4 Things To Do Before Closing on Your New House

Closing on a house is pretty much a formality. You sign a lot of papers, hand over the check, and get the keys to your new home. Right? Well, almost. There are 5 important things you need to finish before you even set the date to close on your house.

You have a signed sales contract. Is it contingent on you getting financing for the purchase price? And is your mortgage approval conditional on the house inspection and appraisal? If anything runs into snags, you won’t be able to close until all issues are resolved. Read on to find out what to do before closing on a house.

House Inspection

If the house inspection turns up any issues whatsoever, there are 3 options for handling them.

1. You and the seller come to an agreement to lower the purchase price to accommodate the cost of repairs.
2. The seller says the purchase price is for the house “as-is,” and the cost of repairs is already built-in.
3. The seller agrees to make the repairs before closing. With this option, a new inspection may be required. You will be able to tell yourself if a faucet or the oven is fixed. If the problem is a roof or AC repair, get the professional back to take a look.

Appraisal

The appraiser can only assess the value of the house in the condition it will be at the time of sale. So all repairs need to be completed before the appraisal can take place. There is quite a bit of leeway when determining the value of a property. So if you aren’t happy with the appraisal, you can ask to speak with the appraiser or request a new one. It will have to be someone approved by the bank, though.

Mortgage Approval

Both the first and last steps of buying a house should be part of getting a mortgage. It can be quite an involved process, but there are a few things you can do to make it easier. This is essential to do before closing on a house.

– Find out what you’re qualified to borrow. While lenders will have final say, there are calculators all over the internet that can give you a fairly good estimate based on a handful of variables you can play with – interest rates, loan types, number of years, and more. Do this before you even start looking at homes.
– Find out what documentation you need and get it ALL together. Websites can provide that information, and lenders are more than happy to answer any questions.
– Get pre-approved so that you don’t have to wait so long for a closing date.

Final Walkthrough

This is your last chance to make sure that there is nothing wrong with the house before you actually pay for it. Walk around the property, as well as the house, to make sure that nothing is broken and everything that’s supposed to be there is actually there. This is your last step to do before closing on a house.

Then set the date to sign and celebrate!

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