Final Days Of The $8,000 First Time Home Buyers Credit

I was talking to my go to guy for lending, Kevin McSwain, of Quest Home Loan Center today about the upcoming end to the $8,000 first time home buyers credit. If you are thinking about trying to still get in on the credit the federal government is offering, the window is coming to a close fast. Here are some things to think about that you may not have considered with regard to the upcoming end of this credit.

-Your purchase needs to be completed before the 1st of December

.

Ok, that in and of itself seems like no big deal but lets consider this a little further.
Thanksgiving is on Thursday the 26th and November 30th falls on a Monday. Many title companies and banks run skeleton crews the week of the Thanksgiving holiday. This could pose a logistical problem in getting all of these homes to close before the deadline.

Also, consider that if there is a rush of buyers trying to cash in there may also be a backlog for appraisals. Appraisers are not an unlimited commodity. Is it possible that you can’t close on time because you can’t get your appraisal done in time? What if people from the appraisal industry go on vacation Thanksgiving week? This would tighten up the available supply even further.

Underwriting is not something that most buyers give a lot of thought. It is something that happens out of sight. Unless a buyer is asked for specific information and documents for securing their loan, underwriting becomes a fictitious place, at least to the buyer, in the lending process. So what will happen if bank underwriting staff goes on vacation Thanksgiving week? You guessed it once again the process is slowed down.

Don’t get me wrong, title companies, appraisers, and underwriters are all good at what they do but they can only do so much in a given work day. So what’s the moral of the story? You probably need to consider making your move so you can close prior to Thanksgiving week. This means that you have about 2 weeks to get your offers written and accepted in order to have the time necessary to close on time. Don’t even consider a short sale property as the risks of loosing your $8,000 credit is high. Foreclosures which are already owned by banks shouldn’t be a problem unless there is an issue with the property that makes it challenging to get financing in the first place. This would include properties as I described in the post “Top Five Conditions Found In Foreclosure Properties.” Your best bet to ensure that you close in time might be to focus on properties that are not Distressed. I hope this puts a fire of action under those out there that still want to get their government credit. If you thought you would wait until the last minute, well, the last minute has officially arrived.