Q for those that have bought a house...
Posted by Sariea on Apr 14, 2008 · Member since Feb 2007 · 845 posts
Dean and I put an offer in on a house about 2 and a half weeks ago. we are still waiting to hear from the bank. our realtor told us today that it's been 11 business days... i don't know if we should be worried. there are no other offers on the house, and we offered what they were asking for it...
we're getting really upset, both of us have been binge eating really bad because we're stressed. we don't know if we should look at other houses (i don't want to, i love this house!!), if we should just wait...
i guess what i'm looking for is.. is this normal??? for the bank to take so long?? i'm afraid dean is gonna get even more upset and just retract our offer before we get a chance to find out what could happen
Keep in contact with your realtor, she/he has a vested interest as that's how income is made.
You should have a mortgage/ bank contact also, if that's how you are going about the purchase.
Are you under contract and in what state, laws vary. You should become informed on the laws for your own protection.
FYI I closed in 25 days with my property. I was pre-approved and motivated.
we talk to our realtor almost every day, they're a family friend.
when we put the offer in (the beginning of april, end of march), they wrote the prospective close date down as april 30th. we just haven't heard anything from the bank, but the paralegal said we should hear this week, but we don't know how credible that is...
Dean has been talking to a mortgage person, but we can't do anything til we hear from the bank.
i don't really know about the contract, since it's gonna be in Dean's name, that's his business. we are in upstate new york. he's pissed cuz it was a 3-day offer.. but to be fair, he put the offer in on a saturday
I guess you are going to wait to hear form the bank, you can try a follow up call to see what the status is...dosent hurt.
I understand its nerve racking but no need to stress over it.
Good luck, bet you are getting a good int rate...
I think I had 30 days to come up with the loan money. It took five weeks instead of four. I bought my house during the housing boom and the seller still waited for me. Make sure your people communicate with their people about your interest. Also, since the market is slower right now, it seems like they'd want to work with you.
Buying a home is never quick and easy. It took me a few weeks before we actually closed escrow because of all the paperwork, legal requirements, bank processing, etc.
I wouldn't stress. Contact your realtor representing you and simpy ask for the status. He/she works in your best interest and should be able to fill you in.
I'm confused about what you are waiting for the bank to do. Approve you for a loan?
When I bought my house I was preapproved for a loan. I was cleared with the bank for a loan before I ever even put in an offer. I sat down with the people at the bank and they explained all my loan options, showed me what my price range was, explained all the costs and fees, etc. So then when I did make an offer, it was just a matter of negotiating with the seller. I think I closed in a month.
I think it would be worth calling the bank and getting them to explain to you what is going on. And it would definitely be worth having Dean or the banker sitting down with you and explaining the whole process, IMHO.
from what i understand, we are still waiting for the bank to accept our offer. cuz we can't get a mortgage loan until they accept it... although i've also heard that everything is approved, we're just waiting for the lawyers to sign the paperwork. so i don't even know. dean doesn't even know. from the sound of it, our realtors dont even know. i'm gonna email them in a few minutes to see if i can get some kind of answer..
it doesnt help that the realtor SELLING the home is a complete asshole. he told our realtor last week to stop calling him. he told us we would hear last monday and then we didn't, so our realtor called the paralegal and that person said "i don't know where he got that from, i didn't tell him they'd hear on monday" but now the paralegal is saying we'll hear this week...
it was a short sale so i'm really confused as to why it's taking so long... i hate banks :(
When I bought my house I was preapproved for a loan. I was cleared with the bank for a loan before I ever even put in an offer.
Lucky you, although I guess that's called planning. I decided to buy a house one week, found a house the following week, and made an offer. I didn't have anything pre-approved, which made the process stressful, but still do-able.
When I bought my house I was preapproved for a loan. I was cleared with the bank for a loan before I ever even put in an offer.
Lucky you, although I guess that's called planning. I decided to buy a house one week, found a house the following week, and made an offer. I didn't have anything pre-approved, which made the process stressful, but still do-able.
we don't have any kind of pre-approval letter or anything. the mortgage woman said he will have no problem, and as soon as our offer is accepted, they will go right over and apply for the loan.
You weren't pre-approved first? I won't even show a house to someone if they don't have a pre-approval letter. Glad your situation worked out though. Most people around here without pre-approvals work at the dairy queen 15 hours a week and think they can afford a house. ::)
I guess my approach is a bit disconcerting to someone in the biz. ;D My rent payment was only a little less than my house payment. I'm a working professional, so I lived in a nice apartment with a yard. Now I live in a hut with less closet space.
I went to an mls site, got a list of houses in the area I was interested in, went to check them out with a friend via drive bys, figured out which one I wanted to look at, found a real estate agent and told him I wanted to buy a house and start the search by looking a list of specific houses on the market. I guess people don't usually do it that way. ::)
We just bought our home in December and had nothing but stresses (long story). We were fortunate to have GREAT people helping us though and it all worked out. Our realtors were on top of everything and were incredibly helpful. I would definitely recommend getting preapproved for a loan though. I think it will make things go much smoother and then you will know for certain what you can afford. Good luck to you!