The contract is finalized and signed, the mortgage approval is received and the movers are ready to pack up your stuff and move it to the new house any moment now. Looks like you did everything you had to in order to prepare to close on your home.

But, there’re numerous situations that often happen in the real estate world and tiny details an overly excited buyer desperate to finally seal the deal and move in into his new home may forget about, but strongly regret on the closing day or after he obtains the full rights to the property. In an ideal world, the home closing procedure is nothing but pure formality and the happy moment of receiving the keys to the house that, from now, belongs to the new owner. But, when the real life kicks in with its bumps on the way, it’s easy to go off road and fail the entire deal.

These house closing tips should help you prevent an enormous disaster, prepare for the process and conduct a smooth painless closing.

Things to know/do before the house closing

Come educated

Obviously, you won’t be the only one facing the seller and signing all the papers. Your legal representative, as well as real estate agent and most likely a closing agent will be by your side during that day. However, it’s still necessary to learn as much as you possibly can about the peculiarities of the house closing to know what to expect from the day, how to prepare for it and which parts of the process are completely obligatory. This way, all parties involved will come well-educated and prepared for the deal closure, which means that fewer mistakes will be made.

So, do your research online and don’t be ashamed to ask your attorney or real estate agent what house closing actually means, what papers have to be brought and signed, which fees have to be paid, how much time it will take and at which point there would be no way to retreat and withdraw from the deal.

Make sure that everyone and everything is ready

First of all, check in with your house closing lawyer and make the list of papers you need to bring to seal the deal. Don’t rely on other parties when it comes to gathering the paperwork and ensure that those documents are physically present on your own.

Even though in most real estate deals, which are carried out with the escrow company’s assistance, the latter provides the clients (the buyers) with an inclusive packet of papers that conclude the deal. But, you’re going to be the one who’s responsible for the deal and who bears its consequences. Thus, protect yourself and go through the papers with your attorney, insurance and real estate agent to make sure that you understand the peculiarities of the purchase.

Most importantly, find the mortgage approval letter and review the conditions of the loan agreement while you still have time to make all its provisions clear, come to the complete understanding of your financial obligations and liability and possibly change some of the contract’s clauses to make them more straightforward or favorable for you.

Finally, I suggest putting together a folder of documents and arranging the time of the house clothing gathering in advance so that everybody who needs to be present at the house closing is able to clear out the schedule and show up on time.

Have someone to take care of your kids and pets

Closing a house and moving is a huge responsibility on its own. It would be just impossible to tackle the kids or pets while signing the final documents and dealing with moving arrangements. Hire a babysitter or ask your family members to look after your kids and pets to be able to pay all the attention to the house closing process and not to overwhelm your children with a new, empty house with no beds to sleep or food to eat.

Learn everything about the property

By the closing day, you should have carried out a couple of inspections to make sure that the value of the house you’re about to buy is worth the money you’re paying for it and that there’re no unpleasant surprises to discover after the purchase, which are now wisely concealed by the current owner.

But, in addition to that, you need to make sure that everything on that property will exclusively belong to you after the purchase. Has the seller given a legal permission (recorded easement) to the neighbors to use the driveway you fell in love with? Are there any recorded restrictions on your property you need to know about? Maybe, the owner of that particular property has to keep his trees and shrubs below the certain height not to disturb the neighbors, or he can’t build the fence, or there’s a height limit imposed on the new construction. Those are the kinds of things you have to make clear.

Transfer the services and switch the utilities

It’s important to have all the utilities and services available at your new property the day you move into it. And, it’s easy to forget about this detail amidst the moving and home buying hustle. So, make the necessary calls a week or so in advance to switch the gas, electricity, water, and cable, as well as to let the home maintenance providers, whose services you use, (weekly house cleaning, Internet, lawn mowing, pool cleaning) about your new address.

Book remodeling contractors

Wouldn’t it be nice to start working on your new home the moment you become its lawful owner and get it finished as fast as possible? For that matter, don’t wait till you receive the keys to the property to call remodeling, paining, flooring, plumbing and other contractors, whose assistance you need to renew your home and make it appropriate for living. Don’t forget to call a locksmith to change the locks the day you move in, as well as take care of the security system installation.

I would even invite them over to the property and ask them to give the estimates regarding the remodels I’d like to carry out to be able to budget the renovation and schedule the remodeling dates to whenever I need, so that the contractors don’t get overbooked and unavailable by the time they’re able to start working on my house.