I wrote a nice little congratulatory post to myself last Friday about finally closing on The Second Chance House…unfortunately, it appears that my post was a bit premature. While I showed up to the closing, signed a bunch of papers, ensured that my funds were deposited in escrow, and smiled pleasantly for over an hour, the bank couldn’t be bothered to sign a single piece of paper on their side (they weren’t present at the closing, but need to sign the HUD-1 statement).
It’s now been three days since the closing meeting, and the bank still hasn’t signed the HUD-1. This means that while all the papers on my side are signed and my money is in escrow (meaning I’m already paying interest on the loan), I still don’t own the house and can’t start renovations. You’d think that the banks would want to get these properties off their books as quickly as possible, but apparently that’s only if it means not having to go to all the trouble of signing a piece of paper.
Hopefully it will be signed by end of day today, because demo is starting tomorrow — one way or the other…
😉
I feel your pain. Ran into the same issue when I closed on my personal residence. I found its helpful to be mildly annoying. AKA call everyday and find out what the hold up is. I realize this is a time consuming PITA for you, but so is waiting 3 days to start work.
I’m sure this is a “newbie” question, and I realize this was a while ago for you, but could you explain what is going on with the bank? I am not sure I understand. Why weren’t they present at the closing? You say they need to sign the HUD-1 statement. Was it not to their satisfaction somehow, and they were digging their heels in until something somehow changed? The other commenter said it happened to him too, why would they do this, and isn’t it unethical in a way, if you’re paying interest on the loan, but do not have possession of the property?
Alicia – Banks generally don’t send a representative to the closing. They receive the paperwork by fax or email, sign and return. Sometimes, for no good reason, it doesn’t happen when it’s supposed to happen. There may be a good reason for it, but since they won’t communicate directly with anyone other than the attorney/title company, it’s often hard to get any information. These days, things tend to be smoother than they were a few years ago, but it still happens sometimes. Just the type of stuff you have to deal with when you buy from banks, unfortunately.
Thank you so much. You make it look easy, which of course it isn’t, but you and your wife are so thorough, I can’t see you being anything but wildly successful in any endeavor! I know this blog is almost 10 yrs old, but I am still learning a ton from it. Thank you.
Thanks Alicia! If you want a more structured step-by-step guide, feel free to check out my book:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0988973707/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0988973707&linkCode=as2&tag=123flip-20