I have a house that will be finished this week and available for sale. I'm marketing this to the traditional homeowner who needs a mortgage.

Assuming I get a good offer from a buyer this weekend, what is the shortest period of time that we can go to closing when the contract is ratified? How quickly can a buyer get their mortgage to go to closing?

I have had Portfolio Conventional 80/20 LTV Loans Close in less than 3 weeks with a Local Bank.

If the Down Payment is less than 20%, the clock moves slower.

Ok thanks. That makes sense.

7 days is the shortest amount of time per federal law. (MDIA Mortgage Disclosure Improvement Act)

It is still possible to close within that time frame although highly unlikely.

I would say 15-30 days for a bank and 30 to 45 days for a broker. However, most seem to be taking longer than that. I have an underwriter in my office so I usually am under 30 days still.

FHA 203k or USDA 45-60

Lenders only appear to be "dragging their feet" when you are waiting to close. There are many RESPA-required hoops for them to jump through.

If you don't "have an Uncle in the business" at your lender, be happy if you close within 30 days of your accepted offer. 45 days is a lot more usual. It is not at all uncommon for a lender's loan commitment to expire because they cannot set a prompt closing date.

Try to help the bank's closer out by running routine errands for him/her, like going to the title company and/or the surveyor and/or the (groan...) FHA or VA. Don't attempt to rush the appraiser - the more you push, the slower he'll get!!

Waiting longer and longer it seems. GFE 2010 nightmares.