"Closing", which is the day you sign all the documentation and take ownership of the property you are purchasing.
BEFORE YOUR CLOSING
Your attorney, either the evening before or the morning of, will alert you as to the final amount that you will owe at closing, which will be due in the form of certified bank funds or you can arrange for a wire transfer. This will be a large amount as it combines the remainder of your down payment and all of your closing costs.
Shortly before your closing you'll want to do a walk thru with your real estate agent, so be sure to schedule this at least a day in advance. Your walk thru, depending on the size of the home and whether repairs needed to be made, can last anywhere from 10-25min.
AT THE WALK THRU
You are there to carefully look over the home for any new possible damage that may have occurred when the sellers moved out, or from the unit being vacant.
You'll also bring with you a list of items that the seller agreed to rectify prior to closing, and check that these items were done. In cases where you are not able to detect whether a repair was completed, schedule in advance for your home inspector to come back in with you to check for you, or ask them if you can call them during the walk thru.
Hopefully all is well and you can head straight to the closing. If there is a problem, alert your real estate agent who will then immediately alert your attorney as to the issue. Usually, the attorney can work out a solution by the time you arrive at your closing. In rare cases where the issue is pertinent, your closing can be stalled until an acceptable agreement is reached.
AT YOUR CLOSING
A few people may be present:
You
Your attorney
Your real estate agent
The other party (seller)
Seller attorney
Seller real estate agent
Title Company
Mortgage Rep
Your attorney will review with you all of the documents that pertain to your sale or purchase. If you are the buyer, he or she will review with you your entire closing package page by page, usually giving you a summary of what the document you are signing means. If you have any questions be sure to ask, but this paperwork is standard and required by mortgage and government regulators. He or she will also review with you what's called the HUD line by line, so you understand where your money is going (closing costs) and how these figures were calculated.
Your closing will typically last anywhere from 30 to 60min. If a party is late then you can certainly run over, or if there is a problem like issues during the walk thru.
But, let's assume all goes well and you've signed the final page needing your signature. Congratulations! You'll be handed over your keys to your new home and on your way to enjoy.
I hope this gives you some ease and now you know what to expect at a closing and final walk thru!
