Kim Mullan Blog
Don't Make Closing Day Harder Than It Has To Be
January 9th 2017
BUYERS:
1-When you prepare an offer choose a Monday or Tuesday to close, lenders and lawyers aren’t as busy as later in the week. Fridays or Thursdays before a long weekend are often inundated with closings to be processed. If funds aren’t transferred and title registered before 5 pm you risk having the closing bumped to next business day. No funds, no registration = no keys. That could make for a very disappointing weekend especially if you have a moving company lined up and loaded with your belongings, have no furniture, a vacant property and are being charged rescheduling and storage by your moving company. Don’t plan on having hired contractors start any work on the day of closing. Don’t plan on having any deliveries to your new address on the day of closing. If you don’t have access you will find yourself in a tail spin trying to coordinate multiple people’s schedules for a 2nd time but this time on short notice.
2-When you write your offer consider adding a clause which requires the seller to provide vacant possession by 1 pm on the day of completion. This will help ensure that they take steps to get out and get cleaned up as early as possible. It also gives them a heads-up that you intend to move belongings into your new home at some point that afternoon or as soon as you get your keys. Your seller may also be doing a same day closing and this will encourage them to get Bridge Financing. In a sequence of same-day closings if one party delays transfer of funds all the subsequent closings will be held up or delayed.
3-Don’t count on getting keys until 5 pm. Prepare your move and moving trucks for that scenario. You may be fortunate and the day goes smoothly but there are many variables that could throw the process off track and leave you frustrated or even incurring additional costs. Hope for the best but prepare for 5 pm. If the property hasn’t closed by 5 pm it’s not closing until next business day.
SELLERS:
1-If you are buying AND selling set up BRIDGE FINANCING. This will allow you a day or two to get moved out before the buyer for your own property arrives with their moving truck. It is very stressful to have a seller loading a moving van through the garage while a buyer is unloading their moving van in the front hall. You also need time to clean up after moving your own belongings out. The cost in nominal and well worth asking your lender about.
When the money changes hands and the title is registered the buyers get the keys.
2- If you can’t bridge finance you will need to be packed and ready to roll and extremely well organized. Line up your movers as early in the morning as possible or see if you can load the moving truck the night before. If you have small children this is time for you to hire sitters or call in favours from grandparents or friends – it is just not possible to pack, move and clean under duress with a deadline and supervise or tend to the needs of little ones. If you are doing a same day move HIRE A CLEANER to be on site and clean behind you as you go- ensure they clean the inside of any appliances that are remaining. I have yet to see a same day move where the sellers didn’t run out of time.
The simpler you make it the smoother things will go. Eliminate as many of the potential risks as possible. It's your move.