Why Transaction Coordinators Make Real Estate Deals Close

Real estate is supposed to create more freedom, not less.

Most of us get into this for the same reasons David Olds mentioned: more money, more control over our time, and less stress. Whether you’re wholesaling, flipping, or building a rental portfolio, the plan sounds simple.

Find deals. Get them under contract. Close them. Repeat.

But a lot of investors hit a wall after the contract is signed. Not because they can’t find deals. Because they get stuck in the middle. That contract-to-close phase is where momentum can slow down if no one owns the process.

And that’s exactly why transaction coordinators matter.

What Does a Transaction Coordinator Do?

A transaction coordinator (TC) is the project manager for your real estate deal from the moment the contract is signed until the deal funds.

They coordinate communication, deadlines, documents, and problem-solving across all parties, including:

• Seller
• Buyer
• Title company
• Attorney (if involved)
• Lender (if involved)
• Agents (if involved)

The investor finds the deal. The TC protects the close.

That’s the job.

In an episode of the DealMachine Real Estate Investing Podcast, David Ols breaks down why transaction coordinators are the difference between “under contract” and “funded.” Want the full conversation? Watch the episode here:

The Trap Investors Fall into After Getting “Under Contract.”

David was pretty candid about something I think a lot of people feel but don’t always say out loud. You get an “investor-friendly” title company, assume they’ll handle the heavy lift, and then quickly realize you’ve become their unpaid assistant.

When something goes missing, it comes back to you. When they can’t reach the seller, it comes back to you. When there’s a lien, a trust doc, a death certificate, or a paperwork error, it comes back to you.

Now you’re scrambling, pausing your marketing, delaying follow-ups, missing calls, and losing your pipeline because you’re trying to force one deal across the finish line.

This is where a lot of investors get stuck. They think the chaos is just part of the business.

It doesn’t have to be.

Why “Under Contract” is Not the Win

David said it directly:

“Money is not made when you sign the contract. It’s actually made when you close.”

That’s a helpful mindset shift. A signed agreement is progress, but it’s not the finish line.

Between contract and funding, there are a lot of places a deal can drift if no one is actively moving it forward. Most deals don’t fall apart in one dramatic moment. They usually fall apart in silence, delays, and missed details.

Or as David put it:

“Time kills all deals.”

If you’re building a real business, you need a system that treats the middle of the deal with the same seriousness as the beginning.

The Quarterback Analogy

David described the investor as the team owner. You’re building the business, bringing in deals, and setting the direction. The TC is the quarterback.

They’re the ones running the play-by-play between contract and close. That matters because closings are not one task. They’re a chain of tasks that must happen in the right order with the right people.

A deal has a lot of moving parts:

• Contracts and addenda
• Deadlines and timelines
• Title work and payoff requests
• Earnest money
• HUD review
• Signatures and ID verification
• Communication with the seller and the buyer

If any one piece slips, the deal slows down. Sometimes it stops completely.

A good TC keeps everything aligned and moving.

Why Deals Fail

From the transcript, a few patterns showed up again and again.

1) Communication gaps

When the file gets quiet, people get nervous.

• Sellers start wondering if you’re real
• Buyers start getting cold feet
• Agents stop responding if they sense confusion
• Title moves your file to the bottom of the pile

Silence creates uncertainty. Uncertainty creates cancellations.

2) Missing documents and signatures

This is the “small detail, big consequence” category:

• The wrong contract version was sent to title.
• Addenda not signed.
• Missing initials on key clauses.
• LLC or trust documents not provided.
• Incorrect vesting information.

None of these feel massive in the moment. But they can delay a closing fast.

3) Title delays and unclear timelines

Title teams are busy. They also prioritize clean, predictable files. Investor deals are often not clean or predictable. They can involve liens, probate, foreclosure deadlines, and complicated seller situations.

If the file is incomplete, confusing, or not being followed up on, it’s going to slide.

4) Untrained support

David made a strong point here: hiring help without transaction experience can cost you far more than it saves.

The risk is not their hourly rate. The risk is the assignment fee you lose, the seller's trust you burn, and the reputation hit you take.

The Weekly Seller Update Rhythm

One of the most practical habits David shared is this: Talk to the seller every single week. Even if nothing has changed. Especially if nothing has changed.

This does a few things:

• It keeps the seller calm and engaged
• It prevents ghosting
• It surfaces issues early
• It builds trust because you’re steady

A lot of investors treat communication as reactive. A TC treats it as a system.

What a Good Transaction Coordinator Does Day to Day

Here’s a clean way to think about TC responsibilities, based on what David described.

