Get your New Mortgage Ready. After you’ve shopped around for the best rate, meet with your mortgage rep to sign off on the papers and to determine your payment details. Be sure to have all of your expenses prepared so the lender will have a proper idea of how much you will be putting down. I have had clients not factor in the land transfer tax when estimating the available money for a down payment and it cost them in the end.
Prepare for the Lawyer. Call your lawyer to make an appointment well before closing day. Get the lawyer to run through the numbers with you again so that you know exactly how much you should bring for your down payment/lawyers/closing fees.
Get Home Insurance. Some mortgages (if not all) require that you have home insurance. Call around a few weeks before closing to see who has the best rates and coverage. I will caution you on simply going for the best rates and disregarding the coverage in the policy. I have heard of far too many stories of people losing everything and not getting it all back because of the coverage they chose.
Prepare your Down Payment Funds. If you have your down payment funds in a high interest savings account, make sure that it’s accessible for a bank draft to be submitted to the lawyer. Be sure that the funds are available to be withdrawn on the day of closing. If there are any holds on the account from which the money is being withdrawn, it can hold up the closing process.
Get the Utilities Ready. Call the Cable, Gas, Hydro, Telephone, and Security companies in advance and give them the date of your closing. They will calculate how much is owed on closing day and your lawyer will make those necessary adjustments.
Get your New Furniture/Appliances ready. If you purchased new appliances/furniture arrange for the store to deliver the packages on (or just after) closing day.
Get your Contractor ready: If you are planning to have work done in the house, start planning it early as the good contractors are usually booked up well in advance.
Lastly, remember it to try and stay calm throughout closing day. A lot of people underestimate the level of stress associated with moving. Small things can become large issues that can snowball out of control if not handled with a level head.