When interviewing your loan originator, BEFORE you commit to working with him or her, ask for the LO to commit to you, in writing, that you will be able to review the final HUD I Settlement Statement one day prior to entering the signing room.

If this person balks, calmly let him or her know that under a federal law called RESPA, the LO must comply with your request.

If that person is unfamiliar with this part of RESPA, continue your search for an LO.

Here are two links to the HUD website which explains homebuyer’s rights under RESPA.

http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/res/resconsu.cfm

http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/res/resborwr.cfm

Good luck! Feel free to come back and tell us how everything turned out for you, or to ask any other questions.

Wouldn’t change a thing (says Lynlee). Give the lender a 30 day window and they’ll take it up to the last day a clients can sign both in a purchase or rescission period in a refi. Not always, but in too many cases.

Buyers or refi folks,

if you want to review loan docs ahead of time, you’ll have to press the issue with your loan officer to get the documents to escrow who can forward the important stuff for review prior to your signing appointment.

If this is a continuous problem, why aren’t agents writing contracts for 45 days instead of 30? Do you think that would help? Or would lenders still wait until the last minute?

Superb question. Because the majority of the time, lenders do not get loan documents to escrow in time for you to review the documents a day or two or three prior to your signing appointment.

Unfortunately, in too many cases, escrow will receive loan documents at the very last possible moment in the transaction timeline. Therefore, once we receive loan docs, escrow works up the paperwork and Settlement Statement and calls the client to make an appointment to sign the documents, sometimes on the very same day (a real thorn in the side for escrow firms) or night escrow receives them. In an ideal transaction, escrow will receive loan documents well ahead of time, allowing escrow time and perhaps allowing time for the client to review the loan docs prior to your signing appointment. When that happens all the client is doing is signing paperwork, which saves you time and is a huge time saver for escrow (no 3 hour signing marathons).

Tim, why do you state: “but the reality is that the majority of cases it won’t happen.”

I say go for it. There’s nothing like a steaming spud.

We’ll see. Did write most of it, but am debating whether it’s helpful for people or not. It could really be construed the wrong way in the blogging world. It’s a hot potato.

Ardell-

Hot potato. The impact of not going forward is really outside of the escrow world. That’s is a question for the agent to discuss directly with their client.

PS. what is a Bialetti? (I feel dumb, sorry).

Do you ask if they would rather lose their Earnest Money than proceed? I think if asked that question, some people would say yes.

I have had that happen on occasion. I say if you are willing to lose your Earnest Money, then let’s stop right now. I tell them they may not lose their Earnest Money and we can do everything possible to prevent that. But if their gut is saying they’d rather lose the Earnest Money than proceed…it’s over.