Immediately after the contract (Day 1)

• Open title and confirm file receipt
• Send the correct contract package and addenda
• Confirm contact info for all parties
• Confirm target close date and key deadlines
• Identify likely risk areas (liens, probate, foreclosure timeline)

Week 1

• Track and collect missing signatures and documents
• Verify legal description and vesting details
• Confirm earnest money and proof of funds
• Request payoff letters and lien details if needed
• Set weekly seller update cadence
• Keep the buyer warm with timeline expectations

Ongoing until close

• Monitor title progress and follow up consistently
• Coordinate remote notary or mobile closing if needed
• Keep a running checklist and file notes
• Catch issues early and escalate appropriately
• Prepare the investor for decisions, not surprises

This is less about “paperwork” and more about ownership.

Common Deal Problems a Transaction Coordinator Prevents

David listed a bunch of situations that show up in real investor deals. A strong TC expects these and has a playbook. Here are a few that come up often:

• Earnest money not received
• Lender backs out at the last minute
• Surprise lien appears in title
• Seller is out of the country or hard to reach
• The property has an incorrect legal description
• Deal has a foreclosure date within days
• Property has no assigned address (land deals especially)
• Memorandum filed that needs to be handled
• Emotional sellers who need consistent reassurance
• Scheduling challenges getting everyone to sign

Investor deals are rarely textbook. Your process has to assume that.

“What’s the Best Title Company?” is usually the Wrong Question

Most title companies are built for what David called the “three R’s”:

• Retail
• Refinance
• Realtors

Those files are lower risk and more standardized.

Investor deals are different. They can involve creative structures, urgency, and messy ownership situations. Many title teams will not move quickly unless the file is being driven.

David’s recommendation wasn’t “find the magic title company.”

It was: get one point of contact who will push the deal to the finish line.

That can be:

• An in-house TC
• An outsourced TC
• A closer you trust deeply

The model matters less than the ownership.

Signs You Need a Transaction Coordinator

If you’re seeing any of these, it’s probably time:

• You have more than 2 active files and feel overwhelmed
• Sellers ask for updates before you’ve given them one
• Buyers complain about slow responses
• You learn about title issues days after they’re found
• Closings keep getting pushed over missing items
• Marketing stops when a deal gets complicated
• You’ve lost a deal over something small (missing initials, late addendum)

That’s not a “you” problem. It’s a capacity problem.

Hiring a TC: What to Look For and What to Ask

You don’t need a perfect hire. You need the right kind of operator.

Look for someone who:

• Has handled investor-style complexity (liens, probate, tight timelines)
• Communicates calmly and consistently
• Works off checklists and deadlines
• Documents everything
• Can follow up with title without creating friction

Questions worth asking:

• What do you do in the first 24 hours after the contract?
• How do you keep sellers updated, and how often?
• How do you handle a buyer who goes quiet?
• What’s your process when Title finds a lien?
• How do you manage deals with foreclosure timelines?
• How do you track deadlines and missing items?

A good TC won’t wing it. They’ll have clear answers and a clear process.

FAQs

Do I need a transaction coordinator for wholesaling?

If you’re into wholesale real estate consistently, yes. Wholesaling has tight timelines, multiple parties, and real risk between contract and funding. A TC protects the assignment fee by keeping the file moving.

Can a title company act as my transaction coordinator?

Sometimes they help, but title companies are not designed to manage your entire deal. They handle title work. They usually won’t chase sellers, manage buyer expectations, track addenda, or run your deadlines unless you have a strong point of contact driving the file.

When should I hire a transaction coordinator?

A practical rule: when you’re doing more than 1 to 2 deals at once and it starts impacting your marketing, follow-up, or seller communication. It also helps if you’ve had a deal die from silence, missed paperwork, or title delays.

What’s the biggest reason deals fall apart after signing?

Communication gaps and deadline drift. When files go quiet, trust drops. People back out. “Time kills all deals,” and silence speeds that up.

How much does a transaction coordinator cost?

It varies by market and structure (per file vs monthly). The better way to evaluate cost is: what does one protected closing pay for? In most cases, a TC is a profit protector, not an expense.

The Takeaway

If you’re doing the work to find deals, you owe it to yourself to protect the close.

A transaction coordinator is not a luxury. It’s the difference between being “under contract” a lot and actually getting paid consistently. Start small if you need to. One file. One checklist. One weekly update cadence. One person who owns the middle.

The goal isn’t perfection. It’s progress.

If this resonates, the next step is usually simpler than it feels: stop trying to quarterback every deal yourself, and put a real process in place so your closings can keep up with your marketing.