A "wet" settlement is one in which the funds from the lender must be received prior to, or at the time of, closing. In contrast, a "dry" settlement is one in which there are no funds available at the closing. So it follows that in a dry settlement, seller does not get their sale proceeds at closing, though the papers have been signed.
Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia are all wet settlement states. One caveat with Virginia, however, is that the Commonwealth requires that the (1) Deed and (2) Deed of Trust (if there is one) be properly recorded in the county land records office prior to disbursement. Therefore, though Virginia calls for wet settlements, sellers in Virginia still will not receive their sale proceeds at closing, and must wait until the deed goes on record. Generally speaking, that would mean the next business day.
Sometimes, the date and time of a closing cannot be changed. But if there is some flexibility, and particularly if the property is in Virginia, it might be worth considering the disbursement issues and to plan around that. For example, scheduling a closing on a Friday would ultimately mean that the seller would not get their sale proceeds until Monday. And if Monday is a holiday, then that would mean an even longer wait. Just a thought, for all of you Virginia sellers…
Have a great weekend!
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