Thursday, July 7, 2016

A Moving Experience

Yes, once again, I’m moving. Or, more accurately, have moved. I’m nearly settled in my new place, but I don’t want to forget the process. Like a stray cat, I hope this will be my forever home, that I’m cured of my wandering ways.

It all began when my landlord offered to sell his townhouse-style condo to me. I discovered I could get affordable financing. I also realized I didn’t want a two-story unit.

I told him I would be happy to have his place on the market while I looked for another. I would try to ‘stage’ it and would stay out of the way during showings.

That was on April 13, 2016.

Now that I had qualified for mortgage money, I began looking. I told everyone I knew, including the condo manager.

On April 18, the condo manager called. A single-level unit had just gone on the market. “Call the realtor,” she urged.

I saw the place that afternoon and made an offer the next day, with projected closing on the first of June. The seller accepted!

My notification to the landlord via email brought this response in less than half an hour:

I talked to my realtor and we will be putting the place on the market very soon. Hopefully everything will work out for the both of us.

Thus began the process. Completing loan application, property inspection, appraisal of the property, loan application sent to underwriting.

In the midst of this, many showings of the rental unit – and finally an offer. The physical inspection of that property took place the day my loan application went to underwriting!

Now I was getting nervous. Would I have to live out of my car beside a U-Haul filled with my household goods?

On May 19, my banker emailed of a possible May 27. Yay!

On May 20, she said probably not May 27, but June 1 looks good. Okay, I would miss the three-day Memorial Day weekend to begin the move. Sigh!

Email from banker May 24: your loan is in line with the condo department for a review of the condo docs. I tried to get an eta with no luck

Getting really nervous. I asked for clarification of what steps lay ahead.

Reply on May 25 @3:54pm: Your file is not out of underwriting yet.

Once we have the “clear to close” from underwriting your file will be placed in line for a Closing Disclosure to be prepared and sent to you via email.

Upon acknowledgement from you and return of the signed Closing Document* there are three days before you can sign your loan documents (this is a federal law).

On the third day after you acknowledge, sign and return your Closing Document we will prepare your loan documents and send them to the title company where you will sign said documents.

The title company will then send the signed loan document package back to us. We will then review the documents and fund the loan.

Depending on the time of day* we receive the loan package back and the number of other loans we need to fund as well, we may be able to fund your loan the following day. Otherwise it will be 2 business days after you sign your documents.


(*They often send these documents late in the day, sometimes after 11 p.m. What a mean joke! "You have to get things back to us right away, but we can wait until midnight to send them to you!")

And then this at 4:50pm: I just received an email with a few questions for the HOA manager for your condo complex that she did not answer in the beginning.

When I called, the manager was already madly faxing the info, though she said it was all answered in what she sent originally.

Then, on May 26, the bank asked for a 10-day extension on escrow closing! And I learned the rental will close on June 18. Cutting it close!

In the end, someone – probably The Force – stepped in and arranged a closing on June 1, with only a 24-hour waiting period before gaining access. Whew!

So now, I only have to change my address. On everything. Thank goodness I still have the list from my last move.

Life is good.

A Moving Experience

Yes, once again, I’m moving. Or, more accurately, have moved. I’m nearly settled in my new place, but I don’t want to forget the process. Like a stray cat, I hope this will be my forever home, that I’m cured of my wandering ways.

It all began when my landlord offered to sell his townhouse-style condo to me. I discovered I could get affordable financing. I also realized I didn’t want a two-story unit.

I told him I would be happy to have his place on the market while I looked for another. I would try to ‘stage’ it and would stay out of the way during showings.

That was on April 13, 2016.

Now that I had qualified for mortgage money, I began looking. I told everyone I knew, including the condo manager.

On April 18, the condo manager called. A single-level unit had just gone on the market. “Call the realtor,” she urged.

I saw the place that afternoon and made an offer the next day, with projected closing on the first of June. The seller accepted!

My notification to the landlord via email brought this response in less than half an hour:

I talked to my realtor and we will be putting the place on the market very soon. Hopefully everything will work out for the both of us.

Thus began the process. Completing loan application, property inspection, appraisal of the property, loan application sent to underwriting.

In the midst of this, many showings of the rental unit – and finally an offer. The physical inspection of that property took place the day my loan application went to underwriting!

Now I was getting nervous. Would I have to live out of my car beside a U-Haul filled with my household goods?

On May 19, my banker emailed of a possible May 27. Yay!

On May 20, she said probably not May 27, but June 1 looks good. Okay, I would miss the three-day Memorial Day weekend to begin the move. Sigh!

Email from banker May 24: your loan is in line with the condo department for a review of the condo docs. I tried to get an eta with no luck

Getting really nervous. I asked for clarification of what steps lay ahead.

Reply on May 25 @3:54pm: Your file is not out of underwriting yet.

Once we have the “clear to close” from underwriting your file will be placed in line for a Closing Disclosure to be prepared and sent to you via email.

Upon acknowledgement from you and return of the signed Closing Document* there are three days before you can sign your loan documents (this is a federal law).

On the third day after you acknowledge, sign and return your Closing Document we will prepare your loan documents and send them to the title company where you will sign said documents.

The title company will then send the signed loan document package back to us. We will then review the documents and fund the loan.

Depending on the time of day* we receive the loan package back and the number of other loans we need to fund as well, we may be able to fund your loan the following day. Otherwise it will be 2 business days after you sign your documents.


(*They often send these documents late in the day, sometimes after 11 p.m. What a mean joke! "You have to get things back to us right away, but we can wait until midnight to send them to you!")

And then this at 4:50pm: I just received an email with a few questions for the HOA manager for your condo complex that she did not answer in the beginning.

When I called, the manager was already madly faxing the info, though she said it was all answered in what she sent originally.

Then, on May 26, the bank asked for a 10-day extension on escrow closing! And I learned the rental will close on June 18. Cutting it close!

In the end, someone – probably The Force – stepped in and arranged a closing on June 1, with only a 24-hour waiting period before gaining access. Whew!

So now, I only have to change my address. On everything. Thank goodness I still have the list from my last move.

Life is good.