Closing Services
We are located in Vero Beach and have the resources to handle closings anywhere in the State of Florida, day or night, seven days a week. Please give us a call today to handle your closing!
Closing any real estate transaction involves a considerable degree of skill and training. Deeds must be properly prepared and executed. Existing mortgages must be satisfied or properly assumed. New mortgages must be prepared and recorded. Title defects must be identified and corrected. Money must be collected, properly accounted for, and disbursed in accordance with the intent of the parties. All of these chores, and many more, are provided by Atlantic Coastal Land Title Company Vero Beach as part of the normal closing process.
How To Prepare For Your Closing So There Are No Surprises
The buyer and the seller sign a purchase agreement or sales contract. Usually, at this point, the buyer is asked to make a small initial payment, often called an “earnest money deposit,” as evidence of intention to buy the property. Then the buyer will apply to a lender for a loan.
The sales agreement the buyer signed described the property, states the purchase price, sets forth the method of payment and may name the date and place where the “closing” or actual transfer of the property will occur. This meeting or transaction is sometimes called “settlement” or “passing of papers.”
A new deed will be prepared transferring ownership of the property to the buyer. The lender will require the buyer’s signature on a document, usually a promissory note, as evidence that they are personally responsible for repaying the loan. Also, the buyer will sign a mortgage on the property as security to the lender of the loan. The mortgage gives the lender the right to have the property sold if the buyer fails to make the payments. Sometimes a “deed of trust” or “security deed” is used instead of a mortgage, but the legal effect is virtually the same. Before the buyer exchanges these papers, the property may be surveyed, appraised and inspected for termites or other structural problems, and the ownership of title will be checked in county and court records.
Although closing practices vary from state to state and within some states, at the closing of title, the seller should be prepared with at least the following:
- Seller’s copy of contract
- The latest tax, water and assessment receipted bills
- Latest possible meter reading of water, gas or electric utilities
- Receipts for last payment of interest on mortgages
- Satisfaction of any mechanic’s liens, chattel mortgages, judgments or mortgages that were paid prior to the closing
- Bill of sale of personal property covered by the contract
- Any unrecorded instruments that affect the title
- Deed and other instruments that the seller is to deliver or prepare
At the closing of title, the purchaser should do at least the following:
- Have purchaser’s copy of contract
- Have sufficient cash or certified checks to make payments
- See that all liens which must be removed are attended to as agreed
- Obtain affidavit of title
- Have original and mortgagee’s endorsements for all fire, casualty, and other insurance policies
- Obtain Bill of Sale of personal property covered by the contract
- Examine survey, if available
- Review any covenants or restrictions affecting the tile or use of the property as shown in the title commitment
- Have bills for any unpaid tax, utilities, or assessments and have interest computed up to date of closing
- Make adjustments as called for in the contract
Many mortgage lenders insist on mortgage title insurance. This is understandable. Realtors and attorneys tend to advise the owners to request owner’s title insurance at the same time. The added premium is certainly minimal when both are ordered together.
We are located in Vero Beach, Florida and provide title services for the entire state of Florida.
