This guide shows you how to read a Closing Disclosure statement page by page, compare it line by line to your Loan Estimate, and catch errors before you sit down at the settlement table. Duane Buziak, NMLS #1110647, walks Glen Allen, Short Pump, and Henrico buyers through this review, and the process works the same whether you are buying near Innsbrook or in Wyndham.
You need two documents: your Loan Estimate (LE) and your Closing Disclosure (CD). A highlighter and a phone with your broker’s number help too.
Step 1: Confirm You Received It on Time and Gather Your Loan Estimate
By Duane Buziak, NMLS #1110647. The first check has nothing to do with numbers. Under the TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure (TRID) rule, you must receive the CD at least three business days before consummation, the moment you become legally obligated on the loan. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) explains the Closing Disclosure and this waiting period on its consumer page. If the CD is mailed rather than handed to you or sent electronically with your consent, it is presumed received three business days after it is mailed, which can push your closing date back.
For this waiting period, the CFPB counts every calendar day except Sundays and federal holidays as a business day, so Saturdays count. Suppose a Twin Hickory buyer is closing on a Friday. The CD should be in hand by the prior Tuesday. Confirm the current holiday calendar and the exact counting rule with your broker or the CFPB before you rely on any date, especially if a holiday falls in the window.
Write down the date and time you actually opened the CD. If it arrived late, tell your broker right away, because the closing may need to move.
Next, place the CD beside your Loan Estimate. The two forms were designed to match: page 1 of each summarizes loan terms, page 2 itemizes costs, and page 3 covers cash needed. Matching sections sit in the same place, so you can flip between them without hunting.
Glen Allen Mortgage by Duane Buziak sends buyers a CD review checklist ahead of time, so you know what to look for before the document lands in your inbox.
Step 2: Check the Loan Terms on Page 1
Start at the top. Confirm your name and the property address, then verify the loan basics:
- Loan amount: purchase price minus your down payment, plus any financed fees such as an FHA upfront mortgage insurance premium or a VA funding fee.
- Interest rate and term: they should match your lock confirmation.
- Loan type: Conventional, FHA, or VA, as you agreed.
- Whether the rate can change: a fixed-rate loan should say the rate cannot change.
Then look at the payment. Page 1 shows principal and interest (P&I) and an estimated total monthly payment that adds mortgage insurance and escrowed taxes and insurance. Compare that total to the number on your Loan Estimate and to what you planned to spend.
Three features can change after the Loan Estimate and deserve a hard look: an increase in the interest rate, a prepayment penalty, and a balloon payment. On your CD, each is answered “YES” or “NO” in the Loan Terms box. For a standard fixed-rate purchase loan, you should expect three “NO” answers unless you knowingly chose something different. A surprise “YES” is a stop sign, and it may restart the three-day clock (see Step 7).
Worked example: what a quarter point does
Take a $450,000 loan on a 30-year fixed term. These rates are illustrative, not current offers. At 6.50%, P&I is about $2,844 a month. At 6.75%, it is about $2,919. That 0.25-point gap adds roughly $75 a month, or about $27,000 over 360 payments. If your CD shows a rate different from your lock, that is not a rounding issue. Call your broker the same day.
Step 3: Total Your Closing Costs on Page 2
Page 2 is where most confusion lives, so go section by section. The costs are itemized, and some lines are negotiable, but nothing about the total is automatic.
- Section A, origination charges: what you pay the broker and the loan provider for making the loan, including points if you bought the rate down.
- Section B, services you cannot shop for: the appraisal, credit report, and flood determination, chosen by the loan provider.
- Section C, services you can shop for: title search, title insurance, and settlement fees. Your Written List of Providers on the Loan Estimate shows which companies were suggested.
- Section E, taxes and government fees: recording fees and transfer taxes.
- Section F, prepaids: items paid in advance, such as homeowners insurance premiums and prepaid interest from closing day to month end.
- Section G, initial escrow payment: the starting cushion for taxes and insurance.
Sections D and I are subtotals, and J is your total closing costs. Section H holds other items, such as an owner’s title policy or a home warranty.
Know the tolerance rules
The CFPB’s tolerance rules limit how much certain fees can rise from the Loan Estimate:
- Zero tolerance: origination charges, transfer taxes, and Section B services generally cannot increase, absent a valid change.
- 10% tolerance: recording fees and Section C services from a listed provider can rise as a group by no more than 10%.
- No tolerance limit: prepaids, escrow deposits, and services you chose from outside the list can change, though they should still be reasonable estimates.
In Virginia, Section E typically includes state and local recordation taxes on the deed and deed of trust, and the seller customarily pays the grantor tax. As of this writing, rates are set by statute and can change, so verify them with Virginia Tax or the Henrico Circuit Court Clerk’s office before you judge a recording line.
Step 4: Compare Each Fee to Your Loan Estimate
Now do the line-by-line comparison. Use this layout for each major fee, either on paper or in a note on your phone:
- Origination charges. Loan Estimate: Section A total. Closing Disclosure: Section A total. Tolerance: zero. Action: any increase needs a documented reason, or ask for a corrected CD or a credit toward closing costs.
- Appraisal. Loan Estimate: Section B. Closing Disclosure: Section B. Tolerance: zero, unless a valid change occurred. Action: ask what changed if the fee rose, such as a rush or complex-property charge.
- Title services and insurance. Loan Estimate: Section C, if you used the listed providers. Closing Disclosure: Section C. Tolerance: 10% as a group with recording. Action: if the group is up more than 10%, ask for a cure. If you chose your own provider, no limit applies.
