Whether you are the buyer or the seller of a home in Tennessee, you may wonder how long it will take to close on a home once an offer has been accepted. Both parties will be excited to get the work done.
The seller has some big plans to move on and try something new and the buyer wants to be able to move into their new home. But how long does it take to close on a home in Tennessee?
It takes between a week to 60 days to close on a home in Tennessee. The variance comes due to the type of property, whether the buyer chooses to purchase with a mortgage and the type of loan that they take out. It can also depend if the buyer needs to sell their own property first, according to Elizabeth Leanza of Synergy Realty, a Franklin, TN real estate agency.
Both the buyer and seller can choose a closing date, but it may be up to the mortgage lender when everything will be ready to close.
Closing on a home takes a lot of different parts to come together before the buyer can get the funding that they need to purchase the home. Let’s look at some of the different parts that come into the closing process on a new home.
How Long Does It Take to Close On a House in Tennessee?
The closing process can sometimes take as short as a week and other times 60 days or more. If the buyer has to get a mortgage on the home, then it often takes a bit longer to complete because they have to figure out what the bank wants before getting the money. Those who close with cash can get it done quickly.
The biggest thing that will affect the length of a closing is going to be the financing. When the buyer is able to get the home with cash rather than financing, it can speed the process up. This is not common though so most home purchases will need to wait for all the paperwork and more through the bank.
Since most homebuyers will need to close on a home using a mortgage, the closing period will often take longer. Most of the time it takes between 30 to 45 days after a contract is signed, though many will take 60 days or more too. The average for standard mortgages took 47 days to close and VA loans took 51. The FHA loans were the longest to close at 52 days.
What Happens During Closing?
There are a lot of steps that happen when the home is getting ready to sell, which is part of why this process takes some time to complete. Some of the steps that will have to happen include:
- Agree on the purchase agreement and pick a closing date.
- Within a few days, the buyer needs to open and fund the escrow account.
- Get the inspection done and ask for repair requests within the first one to two weeks.
- Work on the application and underwriting for the mortgage. This takes between 5 to 20 days based on what the buyer needs to work through.
- Appraisal: The home needs an appraisal. This can take one to two weeks after signing the contract.
- Get title insurance and homeowner’s insurance: This takes as long as the buyer needs to find a good type. It could be done in a day.
- Get the clear to close: After the underwriting is done, it can take one day.
- Do a final walk-through.
- Attend the closing appointment and walk away with the keys.
Keep in mind that some of these do happen at the same time. The buyer will not need to wait for each step before moving on to the next one. This makes it easier to work with and can speed up the process.
What Can Make the Closing Take Longer?
There are many times when things will go wrong and the closing date will take longer or need to be pushed back. If something is difficult with the mortgage, this will push back the date. If the buyer takes out more loans or does something that messes with their credit, it is not a good thing during closing.
If the home appraisal comes back too low, the seller and buyer may need to go back to the drawing board and reach a new price agreement before moving on. Sometimes there are issues with the title. The title has to be cleared before the sale can happen so this slows things down. Issues with the homeowner’s insurance, a home sale contingency that is not met, or the seller is slow on some of the requested repairs from the buyer can all make the process take longer.
Closing On Your Home
Closing can seem like a stressful time that is hard to handle and never as easy as it seems. With the help of a good realtor and the right mortgage company, you can make sure that you close on your home in no time.