Seller (a bank) wants extension for closing

**Myst420** · 12-05-2010, 11:47 AM

Hi everyone,

I'm in the process of buying a house that has been previously foreclosed on. It is past the short-sale point and is now a strickly bank owned property. Everything seems to be going well until today when my real estate agent told me I need to sign an extension of closing, because the bank apparently needs to transfer the property to another asset manager.

My closing date was originally Dec 17, and they want an extension to the 30th. The only problem is, I currently rent and my lease is ending. I don't want to sign the extension, but what are my options? What happens if I refuse to sign it?

btw, I am in Tampa, FL. All of my paperwork is complete, and my mortgage company is ready to go the table.

Thanks in advance for the help!
Mike

**Chrisopher Moltisanti** · 12-05-2010, 01:17 PM

Mike,

I feel your options are as follows

Very simple. Bank is going to re-assign this project to another asset manager with or without you. If you can stay with friends or family or at an extended stay hotel until closing, then sign the stupid extension and wait another 30 days for the bank to close.

Good luck.

**jlandes** · 12-06-2010, 05:41 AM

I agree. The mortgage company has full control of this situation. If you want the house, you will have to wait

**Greg** · 12-06-2010, 06:03 AM

Regardless of whether you sign the extension or not you still have to find a place to live. 2 weeks should not be too hard to manage.

I try to encourage my clients to not time their moves so precisely because things always pop up.

Go ahead and sign the extension.

**agentsranking** · 12-07-2010, 06:57 AM

The consensus here seems to be that your only option if you want the property is to sign the extension. Unfortunately, dealing with banks on purchases can be extremely frustrating for all of the parties involved. It's very common for buyers to simply get fed up with waiting and waiting for answers and approvals from the bank and just cancel the purchase agreement. You probably feel like you're getting a good deal on the purchase which is why you wrote a purchase agreement on a bank owned property vs. a traditional sale. At this point you don't really have any good options. Find a friend or family member to crash with, stay at a hotel until closing or sign a short term lease.

Don't be surprised however if they bank requests another extension after their current one expires so you might want to plan accordingly.

**Chrisopher Moltisanti** · 12-07-2010, 07:39 AM

Oh yeah, fuggettaboutit. Stay with friends or family or sign a short-term lease. The banks are only going to request another extension 30 days from now or they'll "lose" the one you just authorized or the asset manager will quit or the asset manager's secretary will be on a vacation for.....60 days or the bank will be going through a "change" in the ranks, or a transition of some kind. Take your pick.

Buyers of REOs and short sales: Expect nothing and anticipate everything. Very simple.
Just thank your lucky stars that you're even speaking with someone who uses proper grammar. And this one fact alone still doesn't guarantee your success.

**mnhouses** · 12-07-2010, 08:31 AM

I got a chuckle out of Chrisopher Moltisanti's reply, but sadly, he is very realistic. One of the toughest things to do as a real estate agent is to manage the emotions of a buyer who is buying a short-sale or bank-owned property. Sometimes everything goes smoothly, but this is the exception not the rule. Good luck!

**Jonathan Radford** · 12-08-2010, 07:09 AM

As others said, you really don't have any options other than foregoing the purchase or waiting for the bank to transfer the property rights. Stay with a friend or family, an extended stay hotel, or I have even seen some really nice spaces reasonably priced by individuals on Craigslist.

It's only a couple of extra weeks. Good luck!