- Recording fees. Loan Estimate: Section E. Closing Disclosure: Section E. Tolerance: 10% bucket. Transfer taxes are zero tolerance. Action: treat an overage the same way as any 10% overage.
- Prepaids and escrow deposit. Loan Estimate: Sections F and G. Closing Disclosure: Sections F and G. Tolerance: none. Action: confirm the insurance premium matches your policy and the interest days match your closing date.
The decision rule is simple. If a zero-tolerance fee went up, or the 10% bucket went over its limit, ask for a corrected CD or a credit toward your closing costs. The remedy is the same for both.
Not every change is an error. Valid reasons include a change of circumstance, such as a new appraisal requirement or a change in the loan amount, a rate lock extension you requested, and a change you asked for, such as switching title companies or adding points. Ask for the reason in writing.
Duane Buziak reviews the two forms side by side with Glen Allen buyers before closing day, so any question about a line is settled before you reach the table.
Step 5: Verify Cash to Close and the Calculation on Page 3
Page 3 answers the question you care about most: how much money do you bring? The Calculating Cash to Close table lists total closing costs, your down payment, deposits already paid, funds for the borrower, seller credits, and adjustments. Compare the “Cash to Close” figure to the same figure on your Loan Estimate. The CD shows both, along with whether it changed and why.
Confirm that your earnest money deposit and any other deposit appears as a credit. If you paid $5,000 at contract and it is missing, your cash to close is overstated.
The Summaries of Transactions
Below the table, the Summaries of Transactions show the seller’s side and the adjustments between you and the seller. Look for any seller credit you negotiated and for the property tax proration. Real estate taxes are usually paid after the period they cover, so the seller owes you their share up to the closing date.
Here is an illustration with a hypothetical rate, not the current Henrico rate. Suppose a home is assessed at $500,000 and the tax rate is $1.00 per $100. Annual tax is $5,000, or about $13.70 a day. If the seller occupied the home for 100 unpaid days, the seller credit to you would be about $1,370. Look up the actual current rate at henrico.us and ask your settlement agent how the proration was calculated.
Wire safety tip: Fraudsters impersonate title companies and send fake wiring instructions. Call the settlement agent at a phone number you found independently, not one printed in an email, and confirm the exact wire amount and instructions verbally. The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center tracks this scam, and it is worth reading its guidance before you send funds.
Step 6: Review Pages 4 and 5 for Escrow, Late Fees, and Loan Calculations
Pages 4 and 5 feel like fine print, but they hold terms you live with for years.
On page 4, check the escrow account section. It shows whether you are escrowing property taxes and homeowners insurance, and the monthly amount collected. If you declined escrow, it should say so and show the yearly amounts you will pay yourself. Read the assumption language, which says whether a future buyer could take over your loan, and the servicing statement, which discloses whether your loan may be transferred. Also find the late payment terms: how many days you have after the due date and what percentage fee applies. Note the partial payment policy as well, which says whether payments less than the full amount will be accepted.
On page 5, the Loan Calculations box shows four figures:
- Total of Payments: everything you will have paid by the end of the term, including principal, interest, mortgage insurance, and loan costs.
- Finance Charge: the dollar cost of borrowing.
- Amount Financed: the loan amount minus certain prepaid finance charges.
- Annual Percentage Rate (APR): the yearly cost of the loan including certain fees. It runs higher than your interest rate because it folds in those costs.
The Total Interest Percentage (TIP) shows total interest over the loan’s life as a percentage of the loan amount. It is useful for comparing offers, though most buyers rely on the APR.
Finally, check the contact information. It lists the names, NMLS IDs, and license numbers of the broker, settlement agent, and other parties. Verify Duane Buziak’s NMLS #1110647 and the operating entity, Coast2Coast Mortgage LLC, NMLS #376205. You can look up any NMLS number on the NMLS Consumer Access site. A mismatched ID or a misspelled name can cause trouble at recording.
Step 7: Ask Questions, Get Corrections, and Do the Final Walkthrough
Collect every question in one written list and send it to your broker by email. A written trail makes corrections quick and clear. If something is wrong, ask for a corrected CD.
Know which corrections restart the three-day clock. Per the CFPB, a new three-business-day wait is triggered if the APR rises beyond the allowed tolerance, if the loan product changes, or if a prepayment penalty is added. Other corrections, such as a small fee change, still require a corrected CD, but you can close without a new waiting period, provided you receive it by consummation. Remember too that the CD is not final until you sign it.
Schedule your final walkthrough, ideally within 24 hours of closing. Check that agreed repairs are complete, appliances work, and the home is in the condition the contract describes. Then confirm the closing date and time with the settlement agent.
On credit: Glen Allen Mortgage by Duane Buziak uses NoTouch Credit Pull, a soft credit pull mortgage process, so early pre-approval produces no credit hit. Be aware that the loan provider may still run a credit refresh before closing to confirm nothing changed. Avoid new debt or large purchases until your loan funds.
Bring a government-issued photo ID to closing. Send funds only by the wire instructions you verified by phone.
What to Do With the Days You Have Left
If the page 1 terms match your lock, the page 2 fees sit within tolerance of your Loan Estimate, and the page 3 cash to close is explained line by line, you are in strong shape for closing day. Anything that fails one of those checks is a question to send in writing today.
Call Duane Buziak at 804-212-8663 for a free pre-closing review of your Closing Disclosure. Glen Allen Mortgage by Duane Buziak is at 4860 Cox Rd, Glen Allen, VA 23060.
Ready to experience stress-free mortgage approval with no credit hit and access to hundreds of loan programs at once? Get your free mortgage consultation today and discover why Glen Allen families trust Duane Buziak for personalized guidance and the fastest close times in the area.
