A seller put his Phoenix Arizona home on the market to move out of state. A buyer viewed the home and found it to be perfect for their growing family. The buyer and seller negotiated a contract for the sale of the home. The buyer completed inspections and found few repairs. The seller boxed up a lifetime of memories and loaded the moving truck! The home selling process appears to be going very smoothly… But wait! Will this home close on time, or are there problems ahead? Here are a few indicators to look for:

• Buyer Qualifications Reviewed – When a buyer writes a contract to purchase a home, the buyer should present a list of pre-qualifications with the contract. In Arizona there is a standard Pre-Qualification form that should be completed by the buyer’s lender. This form is loaded with information about the perspective buyer. Important are items that the lender requires from the buyer in order to start and complete the loan. Completing these items sooner will allow for a quicker close– overlooking them will certainly slow the process. Management of these items is a sure sign of whether the home will close on time.
• Appraisal Complete – The appraisal should be ordered within the first few days of an accepted contract. While there is no hard and fast rule for completion of the appraisal, all parties agree that sooner is better than later. The appraisal should be good news, but there could be bad news lurking. Certainly, when the buyer’s financing depends upon completion of the appraisal completion, a good sign that the closing of the home will occur is completing this important step.
• Loan Package Submitted to Underwriter – Another big step for every home purchase is submitting the loan package to the underwriter. Included in the loan package is the title report, the completed appraisal, terms of the loan, the buyer’s application, and a bunch of documentation that none of us think about on a regular basis. The underwriter reviews the loan package for a few days and generally will give loan approval with prior to document (PTD) conditions. If this step is completed early enough in the escrow process, clearing the PTD conditions should not hold up the closing day. However, at times, the PTD conditions may require documentation not readily available, thereby delaying the closing date. At this point all parties should have a clear sign as to when the closing will occur.
• Don’t Forget About the Home Owner Association (HOA) Disclosures! –While the Arizona contract calls for delivery of all HOA information to the buyer, state law allows HOAs 14 calendar days from the time of the request to delivery to provide all necessary information. Normally, the title agency involved will make the request for HOA documents early, after contract acceptance. However, delivery of these documents may not happen for 19 days. As the buyer receives 5 days to review the HOA documents before closing, the delivery of these important documents may be a sign of an on time or late closing.
• Buyer Loan Docs to Title – A great sign! No matter how choppy the last few weeks may have been, delivery of buyer loan docs to title is a sign that the closing will occur in 1-3 days. All parties will be in a hurry to complete the last tasks of the transaction. However, be assured that closing of the home generally happens on most Phoenix Real Estate transactions.
• Short Sale Exception – If you are purchasing a short sale transaction, the seller’s bank may delay the closing date for 1-3 business days in order to approve the final settlement statement. While very annoying to all parties, this is a necessary extra step for most short sales. Some listing agents and title companies are proactive here and initiate the bank approval early. If so, then you have a sign that closing will happen on time!

Do you want to learn more about how to make your home buying or selling process go smoothly? Want to know more about Phoenix homes for sale? Our knowledgeable Phoenix AZ Realtors can help find the gems in the Phoenix MLS as well as make sure that your sale goes as smoothly as it can. Contact The Thompson Group at (480) 776-5214.