Purchase · 4 min read
Does my earnest money have to be sourced for underwriting?
August 17, 2026 · Written by Bill Egan, NMLS 7342
Short answer
Yes, if it was a large deposit or it is part of the cash you need to close. The underwriter needs to see the money leave your account, or the donor’s account, and show up at the title or escrow company. A signed contract that says you paid earnest money is not the paper trail. Egan Financial Group LLC matches the receipt to the bank line.
01
Why this comes up
You wired earnest money — the good-faith deposit that holds the house — the day the offer was accepted, and then you forgot about it. Weeks later someone wants the receipt, the bank line that shows the withdrawal, and proof title has it. You thought the signed contract was enough.
02
Where this goes wrong
The earnest money came from a family account with no gift letter. Or you paid in cash. The deposit on your statement looks like a large unsourced credit, then a matching outgoing wire. Without the trail, those funds may not count toward closing. You are a few days from the table, title is asking too, and nobody can reconstruct a cash envelope.
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What we do about it
We ask for the earnest-money trail when the contract comes in, not when the Closing Disclosure is already out. Gift, transfer from your own checking, or a mix — we match it. Egan Financial Group LLC will not send you to the table hoping title already knows.
04
How to get ready
Keep the wire receipt and the bank line that shows the money leaving. If someone else paid it, treat it like a gift: a signed letter, their statement, and your receipt. Do not pay earnest money in cash. Tell us which account it came from the day you send it.