When a Texas contract falls apart, someone has to tell the title company where the earnest money goes. Here's how TXR 1904 works, who signs it, and how to avoid the mistakes that stall a release.
The earnest money release form Texas agents use is TXR 1904, Release of Earnest Money. It's a Texas REALTORS® form, not a TREC-promulgated one — TREC doesn't publish its own version, so TXR 1904 is the standard document used statewide whenever a deal terminates and the parties need to direct the escrow agent on how to disburse the deposit.
TXR 1904 is categorized as 'other' rather than as a contract or an addendum. That matters: it isn't a term of the purchase agreement itself. It's a standalone instruction that buyer and seller (or their authorized signatories) send to the title company or escrow agent once the underlying contract has already ended, telling that agent where the earnest money should go.
The form applies across deal types — residential sales, farm & ranch, commercial sales, and vacant land — because earnest money deposits and terminations happen under all of Texas's promulgated and TXR contracts, from the One to Four Family Residential Contract (Resale) to the Commercial Contract - Unimproved Property.
Earnest money is deposited with a title company or escrow agent under the terms of whichever contract governs the deal — the One to Four Family Residential Contract (Resale), the Unimproved Property Contract, the Farm and Ranch Contract, a New Home Contract, a Residential Condominium Contract, or a Commercial Contract. That deposit sits with the escrow agent until the transaction closes, or until the contract terminates.
A release becomes necessary any time a deal doesn't make it to closing: the buyer terminates during an option period, a financing or appraisal contingency isn't met, an inspection reveals a dealbreaker, or both sides simply agree the deal is off. In every one of those scenarios, the escrow agent needs written direction — TXR 1904 — before it can disburse the funds to whichever party is entitled to them under the contract.
In the typical case, both buyer and seller (or their authorized signatories) sign TXR 1904 agreeing on where the earnest money goes — back to the buyer, to the seller, or split between them. Once the title company has that mutual signed instruction, it can process the disbursement.
Problems arise when the parties don't agree. If one side won't sign, the escrow agent generally can't release funds unilaterally; the money stays in escrow until the parties reach agreement or the matter is resolved through the process the contract specifies. Agents should never advise clients on the legal merits of a disputed earnest money claim — that's a conversation for the client's attorney, and it's exactly the kind of situation where looping in your sponsoring broker early pays off.
Once termination is confirmed, get TXR 1904 to all signing parties immediately — delays here directly delay a client's refund.
A release with only one party's signature typically can't move funds; confirm both sides (or their authorized representatives) have signed before submitting.
If buyer and seller can't agree on where the earnest money goes, involve your sponsoring broker and direct the client to their own attorney rather than negotiating the dispute yourself.
Fill every current TREC form plus a growing TXR library from a guided in-app form, then send for e-signature with no per-signature fee — see /features/ezdocs for what's currently supported.
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It's TXR 1904, Release of Earnest Money — a Texas REALTORS® form. TREC does not promulgate its own version, so TXR 1904 is the standard document used across residential, farm & ranch, commercial, and vacant land deals statewide.
Generally both buyer and seller (or their authorized signatories) sign the release, directing the escrow agent on how to disburse the earnest money. If only one party signs and the other disagrees, the escrow agent typically won't release funds without full agreement or another resolution.
The funds generally stay in escrow with the title company until the dispute is resolved. This is a legal matter for the client's own attorney to advise on — agents should not attempt to resolve a disputed release themselves and should involve their sponsoring broker.
TXR 1904 itself is used across residential sales, farm & ranch, commercial sales, and vacant land deals. The earnest money terms that govern why and how a release happens can differ slightly depending on the underlying contract — for example, the One to Four Family Residential Contract (Resale) versus a Commercial Contract.
RaiderX's EZDocs tool (currently in beta) lets agents fill every current TREC form plus a growing library of TXR forms from a guided form inside the platform, then send them for e-signature with no per-signature fee, with the signed copy filed into the deal automatically. TXR 1904 may be part of that growing TXR library — check /features/ezdocs for the current list of supported forms.
No. RaiderX does not charge transaction fees, desk fees, or take a share of commission. Agents pay a flat monthly sponsorship fee and have access to dedicated broker support for situations like a disputed earnest money release.
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