T
he week before your closing date, you will be busy with appointments and last minute tasks such as these:
• You will need to attend at your lawyers office to sign all necessary documentation. This appointment is typically approximately an hour long, depending on how many documents you need to sign and how many questions you may have.
• In a standard purchase transaction, you will likely need to bring in a bank draft or a certified cheque to your lawyer to close your deal. This will be comprised of the balance of any down-payment required by your bank, the legal fees, disbursements and HST, and any additional required costs, such as title insurance, Land Transfer Tax, and the Ministry of Finance fees required for registrations in Ontario.
• You will need to set up your final walkthrough of the property. This is your last opportunity before closing to make sure the property is how you were expecting it to be. If there are any issues during your walkthrough, such as damage to the property or items you thought were staying that have been removed, let your lawyer or agent know as soon as possible, but definitely before closing.
On the day of closing, you will simply be waiting on other people. If you are dealing with a bank, they will need to get your mortgage funds to your lawyer, who will then get them to the lawyer acting for the vendor to buy the house. If you are selling your house to buy another, you will be waiting on the buyers of that house to go through all those steps before your purchase can start. There are no guarantees of what time things will get done on the closing day. Once you get the call from your lawyer that the deal is done, you will usually need to attend at their office to pick up your keys. Before you do too much at the new house, it is a good idea to get the locks changed, and do a reading of the meters yourself (and take pictures with your phone, if possible).
Following closing, your lawyer will send a letter to the tax department letting them know that there are new owners of the land. If you are paying your own property taxes, be sure to reach out to the tax department to arrange to pay your taxes. If your taxes are getting paid through your mortgage, be sure to get in contact with your mortgage company and make sure that everything is set up correctly and in time for the next installment due. You will then be ready to begin the never-ending chore of unpacking!
