Realty411 Magazine Featuring Eric Counts, Credit Nerds | Page 31
12 Steps
to the Closing Table and
the Big Check
By Kathy Kennebrook
(The Marketing Magic Lady)
Okay, so your property is under contract,
you’ve prequalified your prospect; they are
working with the lender and everything is
moving right along, right? Not necessarily.
There are several steps to a successful closing and we are
going to cover those one by one. Now remember, once you
have your dream team in place, you will have the people
available who will handle all of the details for you. In the
meantime, you still need to know what all the steps are so
you know everything gets handled properly.
1. Make sure you get a big enough deposit from your
buyer so they have some real dollars invested in the
deal. Even if they are going for one hundred percent
financing I still get as much as I can in order to secure
the deal better. If your buyer puts down a larger deposit
they are usually more committed to going through with
the closing, so this is a requirement for me. I won’t even
consider a deposit less than $1,000.00, but I always try
for as much as I can get. The higher dollar the property
is, the more deposit I require.
2. Make sure that the lender or the mortgage broker orders
credit and an appraisal on the property immediately.
Usually, I will not consider a buyer who has not already
been prequalified, so usually the credit check has
already been done. Many lenders will try to wait until
they get the contracts and other paperwork in before
ordering the appraisal. This is a nono. If you wait on the
appraisal, it can hold up your closing by two to three
weeks. Plus, if this buyer doesn’t end up buying the
property, the appraisal can be used for the next buyer.
Most appraisals are good for six months and now you
have an appraisal that has already been paid for.
3. Follow up with the loan processor to make sure the
appraisal has been ordered and that the other parts of the
closing are moving along. Many times your title agent or
your Realtor or your sales person will do this for you,
after all they want to get paid too. Make sure they have
everything they need from the buyer regarding loan
documentation.
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