At Clear Title, we help people make one of the biggest financial decisions in their life: purchasing a home. The closing process can be complex and challenging, so we have developed this Homebuying Horror Story Series to bring to light some of the situations that can arise during this process. Last month we covered hidden liens; this month we are focusing on whether it’s better to close at the beginning or the end of the month.

Fictional Situation: Skye & Matthew

• Newlyweds purchasing their first home
• No children
• Free-thinkers and novelty seekers

Skye and Matthew were notoriously late to parties, movies, special events and even work. Their casual, laid-back personalities caused frustration for many of their friends, family members and co-workers, but this was simply how the couple liked to live their lives.

When it came to purchasing their first home together, they took their sweet time looking at many different options. After a full year of weighing their options, they finally made a decision and surprised everyone by making the leap into homebuying. They hired a title company to help them through this new and complicated process, but their procrastination ended up costing them frustrations in the process.

Their closing company recommended closing on their home at the beginning or middle of the month, rather than the end of the month. The closing company explained the benefits of an early closing to the newlyweds:

• They would have more time before their first mortgage payment would be due (the first day of the month after a 30-day period after the close)
• Fewer mistakes might be made in the closing process because no one would be rushed
• They might receive better service from closing attorneys, appraisers, lenders, etc.
• Closing in the middle of the month would reduce the amount of prepaid interest that would be due

However, even with these recommendations, Skye and Matthew drug their feet in the process. As a result, their closing date was pushed toward the end of the month. Unfortunately, that meant that there was a bottleneck with the title company and mortgage companies they used so they were not able to close on their new home in October as they had hoped – it had to be pushed to November.

Because Skye and Matthew had planned on moving into their home in October and had already cancelled their apartment rental agreement, they had to move in with friends until their new home was officially theirs – causing inconvenience for all involved. The early close date in November also led to the couple owing a greater amount of prepaid interest on the sale.

Homebuying can be a stressful process, but it doesn’t have to be – especially when you have trusted experts on your side, ones who keep the homebuying wheels turning. 

Clear Title is a title company in Pensacola, Florida, led by Board Certified Real Estate Attorney Stephen R. Moorhead. For over 30 years he has honed his skills in real estate closing and built a team of experienced, trustworthy experts to keep the horror out of homebuying. When you trust Clear Title, you’re getting 100s of years of combined experience in your homebuying court.

To schedule a meeting with our experts and explore our Pensacola title services, contact us today at (850) 202-8518 or visit ClearTitlenwfl.com.