Settlement Process

              
Before Settlement:

Once our office has received your sales contract, or the information regarding your refinance, we start the following process:

1. Contact the lender and exchange all necessary information regarding your loan.

2. Order the title search on the property.

3. Contact seller’s or your current lending institution and order a payoff on the current mortgage.

4. Contact the Homeowner’s Association to verify that the fees are current and determine the proration split between parties.

5. Contact the taxing authority for the county and city in which the property is located to verify amount due and payable and determine proration split between parties.

6. Prepare title insurance commitment and forward to lender, with all other information required by the bank.

7.  Work with the owners to resolve any tax liens, bankruptcy proceedings or court judgments that are found the real estate after examination of the title.           

8. Obtain loan-closing package from lender to start preparing necessary documents for the settlement. 

At Settlement:

Once our office has received the closing package from the lender, our office will be able to determine the amount of money that you will need to bring to the closing table. You are required to bring the money in the form of a certified or cashier’s check payable to Society Hill Abstract, Inc. or wire transfer.  Buyers or refinancers will receive a settlement sheet 24 hours in advance of closing, estimating the closing costs which must be paid. The buyer should bring good funds to settlement in the correct amount. Recognize that the settlement sheet may be slightly different at closing.  At settlement the buyer should be prepared with a personal check to make up any difference.

Usually, an attorney and licensed title agent conducts your settlement. We will review and notarize all documents necessary to complete the sale.  Some examples of these documents are:

1. Hud-1 Settlement Statement. This document will show all the details regarding the charges and credits for both the buyer and seller. 
2. Mortgage. This document is filed at the courthouse and establishes a lien on the property for the lender. 
3. Promissory Note. This document is your agreement with the lender to pay back the loan. 
   

You will also review and sign documents such as: owner’s affidavit, township affidavits, termite report, and other documents required to close.

After Settlement:

After you have completed your settlement, our office completes the following:

• Record all necessary documents at the county office of the Recorder of Deeds. 
  
• Disburse all proceeds; payoffs; taxes; commissions and other fees as shown on the Hud-1. 
  
• Forward closing package to lender. 
  
• Once our office obtains the recorded documents, we will then prepare the Lender’s Title Policy and Owner’s                               Title Policy. We will forward to you, the Owner’s Policy and the Deed to your new property.
  
• Obtain and record the release from the sellers’ payoff company. 
  

 The process for a refinance follows closely to that of a sale with the absence of the seller involvement and pro-rations. 

At Society Hill Abstract, Inc., our experienced staff is there to make sure your transaction runs smoothly. We welcome any questions or concerns that you may have. We are committed to excellent service!!