Real Estate Closings

The closing is the conference at which the real estate transaction is consummated. The closing agent will be responsible for coordinating all aspects of the process. The title to real estate must be closely examined through a careful review of all relevant courthouse records. The closing agent must monitor compliance with all contractual terms. A settlement statement will be prepared, summarizing the financial details. Certain documents need to be duly recorded.

The transfer of title to real estate is a legal process. We submit that the parties to a closing will benefit by the involvement of a licensed attorney. Don't hesitate to utilize the services of an attorney for what might be the single most significant legal event in your lifetime.

Yet be aware that even where an attorney is involved as a closing agent, he may not be representing your interests. By way of example, the closing agent may be representing only the interests of the lending institution, i.e. the bank. You need to be clear as to who represents whom.

At Corbin Law Offices we work in these various capacities. We may close the transaction on behalf of the bank, or we may be representing a particular party to the transaction, e.g. the buyer or the seller. No one person can represent all of these competing interests. Such would pose a clear conflict of interests.

Should both the buyer and seller at a closing be represented by separate legal counsel? Yes. If not, you are assuming a certain level of risk. You are assuming and/or trusting that things will go all right, and that legal problems will not develop in the near or distant future.