paying lawyer and agent

He/She is there to collect the check.

make the broker wait outside. I have seen this done, and yes, I liked it.

hofo and gcondo,

Can you please explain your answer. I to would like additional information on the closing procedure.

To collect his/her payment is the only reason for the seller's broker to be at the closing? Can anyone talk more about what to expect from the closing from a seller's pov?

personally, if I had a good general feeling about the process up to closing, I would give my lawyer power of attorney, and be available via cellphone if needed.

Brokers offer nothing at closing, except to get paid (hmm sounds familiar). As such, I have seen them asked to wait outside the closing room, more because their presence inside was seen as an annoyance more than anything else.

The seller pays the broker?

Not sure i understand the confusion. When you sell an apartment you are responsible for the brokers commission, so the seller pays the sellers broker and the split commission to the buyers broker.

Because the checks in manhattan are normally quite large they want to be there to personally take it back with them. There is no other reason for a broker to be there.

I have heard some buyers brokers actually will make sure that things are correct, however that is the point of hiring a good attorney who will actually pay attention to what you are asked to sign.

You are responsible for your own attorney.

I agree broker(s) should wait outside.

Seems like asking, "Should dogs be put out of the house for the night?" I think it depends on the dog, and his relationship with his masters. Some dogs chew your shoes, pee on the carpet and bark a lot. Others snuggle quietly and bring your slippers in the morning.

!

You guys seem to be buyers who don't realize that there are several parties at the closing, not just the one who walks away with the apartment.

When I'm the seller's broker, I'm typically at the closing, not just at the end to pick up my check, but at the beginning to hold my seller's hand (metaphorically), and explain what pieces of paper are being processed and why (I find often the attorneys fail to do this).

Most important, probably, I'm there to keep the different parties from fighting with each other.

I typically have had more contact with each person at the closing than anyone else (for example, seller's atty and managing agent might not have spoken much) and so it's my job to pour oil on the waters and get everybody through to the close.

ali r.
DG Neary Realty

Ali i think its great that you help out the seller. However i still say that if you hire the correct attorney they are looking at the papers prior to you signing. I had this on the buying end and i am sure if he was representing me on the other end it would be the same thing.

But i do realize the level of services provided out there vary widely.

Clearly there's some animosity regarding brokers here. But as someone who just sold/bought - I'll weigh in. If my broker didn't show up to the closing when I sold OR bought - I would have been offended. Not majorly - but slightly. Showing up makes the transaction from my vantage point more genuine that the business is personal and important. Because realistically - it's the last or close to the last time you even have contact. Part of it is closure. But again - it's seeing the deal through to the very end. Short of that - I would feel it WAS just about the check. "oh - you're just about done - I'm not going but I'm happy to get paid" doesn't sit as well with me - personally. Same thing on the buying side. It surprises me more when I see a broker NOT come to a closing. I have a feeling that if the norm was that Broker's DIDN'T go - more people would be griping how broker's don't care - they just want the checks.

Ali: I would want you in the room at my closing, whether I was buying or selling. Then again, I would want you in the room at my daughter's wedding.

I've had a few closings where I wasn't present (POA to attorney). And I had the broker come by to give me the check or keys.

w81 - aww.

ali

Seems like my broker isn't of the same ilk at Ali. She doesn't add value and honestly makes me feel as though her client is the buyer and not me, the seller. Probably will let her come inside but given that the didn't explain anything when we bought I hope she just stays quiet until she puts her hand out for payment.
Does the seller have to pay the attorney and the broker at the closing or can they send a bill?

We had the broker at closing. The seller did not move out until the day before closing, so our walkthrough was immediately preceding settlement. The apartment was left in such horrendous condition that the broker was wheeling and dealing right up until the time of closing to prevent a fight. In the end, the broker paid for the items the seller would've been required to address out of his own pocket just to get the deal done.

You've all had some pretty uneventful closings!
When I represent a buyer or seller, I am always present at closing (with one exception, when I had two simultaneous closings scheduled). Particularly with new construction, there can still be lingering negotiations happening at the table. If problems have been discovered at the final walk-though, for example, an escrow agreement or concessions may be negotiated at the closing. In one closing I had to negotiate an escrow because a chicken coop had not been removed from the premesis as previously (verbally) agreed. In another instance an argument over title insurance nearly resulted in adjourning the closing altogether. I can't imagine deserting my clients at that moment.
Sometimes it's all buttercups and sunshine. But sometimes it's a barfight. (And yeah, then you pick up your check.)
Tina
Brooklyn Broker

Whoops - overlapped with lad. But that's what I mean!

Lawyer gets paid then too? Everyone has their hand out at a closing

875, sorry I didn't sell your apartment.

To answer your original question, your broker's invoice is due at closing .. generally via bank check or atty. escrow check. As for your atty, I've paid attys at the closing table, and I have attys bill me later .. you guys work that out between yourselves.

ali r.
DG Neary Realty

If anyone is going to hold my hand at a closing, it is going to be my attorney, not my broker.

It seems logical to settle all accounts at closing. Otherwise the agents lawyers and everyone else will be spending time chasing the seller for their money. The seller receives payment at closing why shouldn't all the other people who worked to make closing possible also get paid that day. Everything is settled that day and everyone moves on. No incoming bills no chasing clients for money. I've been a buyer and a seller and was always happy at closing knowing when I walked at the end no more related outstanding bills.

The night before closing my broker and the buyer could not turn on the fridge and the dishwasher at the last walk-through. After a panicked call to me that the buyer wanted a reduction on the price as appliances were not working, and the fact that she had to leave (another appointment obviously), I was rushed home from work to find out that the appliances were not working...... because they were not plugged into the electricity :) When I informed her that appliances need to be plugged into the electricity in order to operate, she was upset and outraged, and informed me that I should mail her the check from the closing.

Long story, the brokers are there to pick up the check and that is all.

I would like to review the bill from the lawyer rather than paying it on the spot. I don't know what his bill will be but I guess it doesn't matter since I am stuck? Broker and lawyer both are there to get paid and in my experience(once) neither is helpful in explaining anything. They just want you to quickly sign and pay your bill. It would be nice to have lawyer who can explain things and make you feel like it was good that you hired him. Unfortunately, most make you feel regret.

gcondo, you weren't at my last closing, where the seller went and had a drink with me afterwards, not the atty. But every deal is different.

875, ask your lawyer to send you a pdf of his/her bill a couple of days in advance of the closing. Even a non-explainer should be able to do that.

ali r.

Is your lawyer not on a fixed fee? I thought that was pretty normal that it is a flat fee and you should know your balance in order to be able to write that final check.

Hell mine is paid in full and two months later still working on trying to clear up some issues regarding my HELOC and the sponsor taking a credit that they were not entitled too and causing recording issues.

front_porch, true enough I was not there, because as a rule, I can not trust a broker - no matter how helpful or charming. The structure of the business relationship prevents it. I pay a lawyer to provide sound, legal advice, and that is who holds my hand, as a rule.

Good suggestion regarding getting the lawyer to send a pdf of the bill.