How long is too long to wait to go to closing after contract?

We went to sign the contract last night and found out the homeowners wanted a closing date of Oct, we had agreed to July. The lawyer said with interest rates going up he wouldn't advise to wait that long (he said even July was long). We really love the house I just don't know if it's worth waiting?

Re: How long is too long to wait to go to closing after contract?

There's no "too long" or "too short"...it's whatever is agreed on. I thought that the closing date was stipulated in the contract, but if not (i.e. if it's still up for negotiation), then you'll have to see if you can work out a date that's mutually agreeable. October is definitely a long ways out - hope you can come to some kind of agreement!

Re: How long is too long to wait to go to closing after contract?

Thanks! The closing date is decided at contract so we didnt sign. My main concern is the interest rates going up.

Re: How long is too long to wait to go to closing after contract?

We signed our contract a couple of weeks ago and we're closing in July. Even our lawyer said that was far out because you would need to wait to lock in a mortgage. We were really concerned with this since rates are going up, so he asked how much we really wanted the house. He bought us as much time as possible, which had to be changed in the contract. We found a mortgage where we could lock in the rate for a good few months without a fee. We lucked out with that. However, there was a backup offer where the buyers were going to pay ALL cash so we didn't want to make all these demands. Another option you might want to consider is to close earlier and have the sellers pay rent to stay in the house, but then there is a whole liability issue you will have to take on if you decide to do that. Discuss your options with your lawyer and see what he recommends. Hope this helps and everything works out for you!

Re: How long is too long to wait to go to closing after contract?

I would personally try to find out all your options. The rates are going up (rather quickly I might add) and it would be so unfair if you had to pay an higher interest rate jsut bc your closing date is 6 months from now. Like someone else has suggested maybe you could find a lender who will allow you to lock in for a longer time

Best of luck!

Re: How long is too long to wait to go to closing after contract?

We had a similar problem. We signed in january and were supposed to close March 1, The ended up having to wait for a co. We had to pay extra money to keep the lock in so we negotiated with them and they ended up paying a point for us.

Re: How long is too long to wait to go to closing after contract?

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Posted by laughinlala

I would personally try to find out all your options. The rates are going up (rather quickly I might add) and it would be so unfair if you had to pay an higher interest rate jsut bc your closing date is 6 months from now.

Best of luck!

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Re: How long is too long to wait to go to closing after contract?

tough decisions....

...with out house we went into contract in July when we found our house, we were suppose to close late August, but then the sellers got held up to November as they werent ready to close and then they didnt have a co for a dormer.... for my dh and I the longer we had to wait the more ansy we got,-- for me it was checking mortgage rates, and seeing the new houses on the market which made it very frustrating that we ended up closing 4 months after the contract was signed.... me personally I would think 6 months would be too long to wait, but it also depends, how much do you love this house, and how good a deal is it in the town that you are buying into