8 Point Checklist to Closing on a Property in [Profile.market]. How to make the process go smoothly, by Pamela Winter-Lonteen, Peoria IL Real Estate Agent

The closing process is the last step to purchasing or selling a home. The process can often be intimidating because of how much legal paperwork there is involved. In this blog post I'll walk you through the process so that the closing process will go much smoother for you.

1) Homeowner's Insurance

Insurance is always necessary to get the mortgage. Remember to have your homeowner's insurance go into effect the day of closing, it is easiest to have this lined up a few days in advance so the insurance agent can do a site visit if necessary.  Remember to bring proof of insurance to closing!

2) Gather All Your Paperwork

Make sure you have all your paperwork in place the day before closing. Review all your paperwork to make sure that everything is in order.

3) Have Your Inspections Completed

At this point the inspections should have all been finished, and any necessary repairs should have been completed and reinspected prior to closing. If receiving funds for repairs at closing, make sure you have a list of all monies received with you so you can check it against the closing statement.

4) Have Title Insurance

It's important to get title insurance for your home purchase. Title insurance insures that the title on your property is clean. Title insurance will be provided to you by the title company/attorneies office when the property closes.

5) Get Approval of Mortgage

At this point, your mortgage should be approved so that you can get your loan to pay for your new property.

6) Bring Your Cashier's Check

The amount necessary for closing on the property should always be in the form of a cashier's check, it is usually the easiest to have it made out to yourself and then sign it over to the title company at closing.

7) Clear All Contingencies

At this point, all contingencies and clauses should be cleared so that you can go ahead with the transfer of the deed.

8) Understand Your Closing Costs

Before closing, it's important to have a good idea of what your closing costs are. It's also important to know who will pay the closing costs. Unless otherwise stated, usually the buyer pays the buyer's closing costs if buying, and the seller pays the seller's closing costs if selling.

Following these tips should make the whole closing process go much smoother for you. Remember to talk to your real estate agent and your loan officer about the closing process, as they've both been through the process many times.

There is a lot of free information available to you about buying, selling or investing in Peoria IL real estate. For complete information about the Peoria Illinois real estate market including current homes for sale, property values and more please visit the most complete website online dedicated to everything Peoria IL real estate at http://CentralIllinoisHomesOnline.com.  Please feel free to contact me with any of your real estate or mortgage related questions and I will be more than glad to answer your questions. Call me on my cell at 309-231-6484 or email me at TeamLonteen@TradersRealty.com.