If you’re coming up on the closing for your new home, you may be unsure of what to expect. You’re going to spend some time signing documents in order to exchange funds, agree to terms, and transfer the title. If you familiarize yourself with the documents you’ll be signing ahead of time, you’ll save time reviewing them during the closing itself.
Read on to find out the what and why of common documents you can expect to find at your close of escrow.
Property Transfer Documents
Typically, you’ll be presented with real estate transfer documents already signed by the seller at your closing. Regardless of where you live and variation in procedure, you’ll likely see these in the bunch:
Property Deed
The deed is the physical document that represents the transfer of property from the seller to the buyer. The deed will ultimately be presented to your county recorder of deeds in order to establish public knowledge of your ownership of the property. This is important for future title searches performed for the property, as these investigations rely on public records like these.
Seller’s Affidavit
This document may go by different names in different regions, but it confirms the seller’s ownership of the property and discloses any outstanding liens, property disputes, or other conditions that may affect the property’s title.
Tax Declarations
Your tax declaration will be signed by the buyer and the seller in order to confirm both the selling price and appropriate tax on the property transfer.
Loan Documents
Loan Note
The loan note describes the nature of your debt to the lender. This includes the value, the terms, and the means of collection for repayment. The holder of the note is the owner of your debt.
The Mortgage
This document indicates that your new property also functions as collateral against the loan used to purchase it. It signifies the lender’s interest in your property, which is equivalent to your outstanding debt with them. Because it establishes your property as collateral, it also entitles the lender to foreclose on the property if you default on terms.
The Loan Estimate and Disclosure
The loan disclosure is the finalized form of the loan estimate, which is a rundown of relevant details about your loan. It provides an estimated repayment rate by month along with your closing costs and mortgage fees.
Title Documents
So, after you’ve handled documents relating to the transfer of property and conditions of your loan, you’ll move on to the title commitment.
This document presents you with the condition of the property title, which will need to be reviewed and compared to the condition of the title as it appears in the contract. You will need to resolve any discrepancies that may appear between the two before your closing can proceed.
After the commitment, you’ll be given a series of closing documents related to compliance and title transfer. Finally, you’ll sign off on the disbursal of escrow funds in order to complete the transaction.
Keep Your Documents
While this doesn’t represent a complete list of documents you’ll encounter at closing, it should help orient you a bit during the process to avoid getting lost in paper and ink. Remember to request copies of all important documents if they haven’t already been provided. Keeping extensive records might save you some trouble later on.
Chose Boundary Title & Escrow For Your Closing Needs
If this sounds like a lot, don’t worry! If you choose Boundary Title & Escrow, we’ll guide you through the process with the care and expertise our clients have come to expect.