Contract to Closing

Getting to a signed contract is the visible part of the work. The thirty to forty days between signature and closing are where transactions are made or unmade, and where an experienced REALTOR earns the commission. An average transaction has more than fifty specific tasks and deadlines between contract and keys. Most of them happen behind the scenes; you should not have to track them, and with me, you don’t.

A real estate closing can involve a small crowd of people and companies: the title company, the appraiser, the lender and the loan underwriter, one or more inspectors, possibly a surveyor, sometimes attorneys, both agents, and occasionally specialty contractors. Each of them is doing their own job well; each is concentrating on a narrow slice of the deal. My job is to bring it all together, watch the calendar for all of them, and act before a missed handoff becomes a missed deadline.

For buyers: keeping your deal on the rails

Once your offer is accepted, the first few days set the tone for the rest of the process. I confirm that earnest money is deposited and receipted, that the contract and any disclosures are delivered to the title company on time, and that the title binder or commitment is ordered. Inspections need to be scheduled inside the contract’s inspection period, and the right inspections need to be ordered for your particular home. I coordinate access, attend when it’s useful, and make sure the reports reach us with time to act on them.

From there, the work is rhythm. I track the appraisal and the appraiser’s access. I stay in front of the lender so document requests don’t catch you off guard, and so the loan stays on its closing timeline. I read the title commitment for you, flag anything in it that affects your plans for the home, and confirm that any objection or response deadlines are met. When the time comes for the final walk-through, I walk it with you and make sure the property is delivered in the condition the contract promised.

Some of this requires your attention; most of it does not. I’ll only come to you when I genuinely need you, and when I do, I’ll tell you exactly what I need and when. Everything else, I handle.

For sellers: protecting the sale you’ve worked to land

A signed contract is a milestone, not the finish line. The work for sellers between contract and closing is mostly about defense: protecting the sale you’ve worked to land against the things that can undo it.

I read the title binder with you and look for items that you, as the seller, have to clear before closing: an unreleased lien, a missing quitclaim from a prior co-owner, a probate document still to be recorded, a recent HOA filing that points to a special assessment. Most title binders are routine; the ones that aren’t are far easier to handle if they’re found early. I also coordinate access for the buyer’s inspectors and the appraiser, and make sure their reports and any objections reach us inside the contract’s windows.

When repair requests come back, we read them together. You are rarely obligated to do everything on the list, but you do need to respond on time. I’ll identify what’s reasonable, what’s negotiable, and what I’d push back on, and we craft a response that protects the sale without giving away ground unnecessarily. If repairs are agreed to, I can coordinate the contractors, the timing, and the buyer’s reinspection so closing isn’t delayed.

Most importantly, I stay close to the buyer’s lender. Lender-side surprises in the final two weeks are one of the leading causes of delayed or failed closings, and they are largely preventable with steady attention. You aren’t getting the mortgage, but the buyer’s ability to fund on time is your concern, and it is mine.

Why fifty deadlines need someone watching all of them

Most of those fifty-plus tasks come with a contractual deadline. Miss one and you can lose the right to object, owe repairs you didn’t mean to agree to, or fall out of contract entirely. They don’t announce themselves as they pass; they just pass.

Watching every one of them, every day, is the unglamorous part of the job, and it’s where my experience earns its keep. By the time we sit at the closing table, the surprises will have been handled in the weeks before, not discovered in the room.

When you’re ready, contact me.