It’s been a long trek to the finish line & now you’re here! What can you expect, and before you get here, how can you plan so that it’s the best experience ever? Well, let’s take a look at a few random things that tend to come up, just for fun.
- Personal Items & Trash – The standard OREF Residential Sale Agreement states: “Prior to Closing, Seller will remove all of Seller’s personal property (including trash).” Even though this is in the Agreement, people get confused about it all the time. I’ve had to deal with people’s sheds filled with boxes and all kinds of interesting things after Closing. Some people think you want their bags of redeemable cans in the closet, or that you want every can of paint they’ve ever decided to store in the garage “just in case”, or a stack of pallets on the side of the house, etc etc. Now, there are things people leave that are actually helpful, like a few cans of paint so that you can match or touch up if you want, maybe a lawnmower if the Seller is moving to a condo and you’re a First-Time Home-Buyer, or an unopened bag of lawn fertilizer (handy) or a set of yard tools…you get the picture. The biggest thing to remember here is that this should be addressed up front. These kinds of things can sometimes be talked about during the Inspection Period. It doesn’t hurt to just mention that you either do or no not want these items (“The Seller is removing everything from the shed & garage, right?”…”Those tires stacked in the back corner of the yard are being removed, right?”), and your Agent reminding the Seller’s Agent prior to Closing that the shed needs to be empty, etc never hurts. I had my own Seller tell me one time “I didn’t know I had to empty the shed!”. You may also write a final walkthrough into your Offer if you want to, but remember that if you’re competing, you may also want to consider leaving anything “extra” like this out of that initial Offer document, perhaps addressing it later on with an Addendum, or your Agent just checking in verbally on any final checklist items.
- Clean – You expect your new home to be clean on the day you take Possession. The trouble is that, like one mentor-Agent of mine told me when I was new- “People are quirky”. Different people have different ideas of what clean means. Be prepared with Plan B as a Buyer if you are not satisfied with the level of clean that you find on Closing Day. You can line up a house-cleaner to help prior to moving day, or just prepare to give it a once-over yourself, or my favorite idea: Move in and then hire a house-cleaner to help clean AND instill order after the moving and chaos dies down a bit.
- Possession Timing – That reminds me of the time I found myself on my hands and knees scrubbing a refrigerator at 4:00PM after dumping everything in it into black plastic bags because my Seller was confused about the 5:00PM deadline for move-out. He apparently thought of it as an easy-going goal to work toward and not as a contractual obligation, so when I showed up a couple hours ahead to help (upon learning he was still moving out) I ended up on my knees with cleaning products in Super-Woman mode. So… Pay attention to the dates & times stipulated in the contract, and as a Buyer, your Agent may want to check in with the Seller’s Agent ahead of time just to make sure everyone is on the same page. It has been a matter of discussion among Realtors recently as to whether a standard 5:00PM Possession in the contract meant anytime that day & 5:00 at the absolute latest, or: 5:00PM. (Yes, you can write in other times, but usually it ends up being 5:00PM….Funding & Recording often finalize around 4:00PM, for one thing.) The contract states “by 5:00PM”. This is generally interpreted to mean 5:00PM : ) unless the parties agree that the Seller is all moved out, Funding and Recording have occurred, and the Buyer is welcome to take possession earlier than 5:00. As with most things, communication and forethought are key.
- Fixtures, “Smart Home” Features, and Appliances – This should all be spelled out waaay ahead of Closing day. Fixtures stay with the home unless otherwise specified in writing. Fixtures are understood to be things permanently affixed to the house or obviously meant to be a functioning part of the home. So, things like Wall-brackets for TV’s generally stay, BUT, some Sellers may get confused and think that they’re a part of their TV, or you may not have a wall TV and really prefer they take the brackets. The easy answer to this looming potential issue is to spell it out in writing, preferably in the Offer. The same confusion can arise over home video-monitoring systems, cameras, fancy remote-control tech toys for thermostats etc that may be part of a subscription package. Again, do it in writing so everyone is clear what stays and what goes. Appliances are always spelled out in the Offer even if they’re included in the Listing just so that everyone is in a good mood on Closing day & not “surprised” by misunderstandings.
All in all, the basic idea is to think ahead & talk through a plan with your Agent so that when you walk into your new home, you’re doing nothing but popping champagne, or jumping up & down, or running from room to room making happy sounds. It should be your Day of Joy!
One of my favorite overarching rules to live by that applies to so many things is summed up in this quote from Terry Josephson: “The more you prepare, the luckier you appear.”