Comments on: The Longest Real Estate Closing Ever?!?! Finally – Resolution!

By: Robin Gauthier

Robin Gauthier — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 23:06:16 +0000

I am on day 109. This is actually my second buyer. My first one defaulted. So this is 109 days with the SECOND buyer. I have only been through two banks. After 64 days the manager at the first bank told me that the loan officer was fired from the first bank for fudging the income and W2 information of the buyer on the loan application paperwork, so she got a job at a second bank….I found this out by accident because my real estate agent neglected to tell me about any of this….and my buyer followed the loan officer over to the second bank to apply for a new loan. My buyer is finally approved for her new loan, and my house has had to be re-appraised, and now my appraisal is sitting on the desk in the under-writers office at the new bank and I can’t seem to get anyone there to reach out their hand and grasp the paperwork to look at it, even though they have had it for a week. I called the bank today to ask them to please, please look at the appraisal, because of a major personal emergency situation that has arisen, and their response was that I am not the borrower and they can’t give me any information about the loan, and that if I want any information about the loan I have to contact the borrower.

By: Sam Dodd - Cedar City Homes

Sam Dodd - Cedar City Homes — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 04:51:53 +0000

Congrats on closing thats what counts. I totally concur that banks are not wanting to lend any more money out. I think they are retracting to far personally but I guess I don’t have a say.

By: Eric Conrad

Eric Conrad — Sat, 10 May 2008 19:44:56 +0000

I’m right with you all. I’ve got a deal that’s been on the table since Jan. 27th, and I STILL have no closing!!! In fact, our loan was JUST refused again… Yes, I’m in Phoenix, AZ. We had to give photo proof that a window existed one time, because the last appraisal showed it boarded up. A little better than the window opening story, but still. We’ve gone through about 6 loans and banks ourselves to be rejected a day before close. In fact, our latest loan just got refused on THE DAY of funding because they wanted another month of paperwork to prove we aren’t running out on our current house, which is 50k upside down. Ridiculous!

On the other hand, I might just need a new loan officer.

I will seriously consider what you are saying about Texas…

By: Joshua Dorkin

Joshua Dorkin — Fri, 09 May 2008 14:56:22 +0000

I would Teri. Sadly, I was in a very weak position and my buyer was really one of a few options left on this property for me. Since he wanted the property, regardless, we were able to keep it alive and make both of us happy.

By: Teri Lussier

Teri Lussier — Fri, 09 May 2008 13:15:19 +0000

I once listed a short sale that took 3.5 months to close after we had an accepted contract. It gave me more than a few sleepless nights.

OTOH, I learned a tremendous amount about holding a deal together. I think in the end, I got paid about .04 cents/ hour on that one, but the education was priceless!

When I tell people about this, typically at this point, the question comes up: Would you do it again?

We held the closing (separate, and dry!) on a card table in a quiet corner of a CVS Pharmacy. As my sellers gathered up their things and we prepared to say our good-byes, they turned to me, looked me square in the eyes, took my hand and said “Thank you so much! We really don’t know what we would have done without you.”

So… Would I do it again?

By: The Longest Real Estate Closing Ever?!?! Finally - Resolution! | The Long List of Odysseus Medal Nominees | Realtors and real estate, mortgages, lending, investments

Mon, 05 May 2008 16:34:46 +0000

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By: Gaydon - Cedar City Real Estate

Gaydon - Cedar City Real Estate — Sun, 04 May 2008 02:18:13 +0000

Great post. There are a lot of people who feel the same way that you do and can testify to the intensity of the crash that we have experienced. In Utah we are starting to see some growth and the attitude of consumers is beginning to change. Thanks for helping us feel normal.

By: Denton Ward

Denton Ward — Fri, 02 May 2008 20:59:44 +0000

Fortunately it did close! What a pain in the butt! Those carrying costs can’t help the profits either…but nonetheless, its gone now.

By: BawldGuy Talking

BawldGuy Talking — Fri, 02 May 2008 17:06:58 +0000

>Should a differentiation be made between the lending climate for people in different regions and for different types of properties?

I have a different view than some due to the geographical nature of my firm’s business. We do business in several states, and see distinct differences in lenders’ ah, enthusiasm for the different regions.

In CA & AZ for example, a close lender buddy has recently seen appraisals reviewed three times for a purchase with a 50% down payment. If the appraisal was knocked DOWN 25% arbitrarily they’d still be only lending on a loan to value of 67%!

Yet in Texas, we’re closing 90% investor loans barely slower than pancakes being sold at a Boy Scout breakfast. Lenders know where they’d like the money to end up, as they listen intently when their investors yell, ah, whisper into their ear.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Fri, 02 May 2008 14:33:50 +0000

Congrats on the Closing! They do take a long time somtimes!

By: Joshua Dorkin

Joshua Dorkin — Fri, 02 May 2008 13:11:14 +0000

I’ll say that it is happening across the country, especially with the national lenders. I’ve heard that people are having a somewhat easier time with small, local banks, but I can’t verify that for sure.

By: Ifie

Ifie — Fri, 02 May 2008 11:21:29 +0000

Should a differentiation be made between the lending climate for people in different regions and for different types of properties? Or is it your sense that across the country, regardless of region, and across different types of properties (e.g. single family home purchase as primary residence, multi-unit rental property) banks and related institutions are becoming very tight with financing options?