Real estate closings that have already been scheduled and are expected to close may have to be rescheduled in order to close. Under a state of emergency, no government-funded loans will close, so if you’re getting a mortgage you will have to wait until the storm has passed to close.

That made for a really crazy situation last September up to nearly three weeks after Hurricane Florence when there was still flooding in effect. But know that if you have an extension built-in to your contract you should be fine, just delayed.

Additionally, insurance companies, generally, will stop writing policies after a storm had been named. For a mortgage to close, lenders require a re-inspection of the property to be certain there is no major damage.

A friendly reminder that it takes everyone time to get back to normal speed after being gone from work and when a town shuts down they can’t come back at 100% right away, that takes time as well. Contact between the buyer, seller, their real estate agent and the lender is crucial. Keeping everyone informed, updated and it will make everything run much smoother.