What Can a Seller Do When a Buyer Is Unable or Unwilling to Close as Scheduled?

When real estate is sold, the contract typically specifies that the closing will take place “on or about” a specified date. These “words of art” mean that the specified date is merely a “target date” and that the parties intend to close sometime in its vicinity; furthermore, each party will be entitled to an adjournment for a “reasonable time,” if needed, which New York courts have consistently defined as thirty (30) days.