Week 12: Closing Day

Week 12: How to Make Your Settlement / Closing Day Successful

Buying a Home 101 series – Week 12

This step-by-step series will take you through the entire home-buying process — from finding a buyer’s agent to Closing day, and all the details in between. Every first-time buyer will find this information-packed series easy to follow and understand.

This series ends with today’s article but stay tuned next week for a bonus article on maintaining your new home!

You are almost a homeowner! But before you can celebrate, you’ve got to gear up for a successful Closing day. And that means no surprises, no delays, and no leaving without the keys to your new home.

There is a lot to do on the days leading up to your closing and settlement. You’ll be better prepared and on top of everything if you know what to expect. Some of these tasks were covered in last week’s article, Almost There…Pre-Closing Details for Buyers. (LINK)

Today’s article will touch on some of those tasks again but will also cover more of what happens during Closing, also known as Possession day. That way you stay calm and know what to expect!

Here’s a handy breakdown of what you need to do at each stage of the process:

Pre-Closing Tasks to Complete:

Get homeowner’s insurance. Make sure that it starts the day of the closing; no later, even if you are moving in later. This will be provided to your lawyer when you go in to sign papers in the days or week before you take Possession of your new home.

Don’t hurt your credit (loan!). Do not do anything that could change your financial circumstances, such as opening a new credit card account, getting a new auto loan, charging too much on your current credit cards.  Even buying furniture before your settlement is a bad idea.  This could delay or even cancel your mortgage. So hold off on any shopping sprees for your new home!

Connect your utilities. Make sure you make it effective for the day of Closing / Possession, even if you are moving in later.  You can do this ahead of time and often it can be done on-line, which will save you lots of time.

Give yourself enough time to move funds around.  Please be aware that banks typically put at least a 3 day hold on large transfers.  If you’d prefer to wire your funds directly to the lawyer office instead of bringing a certified check, get the instructions from your lawyer.

Complete your final walk-through with your realtor prior to Closing Day if it has been agreed upon in the Contract. Let your lawyer know in case anything is missing or not completed as per the Contract. You are not doing another inspection, but just making sure that any repairs that were agreed upon have been done and ensuring the home is still in the same condition as when you wrote the contract. 

Closing Day

This is the day you’ve been anxiously waiting for – the day you get the keys to your home! Here’s what happens:

Once the Seller’s lawyer receives the remaining funds for the property (in the form of mortgage funds sent from your lender), the lawyer or paralegal will contact the Seller’s agent and let them know that keys are released. What this means, is that as a Buyer, you are now entitled to the keys as you are now the official owner of the property. The Buyer’s agent gets this notification from the Seller’s agent and picks up the keys, which are usually at the seller’s brokerage office. The Buyer’s agent will contact you to arrange a time to meet at the house.

I usually open up the house , turn on the lights and make sure everything is in order and other keys and information are located. I want you to feel comfortable in your new home and know where everything is. Anddddd, of course we celebrate! This is your FIRST home, and a very special milestone in your life, so we will probably take a few pictures of this special time (if you want!). I will present you with a gift that I think you would love or use in your new place!

Congratulations, you did it!

No more renting and paying someone else’s mortgage. You are now a home-owner and will build wealth in the years to come. May you have many happy memories there as you make your house a HOME!

Now that you’re a homeowner, you’ve got to take care of your new home. Next week’s bonus article, Maintaining and Loving Your New Home, is perfect for you. I hope you have enjoyed our Buying a Home 101 series and that it will help you become an informative and confident buyer.

If you’ve enjoyed this series, I’d love the opportunity to help you become a homeowner. 

Our first step together would be a 30 minutes meeting where we’d discuss the steps in the home buying process, talk about your criteria and see if you qualify for any first time home buyer incentives that could save you money. 

Even if you don’t think you are ready to buy for years, I’d love to meet you and help you put together a plan we can implement whenever you are ready.  My goal is to help you when you are ready, not pressure you to do something that isn’t right. 

So, email me (link to my email) and let’s set up a time to talk more about you specific situation and put together a list of things you can do between now and when you are ready to become a homeowner.  That way you’ll have all your ducks in a row when the time comes. You will be further ahead than the majority of buyers out there!