There are many reasons for why closings can be delayed. Maybe the home inspection turned up something concerning. Or perhaps your title company found an undisclosed lien on the house. Either way, it’s bound to be an inconvenience when people buy or sell in a simultaneous transaction. And for those who have already moved out of their previous home and hedged all of their bets on moving into their new abode right after the closing, the inconvenience is automatically upgraded from minor to major.
Individuals with a flair for the dramatic tend to jump straight into the assumption that they are now “homeless.” While that’s certainly an eye-catching post to shock Facebook friends, it’s not necessarily true. True homelessness is vastly different from not being able to close on your home for a few days.
According to the National Health Care for the Homeless Council, “A homeless individual is defined in section 330(h)(5)(A) as an individual who lacks housing (without regard to whether the individual is a member of a family), including an individual whose primary residence during the night is a supervised public or private facility (e.g., shelters) that provides temporary living accommodations, and an individual who is a resident in transitional housing.”
In other words, if you have the means to put a roof (temporary though it may be) over your head without the help of non-profits or the government, you’re not actually homeless.
There are a number of solutions that can help ease the temporary discomfort of not owning home prior to the completion of your closing transaction. You could opt to pay for hotel accommodations, take a mini vacation, or stay with relatives or friends until the house is ready. Just remember that unless you end up staying in a homeless shelter or sleeping on a park bench, the term “temporarily displaced” might be more suited to your condition than “homeless.”
At Title Junction we care about helping you stay informed throughout your real estate transaction. Have questions? Give us a call at 239.415.6574.
In case you missed it, check out our last Title Junction post: 6 Pieces of Information You Need to Apply for a Home Loan