Real Estate Contract Closing Date

• The real estate contract closing date is one often misunderstood because, in reality the date shown in a contract is essentially a target date rather than a firm deadline. Few contracts actually close on the exact date listed in the contract.
• Banks traditionally begin with the projected date and work backward toward the goal of closing on or around that date – but a host of variables can affect the completion of a real estate transaction.
• Flexibility is an important element of working through a real estate transaction because you won’t be sure of your actual closing date until days – or perhaps a week – before the closing takes place. You should not schedule movers until you receive an official closing date from the bank, the seller, and the buyer. That’s when you should take care of such items as utilities, final walkthroughs, movers, and insurance.