The Buyer’s Closing Day
Kathy Riggs May 11th, 2009
Welcome back to the continuing journey through a real estate transaction through the buyer’s eyes. In the last few weeks, the buyer has found out his/her price range, contacted a Realtor, looked at houses, made an offer and had a home inspection.
The attorney has researched the title, the appraisal has been done and the lender has completed the file.
We are ready to close!. Hip, hip hooray!
If you haven’t been in the real estate market for quite some time, did you realize how many people were involved in the purchase of home? It is the real estate agent’s job to stay on top of the transaction and make it less stressful for the buyers and sellers. Agents take this trip through every transaction and can anticipate problems that may arise and often help make the ride much smoother. (Makes you wonder why someone would go FSBO, doesn’t it!)
Back to our journey.
The “closing” takes place at the attorney of the buyer’s choice. The seller is responsible for having the deed prepared and that can be done by the same attorney or the seller may choose someone else.
The buyer’s attorney, or closing agent as they are sometimes called, will receive a loan package from the lender with all the documents the seller must sign. A settlement statement, called a HUD, is prepared that accounts for all proceeds and disbursements. All funds – the amount the buyer is borrowing, the down payment, closing costs and the original earnest money – are deposited into the attorney’s account and all disbursements (i.e. payoff of the seller’s loan, recording fees, buyer’s insurance) are paid from the attorney’s account. Hopefully, the loan package arrives a couple of days before closing and the buyer has ample time to review the statement with the lender and the real estate agent. The HUD will show the exact amount the buyer needs to bring to closing.
The buyer should plan to spend 1-1 1/2 hours at the closing. The attorney will review the HUD with the buyer and all other documents the buyer signs. Once the buyer and attorney have completed the paperwork, the deed from the seller to the buyer will be taken to the Register of Deeds to be recorded. And at that point, the buyer becomes a “homeowner.”
on the lighter side
Q. What is a house warming? A. The final call for those that didn’t send a wedding present.
SHAMELESS PLUG
Ready to start looking for your dream home? Call me at 252-939-2432 or email me at kriggs@kathyriggs.com
- Real Estate News
- Comments(0)