Buying or Selling a Home/closing paperwork

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Expert: - 1/18/2010


Question
at the closing, the rep from the title company that handled everything gave us a copy of everything that was signed.  our copies do not have our signature.  what she did is go page by page explaining everything, then we either signed or initialed as needed.  after signing, she put the signed doc in a pile and an exact document in a different pile, which would become the pile for us to keep.  one of the docs was concerning buyers protection, a optional service provided by the lender.  the form was filled out correctly with everything filled in by computer.  there was an X in the accept box.  after trying to make a claim, the lender stated that we checked the decline box and sent me a copy to prove this.  the copy that he sent was the exact same as the one I had, including the computer gen. X in the accept box, but his copy also had a hand written X in the decline box.  Is this possible?  If we had changed our minds and checked the decline box, wouldn't the title company have to give us a copy of the changed document?  This protection program was free for the first year.  why would we cancel something free?  We didn't.  Can their document be legal?  with two opposing answers being checked, and neithr one was crossed out, or had our initials to indicate it was the correct choice, the document should have not been accepted by the title company or the lender.  What can I do??

Answer
Hey, Sara.

Title and escrow companies love to make copies in advance and give them to their Clients as "an exact document," and this is a great example of why Clients should not accept them as such. An exact document has two signatures on it, the company's and the Client's, and are exact in every way, including those signatures and initials, not just the text.

Their document is legal only if you decide not to fight it. At this point, you need a good attorney. Most attorneys will give you 30-60 minutes free consultation, and I would suggest you take advantage of that.

Hope this helps. I'm rooting for you because I see too much of this.

Russel

Buying or Selling a Home

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Russel Ray

Expertise

Through home inspections, I provide an education about real estate. I'm one of those rare home inspectors who has been involved in real estate in many different capacities: as a Realtor (in Texas), as a property investor/flipper, as a teacher, and as a marketing expert (for Realtors and home inspectors). I believe that my experience as a Realtor and property investor provides me with a different viewpoint about home inspections in that I work for my Clients, but when there are other people involved in helping my Clients, then I firmly believe in helping them, too. That includes Realtors (both the seller's and the buyer's), repair professionals (e.g., plumbers, electricians, etc.). If I can get all the players (seller, seller's Realtor, buyer, buyer's Realtor, and repair professionals) playing in the same sandbox together to accomplish goals as a TEAM (Together Everyone Accomplishes More), then I believe I have succeeded in my job as a home inspector. My profession is, in my opinion, much more than simply documenting the condition of a property and then take the money and run. I am also a rare breed in that I don't believe that one inspection fits the needs of all Clients, and I have led the industry in understanding that fact. For example, the goals of a property investor are far different than the goals of someone buying a property to live in. The goals of a seller (a pre-listing inspection) are far different than the goals of a buyer (a pre-purchase inspection). To that end, I offer 14 different types of inspections, e.g., STANDARD, LIST, RENTER, BASIC, MAINTENANCE, SPOT, and more. I believe in giving the benefit of the doubt to all professionals in whatever industry they represent until they prove me wrong.

Experience

Over 42 years in all aspects of real estate--building homes, renovating homes, inspecting homes, Realtor.

Organizations
National Association of Certified Home Inspector, Better Business Bureau of San Diego

Education/Credentials
Graduate of Texas A&M University; College Station, Texas

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