5 Common Reasons of Delayed Real Estate Closings

Purchasing a home is an exciting time for all involved, however, there are some "pitfalls" that could postpone or even prevent your real estate transaction from closing. These potential pitfalls can be mitigated by using a reputable lender, real estate agent, and title company at the Lake of the Ozarks, to care for your transaction, start to finish. While even the best companies in these industries cannot combat all of the items that may arise, simply because they are out of their control. They will find these issues far before your closing and recommend guidance for your real estate closing at the Lake of the Ozarks. Continue reading our blog to find 5 common reasons your closing may be delayed.

1.  Discrepancies in Closing Statement

A closing statement is a document that itemizes each fee or charge that is involved in the real estate transaction, for both the buyer and seller. The title company and lender work very closely with one another when preparing this document as the figures on each respective companies closing disclosure must match EXACTLY. If the figures presented at the closing table do not match or are not agreed upon between all parties involved the closing can be postponed, if not fall apart altogether - financial discrepancies at the closing table are typically of high emotion and as such can cause large issues with the closing, as far as total dissolution of the transaction.

2. Unrealistic Contract Dates

Our last blog showcased just why it is important to choose the "perfect closing date" for your real estate transaction, we'd like to expand upon that a little further here. This issue typically arises when the sales contract offer has a closing date set fewer than 30 days from the targeted closing date. We aren't going to say that you cannot close on a real estate transaction in under 30 days, it's been done and is quite possible. If all parties' financials, inspections, and contingencies are in order in the beginning it's possible to have an early closing. However, these are few and far between, there is typically some sort of snag that arises during the transaction that causes a hiccup in the process - typically easily resolved.

3. Appraisal/Inspection Issues

Many lending institutions require an appraisal or home inspection to be completed to ensure that the home is qualified to take as collateral and that the structure is not in any dire need of repair/servicing. These appraisals are a HUGE factor in the process of securing financing, if the value of the home doesn't appraiser where it was estimated during the loan qualification it can throw off debt-to-income ratios, loan to value, and potentially cause you to either come up with more funds for closing or having to find a new property altogether. These issues are typically a high emotion subject for both the buyer and the seller, NOT good.

4. Lender/Underwriting Issues

When a lender looks to finance your purchasing of a home, they look at a variety of factors including credit score, debt-to-income, loan-to-value, reserves, and many other facets of your credit and financial history. While the lender takes an initial look to create an "image" of what the loan will look like, and even prequalify you based on these items, that is not the end of the story. Lending institutions have underwriters that take time to analyze the data compiled by the lender, run it through numerous other regulations and legal checks to ensure everything is kosher. A good lender will have a very clean file back from underwriting with minimal issues, typically. However, even when everything is done correctly, underwriters may find some issues within new regulations or laws that change what the lender is able to commit to.

5. Title Related Problems

Issues with the title can be a time-consuming and complicated battle to fix and depending on the timeframe of your closing, could cause delays. There are common title issues that arise often and can create delays, but many of these items are easy fixes, they just take time, and when you're on a tight time schedule that's not always an option. This is why it's important to ensure you're selecting the best title agency in your area to handle your real estate transaction, they'll find the issues before the final week or so of closing. Giving parties additional time to fix any issues that may have arisen.

It's possible to avoid these issues by selecting a reputable title company at Lake of the Ozarks (we may have one in mind....) to handle your real estate transaction. At Arrowhead Title, we are passionate about providing fast and accurate title services for the Lake of the Ozarks. So, when looking to close on your real estate transaction without a hitch, trust Arrowhead Title for all of your title and settlement service needs!

The Lake of the Ozarks' Most Trusted Title Company

Where Accuracy Matters!


750 Bagnell Dam Blvd Suite B
Lake Ozark, MO 65049

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