the assessor's card but has no permit history.
A solar lease or a power purchase agreement that has to be assigned or bought out.

If you know about any of these, tell your attorney the day you sign the listing agreement. Every one of them is fixable with time and painful without it.

Smoke alarms aside, what buyers actually check at the walkthrough

The final walkthrough happens hours before closing and is not a re-inspection. It confirms three things: that the agreed repairs were done, that the property is in the condition it was in when they last saw it, and that everything that was supposed to stay is still there. Deals get tense at the walkthrough over light fixtures, appliances, and window treatments that the seller considered personal and the buyer considered included. Settle that list in the contract, and leave the manuals and the spare keys on the counter.

A working timeline

Before listing: Title 5 if on septic. Locate the deed, survey, permits, and warranties. Order condominium documents if applicable.
On acceptance: Call the fire department about scheduling. Request the 6(d) certificate. Tell your attorney about any known title issue.
Two weeks out: Confirm the fire inspection date. Book the movers. Confirm the payoff figure on your mortgage.
One week out: Final water reading requested. Fire inspection done. Review the settlement statement when it arrives, and query anything you do not recognise.
Day of: Walkthrough, then closing. Bring photo ID.

None of this is difficult. All of it takes longer than people expect, and every item on the list is somebody's reason for a two-week delay.

The seller's guide covers the earlier half of the process — pricing, preparation and marketing. This is what the last thirty days look like.

Requirements are current as of 2026 and vary by municipality. Your closing attorney and your town's departments are the authorities on any specific property; this is a checklist, not legal advice.