Don’t dilly dally! The $8,000 first time homebuyer tax credit will expire soon.

Posted by admin on August 13, 2009

Anybody hoping to use the first time buyer tax credit must close escrow by November 30th, 2009. That means having the keys and being in the new home on December 1st, 2009.

If you are looking for a home, or thinking about buying a home – the beginning to mid October should be your absolute deadline to having found a home and having an accepted, executed offer and being in the process of getting escrow closed before the November 30th, 2009 deadline.   That is still pushing it.  September would be my deadline, but so many people do procrastinate.   These days, lenders are operating with a smaller crew so it takes longer to get things done.

Do everything in your power to help your realtor and your mortgage professional get all necessary paperwork processed as soon as possible. Don’t dilly dally.

New disclosure laws–will create longer escrow transactions. The new minimum mandatory transaction time for transactions with a loan is 17 days. As of July 30th lenders are now required to wait 4 business days from when they receive a loan package until any fees, including the appraisal, can be charged. Unless someone other than the borrower pays for the appraisal you must wait to order it. Also, there is now a 7 day redisclosure period before loan docs can be delivered. To insure compliance many lenders now hold docs 7 calendar days from when they were ordered!