Most real estate closings go smoothly. The ones that don’t tend to stumble over the same handful of predictable issues — nearly all of which are avoidable with earlier attention.

**Title issues.** A lien you didn’t know about, an old easement, a boundary discrepancy, or a break in the chain of title can all surface during a title search and require resolution before closing. Ordering title work early, rather than waiting until just before closing, gives time to fix problems instead of scrambling against a deadline.

**Financing delays.** Buyer financing falling through or getting delayed is one of the most common closing-day disruptions. Getting fully underwritten (not just pre-qualified) well before the closing date reduces the risk of a last-minute surprise.

**Survey discrepancies.** A new survey that reveals an encroachment, an incorrect legal description, or a boundary dispute with a neighbor can stall closing while it gets sorted out — sometimes requiring negotiation or even a new agreement between neighboring owners.

**Missing or incomplete disclosures.** Required property disclosures that are incomplete, or issues that surface during inspection that weren’t addressed in the contract, can send parties back to the negotiating table right when everyone expected to be finished.

**Contingencies left unresolved.** Inspection contingencies, appraisal contingencies, and financing contingencies all have deadlines — and closings often stall not because a problem is unsolvable, but because no one confirmed a contingency was actually satisfied (or waived) before the closing date arrived.

**The pattern.** Almost every delay on this list is more expensive to fix at the closing table than it would have been to catch two or three weeks earlier. Involving an attorney early in the transaction — not just to review the closing documents, but to help move title work, financing, and contingencies forward on schedule — is usually the difference between a smooth closing and a frustrating one.

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