The 3 Most Common Reasons Closings Get Delayed

Your closing is scheduled for Friday. The moving truck is reserved, you gave notice at your apartment, and then you get the call. The closing has to be pushed back.

Three things cause most of the delays, and all three are preventable. Sellers not returning the information sheet in time to get a mortgage payoff. Wire transfers that were not planned with the bank in advance. And nobody telling the closing attorney something important because everyone assumed somebody else did.

In the video below, North Carolina closing attorney Tiffany Webber walks through each one, including the buyer who ended up driving to Pennsylvania to send a wire.

Watch the Full Video

1. The Information Sheet Nobody Sends Back

This is the number one reason closings get delayed in our office, and it is almost always on the seller side.

The closing attorney sends out a buyer and seller information sheet asking for specific information needed to complete the transaction. A lot of people think they already filled out the contract, so why is more information needed?

Because the contract does not give us everything we need to close. For sellers specifically, we need your written authorization to obtain your mortgage payoff statement. Your lender will not give us a payoff amount without your permission. And we are not talking about your most recent loan statement, which does not tell us what you owe down to the penny on closing day. We need an official payoff from your lender.

Those payoff statements can take anywhere from two to fourteen days to arrive. Some lenders are fast, some are slow. If you wait until three days before closing to return your information sheet and your lender takes ten days, we are not closing on time. And we will not close without an accurate payoff.

So if you are selling and your attorney sends you an information sheet, return it immediately. That is the single best thing you can do to protect your closing date. Buyers, the sheet matters too, it just does not usually cause the same level of delay.

2. Wire Transfers Nobody Planned For

In North Carolina, closing attorneys cannot record the deed until all of the funds needed to purchase the property are in our trust account. Both the buyer funds and the lender funds have to be deposited and irrevocably credited before we can record.

Here is where people run into trouble. A lot of banks require you to initiate a wire in person. Not over the phone, not online. In person. So if your bank is in Pennsylvania and you are closing in North Carolina, and nobody told you that, you might be making a last minute trip just to send your closing money. Many banks also require an appointment to come inside, and those appointments can take days or weeks to get.

We had a client who did not think about the wire until the day before closing. Their bank was in Pennsylvania and required an in person appointment. The bank was closed for the day, and the next morning they could not get approval to wire by phone, so they drove to Pennsylvania and wired the funds. By then it was too late to close that day. The funds had not reached the account, settlement could not be completed, and closing moved to Monday. Extra moving costs, a hotel, and a lot of stress, all because the wire was not planned.

So as soon as you go under contract, call your bank and ask about their procedures for wiring funds. If you need an appointment, make it right away. You do not have to go that day, just get it on the calendar.

You probably will not have your final number until the day before closing or the day of. That is fine. Make a good estimate, wire that amount, and bring your checkbook to closing. You can write a check for a small difference, and if you sent too much we refund the overage the same day.

One more thing on wires. Confirm the instructions by phone with a number you already have, never a number from an email. Wire fraud in real estate is common enough that we wrote about it separately in how scammers steal down payments.

3. Nobody Told the Closing Attorney

This one is the easiest to fix. Nobody tells the closing attorney something important, because everybody assumes somebody else already did.

Say you need a mail away closing because you will be out of town. Or you need a power of attorney because your spouse cannot attend. Or you are married but bought the property before the marriage, so it did not occur to you to mention a spouse.

If you do not tell us, we find out at the closing table, and by then it is too late to prepare the documents correctly. If your spouse is not there and we learn you are married, you cannot get your proceeds, because your spouse has to sign off on the documents required to convey the property. Now you are scrambling to get them to the closing, or we are preparing a power of attorney after the fact, and the closing is delayed.

Seller concessions and repair invoices are another common one. If you negotiated a credit or repairs and those invoices do not reach the office ahead of time, they cannot go on the closing statement. Hand us an invoice at the table and the lender has to approve the change to the closing disclosure, which can add hours or days.

The rule is simple. If you did not tell the closing attorney yourself, assume we do not know. We do not mind hearing something twice. Not hearing it at all is what causes problems.

Watch the full video for the full walkthrough. If you want to know what actually happens on the day itself, see what really happens at a real estate closing in North Carolina.

Common Questions

Why do closings get delayed in North Carolina?

Most often because a mortgage payoff has not arrived, because closing funds have not been wired and credited, or because the closing attorney learned about a special circumstance too late to prepare the documents.

How long does a mortgage payoff statement take?

Anywhere from about two to fourteen days depending on the lender. That is why sellers should return the information sheet immediately rather than a few days before closing.

Can a closing attorney record the deed before funds arrive?

No. In North Carolina the funds needed to purchase the property have to be in the attorney trust account and irrevocably credited before the deed can be recorded.

Do I need a power of attorney if my spouse cannot attend closing?

Often yes, and it has to be prepared and executed correctly in advance. Tell the closing attorney as soon as you know, because preparing one at the last minute delays the closing.

Why does my spouse have to sign if they are not on the deed?

North Carolina recognizes a marital interest in real property, so a spouse typically signs to convey clear title even when they are not on the deed. That is why the closing attorney needs to know your marital status early.

Protect Your Closing Date Around Lake Norman

At Thomas & Webber, we chase payoffs early, tell you what your wire needs to look like well before closing day, and ask the questions that keep surprises off the closing table.

Our offices in Mooresville, Cornelius, Denver, and Kannapolis serve buyers and sellers throughout the Lake Norman area, including Davidson, Huntersville, Sherrills Ford, Troutman, and Statesville.

Email your contract to close@thomasandwebber.com or call us at (704) 663-1600 to schedule your closing with us.