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 Possession
Information on home possession and closing on a home in Columbus, Ohio and central Ohio.
Possession specifies when you are allowed to move into the house. The contract will determine this, as it should be clearly stated. It is a negotiable item. What the Buyer wants and why: The Buyer would always want to have possession at closing. When you close and pay for it, it is your's to move into. This reduces your risk and expense. Every day the Seller stays in the house after closing they are living there at the Buyer's expense. Possession issues are: - Resolving (or avoiding) damage to the property: If the Seller damages something and you have not closed yet, it gives you the ability to control what happens. Your ability to negotiate an effective remedy is much stronger if the Seller does not have your money yet.
- Controlling the removal of items: If you close and the Seller moves out later and takes something that should have stayed, then it is much harder to resolve. If you have possession at closing, you will look at the property right before you close (if written in the contract), and if they have taken something that should stay, you still have all the money, which gives you greater leverage in resolving the problem. After all, you have something they want--your check!
- Avoid the Seller living for free. The longer the wait for possession after closing, the longer the Seller gets to live for free. You may not mind a few days possession with no charge to the Seller, but if it is going to be for an extended period you may want to charge rent to the Seller. Collect the whole amount upfront at closing. You don't want to have to chase them around later to collect. You can pro-rate by days to motivate them to leave sooner. Remember statutory landlord-tenant law applies since you have no written lease.
What the Seller wants and why: Unless the house is already empty or if the Seller is moving prior to closing, they will likely not want to give possession at closing because: - Risk of Buyer not closing. If for some reason the Buyer does not show up at the closing, then the Seller is already out of the house but has no Buyer.
- Being temporarily homeless. The Seller may not have any place to move into if they give possession at closing, especially if they have given possession to the Seller of the house they are buying.
What usually happens? Due to these reasons, it is common for the Seller to get some possession after closing. A good Exclusive Buyer's Agent will try to minimize the time period, reducing your added expense and risk. Some states actually prohibit the Seller from having posession after closing.
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