The day before closing
1. Make sure you wire the down payment.
I wasn't sure how to do this, other than what I've seen in movies where people get kidnapped and their loved ones are forced to pay ransom. It sort of felt that same way, except you can totally turn around and walk away. It's a good thing I followed up the day before to receive the wire instructions. It turns out a few people assumed I received the instructions when in fact, I did not.
So you go to the bank. I originally walked up to the bank tellers, because that's what I thought one should do. One 15 minute line and hearing about a lady trying to get into her son's bank account to get money to bail him out of jail later. I end up waiting at the bankers line. I was assisted promptly by a nice guy who basically read the instructions. Asked me the amount and then poof you're $XXXX poorer. It was very anticlimactic. Make sure you keep a receipt for records. And be prepared for a wire transfer fee.
2. Review the HUD-1 before you get into the room.
A HUD is basically a giant receipt for buying a home. It breaks down all the costs on the seller side (the right column) and the buyer's side (the left). It has all the taxes, credits, government stamps, etc. I was very surprised to see how much closing costs were. Everyone told me to be prepared for that, but those numbers really rack up. This would be one place to negotiate with the sellers. We tried to negotiate, but we failed and ended up paying all the closing costs.
We had an awesome Loan Coordinator who did a great estimate. Don't be afraid to ask these people questions. One of the numbers that you'll want to double check is HOA fees and state taxes. We were surprised by essentially "Welcome Fees" for the neighborhood.
3. Home Walkthrough
The day before your closing or the day of in our case, you'll do a walk through of the house. This means you'll go to the house and just make sure that the people have in fact, moved out, and you'll make sure that everything is how they left it. Our sellers left us furniture, so we just made sure it was all still there. We also located the garage door opener and some miscellaneous keys.
My biggest tip is to check the keys. We did not, but when we later went back to the house found out that some keys are missing etc. This doesn't matter too much because we're changing the locks, but it's annoying to have to walk to the front of the house all the time.
4. Pack 2 Forms of government issued ID.
You will need this the next day for the closing. I bought my passport and driver's license.
What to expect on the day of the closing
1. Don't be late
Not that this should be a problem, but as a former paralegal. I hated when people were late and didn't call.
People got things to do. So if you're late call. We scheduled ours first thing in the morning. The only negative thing would be if the wire did go through. The bank will not let you close on the house without your money.
2. Seating
If you're signing with a person. It's helpful to sit across or next to that person in the order you appear on the paperwork. So it's easy to read, sign, sign.
3. Sign Away
For me this was easy because I previously read every *single* document. Things to check on the papers: Spelling of your name, the correct address on the page. If you're signing with someone else and you're not married, you should also know the different ways to take title*. There are many different ways depending on your state and whatever. We took title as Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship. This means we have equal ownership and if one of us dies, then the other takes title alone. No a big deal, but ensures simplicity in case things go bad.
4. Take your copies and put them somewhere safe.
So that's it. You're done signing. They should give you a copy of everything that you signed. Explain your first payment due dates and costs. Your realtor should give you the keys and send you on your way.
Some interesting notes:
You'll immediate start getting solicitations. I would say it's good to ignore them, but some scammers are really good at faking letter head. It's always better to go ahead and call a company if you're not sure. Banks sell loans like they're on fire, so be certain who you're sending your money too after the loan is established. It's what got America into the financial crisis of 2008, but meh as long as they're making money right?!.
So now what. You're a home owner. Yay brag about it! Enjoy the moment before all the stress of actually owning a home takes over.
*Not a lawyer. Consult one if you have questions.
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