Fed up with buying our first house!

January 23, 2009 8:38 AM

What are our options in closing on our first home? (Details inside)

My husband and I put in an offer on a foreclosed home in December. Our offer was accepted and contracts sent in etc. Our closing date was set for December 29th. Today is January 23rd and we still have not closed on our home. Everything was done on our side, however, the title company that the bank chose (the bank that owns the house) has been dragging their feet.

Finally our realtor hired an attorney on our behalf (and on his dime) January 15th. On January 19th everything was supposed to be completed thanks to his help and we would "most definately be closing" by today, January 23rd. Yesterday my husband got a call from our mortgage company and we found out that our rate expired on Tuesday. Apparently they had been trying to "float" our loan to see if rates would come down this week and it "backfired" so we lost our rate and had to decide on a new one.


If the mortgage company could send out the paperwork that day then we could probably close Monday. I called today and the paperwork did not go out. We are now looking at Tuesday, at least. During this time we have lost our homestead exemption for the year (since we didn't close in 2008), our great mortgage rate (5% with no points), the interest that our closing money was accruing before we pulled it out of savings, and now we are fast approaching the end of our apartment lease.


This is our first home so I am at a loss on where to go from here. Any advice would be greatly appreciated as I am at my wits' end!

posted by ForeverDcember to law & government (10 comments total)

Talk to you landlord about staying on for another month. Walk away from the scammer/layabouts/shit-heels you've been working with.
posted by notsnot at 9:11 AM on January 23

Redo the math - is this house worth it at a higher interest rate and a lost exemption?

If not, then walk from the deal.
posted by 26.2 at 10:02 AM on January 23

Whoa...some inconsistent information. Either you're being BS'ed or you are getting wires crossed. Is the title company good to go yet? Sounds like it was ready by the 19th. So you're set there. Realtors are always on board, so you're set there.

Now the mortgage company. If they were floating your rate, then it couldn't have expired. It is entirely possible that it was locked in at 5% par and expired as most locks don't exceed 30 to 45 days. With the title company dragging their feet this is most likely what happened, and since rates are up this week it would explain why you're looking at a higher rate. Now you have to determine if you are going to take this week's higher rate and higher property taxes for the next year. Seems like at this point its probably up to you if you want to proceed or not. If you're purchase contract has expired (probably has by now) then you can walk without forfeiting anything.
posted by curlyelk at 10:14 AM on January 23

notsnot, our lease is at our apartment. We already signed saying we would not be staying. If we did move into a different apartment in the complex on a month to month basis, our rent would go from $800 to over $1000, and that is only if they have a vacancy.

26.2, the house is worth it at the higher interest, but will we ever close?

Walking from the deal also means we are out the money from the inspection ($550), survey ($400), and other miscellaneous charges. The escrow will come back to us thankfully, but we would have to eat all the other charges.
posted by ForeverDcember at 10:14 AM on January 23

curlyelk, the title company was finally ready. I am afraid that when the new loan package goes over they will pull something else. Our Realtor is ready at the drop of a hat. We decided to take the higher rate, as it is still worth it but now we are waiting again. No closing date or time. Do we take our chances that it will get pushed again?
posted by ForeverDcember at 10:18 AM on January 23

You or your Realtor need to call the title company and say ¨I´d like to make an appointment for my closing¨. If you´ve tried to make an appointment and can´t for some reason, give more details.
posted by yohko at 1:12 PM on January 23

I'd walk from the deal.
posted by pokeedog at 3:21 PM on January 23

Your mortgage company is trying to pull a fast one. It's easy to say this from the comfort of my own couch, but you should tell them to honor their agreement, or you walk. It's not your fault they gambled and failed. (And/or, read your contract with the mortgage company.)
posted by gjc at 7:40 PM on January 23

Sadly, this is the state of affairs in the current real estate market. One of the people in my office had her closing drag out for nearly 2 months. No reason for it - she was putting 50% down and she had excellent credit.

There is something weird about your mortgage situation. I've had 3 mortgages in two states. Every time I decided when we "locked" based on the rate. The lender didn't hold the cards on that.

If you love the house and the price is fair, take heart. Eventually, you'll close if for no other reason than no one gets paid until you do.
posted by 26.2 at 9:11 PM on January 23

We finally closed on Tuesday :)
posted by ForeverDcember at 11:13 AM on January 30