When it comes time to close on the purchase of your Massachusetts home, you will need to bring funds to the closing. In Massachusetts, the closing is done by a closing attorney. The attorney's office will let you know a day or so prior to the closing how much money you need to bring. Since the closing attorney needs to provide good funds to the Sellers and anyone else receiving funds from the closing, your funds also need to be good funds. A wire transfer or bank check is required. Personal checks are not acceptable.
Prior to closing, I provide my clients with information about what to expect at the closing and steps to take prior to closing. At that time, I remind them that the closing attorney will be providing them with figures and that they'll need a bank check or do a wire transfer.
It never occurred to me that I needed to explain what a bank check is. After all, these people have jobs, have qualified for a mortgage....they must know what a bank check is, right?
Not necessarily. At a recent closing, the attorney asked my client for his check. Imagine my surprise when he took out his checkbook to write out a check! I asked him if he had been told he needed a bank check. Yes...he replied...this is a bank check...it's a check I am writing out on my bank account! I explained no - that is a personal check! The closing attorney explained that yes he needed a check from a bank and not a personal check.
Luckily, the Sellers were not buying another house and my buyers were not moving in that day so everyone was able to wait until my buyer could get certified funds. With an out of state bank, it was a little complicated. But, it worked out. Everything got recorded the next morning and no harm done.
Wondering if I had dropped the ball and should have explained the difference, I went home and asked my 18-year old daughter if she knew what a bank check was. She said she was not 100% sure but she assumed it was a check that she'd have to get from a bank. Whew!
For those who do not know the difference....a personal check is a check that you write out yourself. It takes a couple of days to clear. A bank check is a check issued by your bank drawn from the money in your account. The bank already has your money and can give good funds in the form of a bank check.
A personal check is not the same as a bank check. Make sure you know the difference!
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