What Happens At Closing?

What to expect at closing:

The main players: the home seller, the seller’s real estate agent as well as your own, lawyers for the buyer and seller, a representative from a title company (more on that below), and, from time to time, a representative from the bank or mortgage lender.

Title clearance: Before you may “take possession” of a titile to your new home, most banks mandate a title search of public property records to make sure there are no liens or other issues with transferring the property into your name

Lots of your signatures: It seems as if the paperwork which needs to be signed never ends, so be prepared for hand cramps!

Anything and everything: Often, it seems like on the big day, things happen, like misspellings on important documents, missing pages, traffic jams. Don’t worry about what you can’t control…our team of professionals have seen it all and are ready for anything!

What you will want to bring at closing:

All of the important paperwork: Proof of homeowners insurance, a copy of your contract with the seller, home inspection reports, anything required by the bank, and a driver’s license, passport, or other government-issued ID.

Down payment: You will already know from your disclosure form exactly how much you’ll have to cough up for a down payment and closing costs. Remember that personal checks are not generally not accepted, so you will want to ask before closing whether you should wire transfer those funds or if you’ll need to bring a cashier’s/bank check. However,  do make sure to bring your personal checkbook to closing, since it’s OK to pay smaller fees with it–and it will come in handy in the event any unforeseen fees crop up. (It can happen)!

Once this process is finished–you will have a nice stack of papers and the keys to your new home!