Selling Your Home? Avoid The Following 5 Topics During Closing
The process of making it to closing when selling a house can feel brutal. The entire process of getting the house ready, accommodating showings, negotiations, and inspections can drag on for months. When you finally make it to closing, you just want to get your money and go.
However, you need to stay on your game until all the papers are signed and you are out the door.
Here are five things you don’t want to mention when you are sitting at the closing table:
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Stories about bad things that happened at the house
You do not want to mention anything that is going to scare the buyer or make them doubt their decision to buy the house. For example, mentioning the time the basement flooded is not the right thing to do.
- Anything that makes the neighborhood sound bad
One of the reasons that you are moving might be that you want to live in a safer area, or one that has more activity for your family. You don’t need to share that with the new buyer.
Acting like you want to live in a safer area only means one thing to the new buyer – they will be living in an unsafe neighborhood. Keep any of these thoughts to yourself.
- Divorce
If you are trying to sell your house because of a divorce, you aren’t the only person to have to go through that. However, do not mention that you have an upcoming divorce. This is an awkward topic for people to talk about with you when they don’t know you, and it can cause legal issues for you.
Legally, people are typically required to finalize the divorce prior to selling the house to make sure that the asset is properly split. You will want to make sure you are handling the sale in a way that both you and your ex agree on to avoid problems down the road.
- Making plans to come back later to pick up stuff at the house
It can be difficult to get everything out of the house before closing. If you leave things at the house when it should have been gone, you need to work in the timeline of the new owner. Do not just assume you can come by anytime; the house is no longer yours.
Plan on going by immediately after closing, or ask the new owner if there is a good time that you could come by.
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How difficult the negotiation process was
The buyer is most likely just as frustrated with the negotiation process as you are. Bringing this topic up when you are sitting across from them at the closing table is not a wise choice. No matter how much back and forth there was, avoid mentioning it.
Everything has been agreed on at this point and there is no reason to bring up things that could get yourself or the buyer upset.
Remember that the process is not over until everything is signed and the deed and the money have changed hands. Avoiding these topics at closing will help the closing process be a smooth one. Many times the seller does not need to be present at closing, so you can ask your real estate agent if you need to be there or not.