It’s The Final Countdown!

Posted on November 5, 2007 by Melissa
Filed Under Housing, Mortgage

Yes, folks, this is it! It’s the final countdown!

We have been given our closing date so now we are now in the final stretch.

The big day: 11/30.

So much for Thanksgiving! We had to call the folks to let them know we won’t be coming down to visit and cook. Unfortunately, we will need to dedicate that vacation time to packing now that the closing date is just days away.

Although we were hoping the house wouldn’t be completed until January they appear to have made our home a priority and are getting it done early. I guess we shouldn’t be surprised. They gave us a timeline of 6-9 months and it’s been over 6 months since we signed the papers.

Many people who are building homes complain of there never being workers on site and that the home just sits there. It seems like they had the entire crew in our home every time we drove by. I guess having ample workers on a project can speed things up considerably.

We are nervous now and feel the need to come up with a plan. Just last weekend we finally started the packing process. We were packing in anticipation of the 30-day notice, that unknown date off in the distance. Now, we have to pack “for real” and there is a sense of urgency around it. 25 days and counting…

From a financial standpoint, the first thing we need to do is choose a lender. With the closing date being official it is time to start shopping for a loan so we can get a lock on a rate.

Today and tomorrow we will be on the prowl for several good faith estimates. I have gathered all the information we need to prove our loan-worthiness. I am compiling the following information for our meetings:

Pay stubs for last 2 months
2 years of W2’s
Brokerage account statements (retirement and stock assets)
Bank and ING account statements (liquid assets)
Proof we paid off the car loans

We had already been pre-approved and received GFEs from two different companies in May. Now we have to get real bids for our loans and choose our lender. We have 10% down and want a primary loan for 80% (30-year fixed) and a secondary loan for the remaining 10% (30-year fixed). The secondary loan can be paid off with our current home’s equity once we sell it.

We have decided to get GFEs from:

our agent/loan officer
the builder’s agency of choice (they had the best GFE rate previously)
our credit union
Bank of America
a local broker we found online

We have managed to build great credit scores and pay down our debts so we are hoping to get really low rates on the loans. But with the current lending environment and the crunch on secondary loans we are curious to see how we will be affected. Once we are able to compare the GFEs we will make sure to write about it. It will be interesting to see who comes ahead with the best deal for us.

Now the stress is setting in. I can’t believe it’s happening so soon.

By the way - that video cracks me up every single time I watch it!

Comments

3 Responses to “It’s The Final Countdown!”

wealthy_1 on November 6th, 2007 10:21 am

Melissa,

Congratulations to you and Eric. You did it!

I wish you happiness and joy in your new home!
Mar on November 6th, 2007 1:24 pm

Don’t worry - you’ll get your loan done and your moving done. We moved on December 29 last year, so I know what you mean about moving right after the holidays! When you look at lenders, make sure you get one that doesn’t charge you to pay online. And as much as they’ve been slammed, Countrywide has been great for us for the last few years. Their professionalism and ease of payment on our last loan was why we selected them for this house as well. Enjoy, don’t stress too much, and get enough sleep.
Melissa on November 6th, 2007 3:55 pm

@wealthy_1 - I wouldn’t say we “did it” just yet but we can definitely see the finish line from here. We still have a few hurdles to overcome in getting the loan, closing, and moving. I really appreciate your kind wishes! We will need them to get through the next month.

@Mar - Welcome! Thanks for the tip, we will make sure to look for that when comparing lenders. Our current mortgage is through Countrywide and I didn’t even think to compare them as well. Tonight we are going to finish up our shopping and lock the rate tomorrow. Thanks again for commenting!