When you close on your loans, you should have received a closing statement outlining all of the closing costs associated with the deal. You'll want to keep these closing statements handy. By keeping them, you can keep track of what you paid to close each loan.
The U.S. government recommends that you hang onto any deeds as long as you own the property, but if you've paid off your mortgage and the deed to your property has been recorded in land records, the documents can be tossed. That's because most municipalities have copies of these documents available online.
Closing documents: Retain a copy of any document signed during your home's closing as a backup. This may include the purchase agreement, addendums, disclosures and repair requests, escrow information, inspection reports, and a closing statement.
Keep all of these documents in a safe place for future reference -- you may find it helpful to store them together in a file labeled “Home,” rather than in a yearly overall tax file. When it's time to file your income taxes, have your HUD-1 Settlement Statement handy.
After signing documents and paying closing costs, you get ownership of the property. The seller must publicly transfer the property to you. The closing attorney or title agent will then record the deed. You get your keys and officially become a homeowner.
It's a good idea to keep the original deeds though, as they can hold extra information, about legal boundaries or who the previous owner was, for example. If your property isn't on the register and you choose to apply for first registration, you'll need to submit the original deeds to us.
The most important originals are the purchase agreement, deed, and deed of trust or mortgage. In the event originals are destroyed, you might be able to get certified copies of these documents from the lender or closing company, but you don't want to rely on others' recordkeeping systems unless you have to.
The easiest way to prove your ownership of a house is with a title deed or grant deed that has your name on it. Deeds typically are filed in the recorder's office of the county where the property is located.
Once you sell or otherwise dispose of a piece of real estate, you should still hang on to your records for three or six years in case the IRS decides to audit you. If for any reason you don't file a tax return for the year you sell, the IRS has no time limit on audits, so you're smart to retain your paperwork.
KEEP 3 TO 7 YEARS
Knowing that, a good rule of thumb is to save any document that verifies information on your tax return—including Forms W-2 and 1099, bank and brokerage statements, tuition payments and charitable donation receipts—for three to seven years.
Homeowners should keep these statements for at least three years. Although the information on these statements is a part of public record, it is always more convenient to keep a carefully filed paper copy so you can find the information at a moment's notice.
Can I throw away old insurance policies? When you receive your new policy in the mail each renewal, you can discard the old one. However, keep billing statements and the declarations page and make sure you have your auto insurance card whenever driving.
Most bank statements should be kept accessible in hard copy or electronic form for one year, after which they can be shredded. Anything tax-related such as proof of charitable donations should be kept for at least three years.
A closing deal might fall through if the buyer and seller can't agree on who handles problems that arose during an inspection. ... For instance, if an inspection shows that the roof needs to be replaced, a seller might not want to invest in a large update before leaving.
If the deeds went missing or were destroyed while in the custody of a law firm or financial institution then, if satisfied with the evidence, the Land Registry will register the property with an absolute title. If not, then it is usually the case that the property will be registered with a possessory title.
In short, yes you can sell your house without the deeds, however you must be able to prove through other means that you are the owner of the property. As the deeds are the assortment of documents which usually prove ownership, proving it without them can be a more protracted process, but it is by no means impossible.
The title deeds to a property with a mortgage are usually kept by the mortgage lender. They will only be given to you once the mortgage has been paid in full. But, you can request copies of the deeds at any time.
Pest damage, low appraisals, claims to title, and defects found during the home inspection may slow down closing. There may be cases where the buyer or seller gets cold feet or financing may fall through. Other issues that can delay closing include homes in high-risk areas or uninsurability.
While signing refers to agreeing on terms and conditions, closing represents the actual act of selling the shares or assets. Between signing and closing, the so-called closing conditions are due in order for a successful completion of the deal.
Hold the returns and supporting documents for at least seven years. The IRS can randomly audit you three years after you file — or six years afterward if it thinks you skipped out on reporting your income by at least 25%.