A closing in real estate often feels a bit anticlimactic for Northern Virginia homebuyers and sellers, given the long journey that precedes the hour or so they spend at the settlement table. For a buyer, most of the paperwork that you sign at closing includes similar versions of loan documents that you’ve already gone over with your lender. Suffice it to say that your hand will be tired at the end of the settlement appointment! A seller’s paperwork is shorter and less involved.
What Does the Day of Closing in Real Estate Transactions Look Like?
On the day of closing, the property changes hands, although the sale must be recorded with the county in order to make the property transfer official. That process takes one or two business days, and the settlement company handles all of that after the buyer and seller sign their paperwork. Settlement companies in Virginia are typically title companies, but a closing in real estate can also be handled by a lawyer in Virginia.
In the final days before a closing in real estate, the buyer’s lender sends out a closing disclosure to the buyer, which details their closing costs and breaks down the final numbers for the sale. Title companies also often send out closing statements to the buyer and seller which break all of the numbers down. All of the other paperwork that the buyer and seller sign is provided at settlement.
How Long Does Everything Take?
Signing typically moves pretty quickly at a closing in real estate, as most of the documents are “boiler plate” in nature. However, there’s no need at all to feel rushed. You can take as long as you like, and you can ask the settlement attorney as many questions you might have.
At the conclusion of settlement, the buyer gets the keys to the house. After the transaction has been recorded with the county, the title company disburses the funds to the appropriate parties.
Most real estate agents attend settlements (I always do), so you’ll have some moral support at the closing table as well!
Are you thinking of buying a home in Northern Virginia, but you’re not sure where to start? Call me at 703-462-0700 or email me at DarrenRobertsonHomes@gmail.com. I work with a lot of first time homebuyers, so I have a lot of experience walking my clients through every aspect of a real estate sale, from home shopping to closing!