What Happens at My Loan Signing Appointment?

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) describes the closing, also called settlement, as the last step in buying and financing a home, when you and the other parties sign the necessary documents. The CFPB notes that in some places everyone signs at once, and in others signatures are collected separately over time.

I'm Jeanette Nelson, a REALTOR® with Jeanette Nelson Real Estate, Keller Williams Realty, serving Orange County, Huntington Beach, Costa Mesa, Fountain Valley, and surrounding areas. For first-time buyers, the signing is the moment it starts to feel real, so I like to walk through it with you ahead of time.

Your signing may happen before the day escrow actually closes. Your escrow officer will give you the exact timeline for your purchase.

This is general information, not legal or lending advice. Your lender and escrow officer can answer questions about your specific documents.

Review your Closing Disclosure. The CFPB says your lender must give it to you three business days before your scheduled closing. Check that your loan amount, interest rate and closing costs match your most recent Loan Estimate, and ask about any differences.

Know what restarts the clock. The CFPB explains that a new three-day review comes only with an APR increase above set limits, an added prepayment penalty, or a change in loan product. Typos and most changes to closing-day payments do not trigger a new wait.

Ask for documents early. The CFPB suggests asking to receive your closing documents in advance, so you can review them before you sit down.

Ask how to pay your cash to close. The CFPB says you will typically need a cashier's check or a wire transfer, and to ask your closing agent how to make that payment. My article on wire fraud explains how to confirm wiring instructions safely.

• Valid government photo ID for every person signing. The California Secretary of State's Notary Public Handbook explains that a notary must identify each signer based on satisfactory evidence.
• Your Closing Disclosure, so you can compare as you sign.
• Any items your escrow officer requests, such as a cashier's check if you are not wiring.
• Questions. Write them down beforehand.

Ask your escrow officer which IDs they accept, and make sure the name on your ID matches your loan documents.

The stack can be thick. Common documents include:

• The promissory note. Your promise to repay the loan, with the rate and payment terms.
• The deed of trust. It secures the loan with the home. The CFPB suggests reading your note and security instrument carefully.
• The Closing Disclosure. Your final loan terms and costs.
• Escrow documents. Instructions and other papers for the sale.

The CFPB is clear about what signing means: after you sign, you become responsible for the mortgage loan.

A notary confirms who you are and watches you sign. The California Notary Public Handbook says that when the document is a deed, quitclaim deed, deed of trust or other document affecting real property, the notary must have the signer place their right thumbprint in the notary's journal. If the right thumbprint is not available, the left thumb or another finger is used.

Expect to sign the journal too. It is part of the process, not a sign anything is wrong.

Your lender reviews the signed documents and funds the loan. Escrow then records the deed with the Orange County Clerk-Recorder, and once it records, escrow closes. My article on the first-time buyer escrow process walks through each step, and my article on closing costs explains your numbers.

If you are heading into escrow on your first home, I'd love to go over the signing with you so you know what each page means before you sit down. Call or text me at 714.366.8575 | DRE: 01397168, or contact me. Jeanette Nelson is a REALTOR® with Jeanette Nelson Real Estate, Keller Williams Realty, serving Orange County, Huntington Beach, Costa Mesa, Fountain Valley, and surrounding areas.