When you buy or sell a house, there will be a final step called closing. This refers to the process when all the legal and financial procedures are finalized, which marks the change of ownership. During this final process, the buyer and the seller will sign various documents to close the transaction.
Since these closing documents are related to a property, many ask if closing documents are public record. There isn’t a straightforward answer to this question, and our article is here to cover everything you need to know about whether closing documents are public record. Read to the end to find out if closing documents are public and, if so, how you can access them.
What Are Closing Documents?
There isn’t just a single closing document – these are the official documents that the buyer and the seller sign to complete the sale of a real estate property. Without the closing documents, the transaction won’t be legal because the closing document records the new owner, outlines the loan details (if any), and explains where the amount of money paid for the property went.
With everything detailed on closing documents, they are highly important. However, as mentioned, there isn’t a single closing document. Here are the main closing documents.
Deed
A deed is a legal document that basically shows who owns a home. When a home is being sold, the seller signs the deed to transfer the property’s ownership to the buyer. It is a simple but highly important document that includes the names of the seller and buyer, the address of the property, and the detailed legal description of the property.
Deed of Trust
A deed of trust (also known simply as a mortgage) is a legal document that concerns buyers who take out a loan to pay for the home. This document expresses the lender’s legal interest in the property.
It basically outlines that the lender can take the home from the buyer through foreclosure if they don’t follow up with their monthly mortgage payments. It is a document that’s included in the closing documents to protect the lender.
Mortgage Note
If a mortgage was used to purchase the home, the closing documents will also include a mortgage note. Also known as the promissory note, the mortgage note serves as a way for the buyer to legally promise to pay back the loan. It shows the total amount of money borrowed, the interest rate, the monthly payment amount, and other details about the loan.
Along with the deed of trust, it is the second document included in the closing documents for homes purchased using a loan.
Proof of Homeowners’ Insurance
Another document in the closing documents is the proof of homeowners’ insurance. While this is a must for every homeowner in the US, it is actually required by most loan providers, so you won’t be able to get a mortgage without having homeowners’ insurance on the property you want to purchase.
Therefore, it is best for buyers to set up homeowners’ insurance as soon as the closing date is set.
Closing Disclosure
Last but not least, there is the closing disclosure. Think of this document as the summary of the closing. It details where all the transaction amounts went, how much the buyer paid, the fees paid during the process, and how much the seller received, along with payments made for taxes, insurance, title fees, and the real estate agent’s commission.
Are Closing Documents Public?
Now comes the big question – are closing documents public record? As you can tell by the nature of the documents listed above, some of the closing documents are public record, while others aren’t.
For instance, documents filed with the county can be searched by anyone, but documents that include personal or private information are kept confidential. Therefore, it ultimately comes down to the closing document in question.
Below, you will find out which closing documents are public record and which aren’t.
What Closing Documents Are Public Record
The deed is public record, so you can look it up at your local county recorder’s office or online database if searches are offered on the county’s website. It shows who owns the property, which enables people to find out who actually owns a home before buying it.
Therefore, the deed is always going to be public to help people find out when a property was sold, the name(s) of the buyer and seller, and the legal description. It helps prevent fraud by pointing to legal ownership.
The deed of trust is also public record. It shows that the buyer took out a loan to purchase the home and gives the lender the right to take the property through foreclosure if the loan isn’t paid. However, it shouldn’t be confused with the mortgage note.
This document simply shows that a loan was used to purchase the property without showing the amounts, though it includes the name of the lender and the total loan amount.
What Closing Documents Aren’t Public Record
The mortgage note isn’t public record as part of the closing documents. Since this document is a promise between the lender and the buyer, it is kept confidential. Therefore, if you’re using a loan to buy a home, your loan terms won’t be public record. However, as mentioned, the total loan amount and the lender’s name are still a public record through the deed of trust.
The closing disclosure is kept private because it includes personal information that is sensitive in nature. Only the buyer and the seller have the closing disclosure. If there’s a lender involved, they will also have the closing disclosure.
Although some of the details found in the closing disclosure, such as the loan amount, can be found through other documents, this document itself isn’t public record.
Other documents that aren’t public record include homeowners’ insurance, loan applications, tax documents, photo ID copies of the seller and the buyer, and any document with sensitive information, like Social Security numbers, is kept confidential.
With all of these covered above, it is safe to say that the deed and whether the buyer used a loan to purchase the home are public record. The rest are private documents that only the seller, the buyer, and the lender have access to.
Are Closing Documents Public Record: Search Public Records
Now that you know which closing documents are public records, you can search to access the public documents you need. There are several ways you can search public records to find the closing documents that can be accessed by the public.
You can visit your local county and get the documents you need directly from there, or do an online search. Most local governments in the US have an online database where you can enter an address to have access to the public closing documents.
In case your local government’s online search shows limited results, use our public records search to see the public closing documents on a property. All you need to do is enter an address, and you will get the closing documents that are a public record. However, unlike a simple public record check, you will find out much more than the closing documents.
Since there are other documents that are public record tied to a property, you will also discover the following by performing an address search on our website.
- Property History: The public records include property ownership records that can help you get the history of the place. Our search will also detail any major changes to the property, so you will know what kind of work the property underwent to get to its current state.
- People Who Live There: Next to property ownership records, you will find out who lives at the address, as address information is generally considered to be a public record. This includes the names of the people who live at the address, along with other available details, like rental history.
- Contact Information: Contact details are crucial when you want to find the owner of a property. After a quick search, you will not only see the latest closing documents but also the contact details of the current owner and the previous owner who sold the property. This can also help you find neighbors by address.
- Business Details: If the property you’re searching for is a business, not a residential property, you will discover information about the business. It is a helpful detail that brings the information you need if you want to buy a business.
Search Public Records to Locate Closing Documents
Now, you have an answer to the question of whether closing documents are public record. Given that only a handful of closing documents are public record, you might be disappointed to hear our answers.
Fortunately, there are other ways to learn more about a property besides closing documents. Discover more about any given property by running a public record search on our website.
Simply enter the address and learn everything about the property and the owner accessible through public records. It is the ultimate public records search that will enable you to find out much more than closing documents.
