Apartment Living: Finding the Right Place to Call Home

Becoming a home owner is an exciting adventure, one that is full of the promise of a secure and happy future. Since you've signed an agreement to purchase that home you may have been experiencing a slight lull in the action and are beginning to think that closing day will never come, but a quick flurry of last minute activity before you sign those final papers may be called for. Read on to get an idea of some eleventh hour tasks that potential homeowners can expect.

Get Insured

You should contact several homeowner's insurance carriers about two weeks ahead of time and get some estimates. You will want to be able to go into the closing with this important detail nailed down, and you may find that there is a bewildering array of policy choices available at several different price points. In some areas of the country, hurricane coverage is a requirement and if you need flood insurance keep in mind that this is sold separately from homeowner's insurance.

Do the Walk-through

You may have only signed your agreement to purchase the home with some contingencies agreed upon. Those repairs or adjustments should have been completed by now, and you would be wise to check on that in person. Don't wait until it's too late for the seller to complete any repairs to your approval; try to do a walk-through inspection about a week ahead of the closing date if not a bit sooner, depending on how many contingencies were necessary. For more extensive repairs, it might be in your best interest to have the home inspector return for another visit. The cost for a re-check should be less than the original inspection cost and could pay off in some cases.

Financing is Final

In some places, your signing of the mortgage paperwork is part of the general closing practice and done on closing day, but if not you will have an appointment with the lender to sign the final forms making the mortgage official.

Closing Day

You will meet with the real estate agent, title officers, the home owners and others to sign the final paperwork. Plan to spend at least an hour or more signing a veritable mountain of forms that will serve to make the home all yours.

Taking Possession

In some instances, you may not actually take possession of the home until the date specified on the closing paperwork, but in most cases you are free to move right in once your have signed all the closing documents.