Originally Posted by villagerfrog

I wanted to share my friend's story and see if others experienced the same thing. They were down last week for the sole purpose of finding and purchasing a home here. They looked at both owned and new and settled for a new home in Labelle. They were pre-approved for a mortgage through Chase. When it came to sign the paperwork, the Villages would not budge on the 30 day closing date. In addition (I looked at the contract also), if closing did not occur within 30 days (for any reason outside of the developer's control), then the discount on the home would be voided and they would have to pay the higher price. Chase wanted 45 days to ensure they could process the mortgage. So my friend went to Citizen's thinking that well, it's a developer owned entity, that must be the preferred way to go. He said that they were very professional but could not guarantee 30 days either for a mortgage. He said that there had been instances where either paperwork got delayed or something else (out of there control) by which they were not able to complete the processing.

So to make a long story short, they didn't buy.. they were concerned that if they could not get a mortgage within 30 days and if the discount was not continued, then they'd end up paying an additional $11k.

They went home disillusioned about their experience and have a bad taste about the Villages corporate entity. I tried to reassure them. We are on our second home now (all pre-owned) and had nothing but positive experiences in the buying / selling process. I guess that's the difference between dealing with an individual seller vs a corporation.

Anyhow, I'm just sharing.

Sorry to hear about the bad experience. We are very familiar with meeting the 30 day closing requirement. Please feel free to send along our contact information to your friends, we love making new neighbors! Scott Turner can be reached at 352-399-5899.

[graciegirl]

We had no problem, either time here, buying a new home. The developers don't negotiate and they don't take VA or FHA and there have been people here who have complained about that.


It's a new experience for many. But it is what it is. You can either fish, or cut bait.

[Buckeye Bob]

I believe the issue with the Villages on new homes has something to do with taxes and bond starting on a home that hasn't been sold. If the deal fell apart, the Villages has to start paying those items. On a pre-owned, someone is already paying those items so it's not an issue.

[twoplanekid]

Last year we worked with a local Ohio bank, knew the loan officer to obtain a fixed loan almost with in the 30 day time. Paperwork was sent to the wrong office, not our fault that resulted in the closing date being postponed by about a week. We were not assessed a penalty by the Villages. My brother went thought this same bank to meet the time constraints for the purchase of his house this year.

Because of the rush or something, our bank had to refund some of our closing costs as the result of a Fed audit. My brother was upset that he didn’t get a refund.

Sometimes it is the luck of the draw how things turn out.

[jblum315]

I refinanced my mortgage in January with Quicken Loan. It was quick and painless. The banks I called wouldn't touch it because the loan amount was too small, they said.

[TNLAKEPANDA]

We had a horrible experience with Citizen's Mortgage and so did my sister. Because of the Dodd - Frank bill getting a mortgage is a lot more difficult and takes longer. The Developer needs to advertise discount applies to Cash Buyers.

[rubicon]

As to buying in The Villages the market determines your experience.
When we first looked the Developer couldn't do enough. We backed away

We came back about a year later and (2006) and the Developer was telling people what they were going to pay and that they had no options take it or leave it. the prices by the way doubled by our second visit. I was so incensed that I listed everything I wanted in a home and if she could not deliver at my price then I would look elsewhere. Three weeks later she called and had a meeting of minds.

Business is business and I understand tough dealings and negotiations but this Developer leaves you with a very bad taste in your mouth .

[villagetinker]

Originally Posted by jnieman

Did you get a fixed rate on your home equity loan? We just got one with SunTrust and it took less than 2 weeks but it is adjustable rate. They did originally quote me a 30 day lead time but it processed very quickly. We will have the cash in our account in just about 2 1/2 weeks from the time we applied but do have to keep the account open for 3 years to avoid penalties. There were no closing costs. We are adding on a bird cage and enclosing the lanai.

Our terms were the same as yours, variable rate, 3 years to avoid closing costs, and interesting, we added a birdcage, but are not enclosing the lanai, the cat did not approve the enclosing of the lanai.

In our case we wanted to start construction, and were lead to believe that the builders typically file a lien at the time the contract is signed, and if that were signed before the loan went through, chaos would ensue. By securing the loan first we avoided the chaos, also as it turns out our builder did not file a lien anyway.

[dewilson58]

Originally Posted by JerryLBell

The wife and I bought earlier this year through The Villages. We got our mortgage through Wells Fargo, who bent over backwards to meet the 30 day date but just couldn't do it. We closed about a week later. We did NOT lose our discount but we did have to pay some sort of fee for each of those days we were late by. Afterwards, Wells Fargo sent us gift debit cards equaling the amount of the fines so it's not like we actually had to pay much of anything for the fines.

I'm not sure why buying through The Villages includes this absurd 30 day time, but it is a bit of a pain in the a**. If we'd found a resale home we'd like as well as the new one we bought AND if we'd gone through an "outside" realtor, I feel like we wouldn't have had this. Whatever. It's all behind us now. We just need to finish up our final year or two of our careers and retire down to TV!

We did WFargo as well. They were able to meet the deadline. I got a set of knives.

[asianthree]

We used BOA on our first house in a TV. We closed 13 hours late. Not our fault, there was a computer issue at TV. We were charged $495 for closing late. Our bank picked up the tab. Citizens always closes in 30 days. That's why they want you to use the. Higher interest, more closing cost. I am surprised citizens said they could not close on time

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by outlaw

Tell your friend he can buy pre owned, but tell him/her to focus on MLS listings, if possible. their sales contracts are negotiable regarding various terms and conditions, whereas, the developer's VLS listings have absolutely no flexibility regarding T&Cs. Some of VLS T&Cs are ridiculous. The developer's attitude is my way or the highway.

Our experience with buying a resale through VLS was much different than yours. When we purchased our current resale through The Villages, we added a clause that the offer was conditional on selling our CYV. We found the Sales Department at VLS very negotiable regarding T & Cs, and it was smooth sailing all the way.

[villagerfrog]

Thank you all for your replies. Mr. M (my friend) is contemplating what they will do next. I read through all the reviews. God bless you all for taking the time to share your experiences and thoughts. Mr. M and wife are going to think about things for awhile. They will be coming down again in December. Perhaps things will work out for their favor in the next visit. As I mentioned earlier, the concern they had was the clause that if they didn't close within the 30 days, they would lost the discount. They had no problem with the interest nor the $250 to change the closing date. I'm hoping that that sales department sees this and does a survey on other folks who were ready to "sign" but the 30 day restriction scared them away. Thanks much for your comments.

[rjm1cc]

Originally Posted by villagerfrog

They were pre-approved. Chase wanted 45 days for processing.

What does that mean? My guess is that your friends said this is what I earn, assets and debt I have etc and they said ok if what you said is all true you can have a loan of x. Now the bank needs the 45 days to verify. Remember the people the bank goes to may not respond quickly or their response may result in more paperwork.

[perrjojo]

No mortgage company can guarantee 30 day closing because of many factors. Perhaps your employer, bank or previous home loan does not respond in time. Perhaps you cannot provide your requested documents on time. A mortgage company is at the mercy of appraisers, underwriters etc. a good solid applicant can close in 30'days but a mortgage company doesn't know what may come up when you first apply. The developer ask for a 30 day close because time is money. He is paying interim financing interest on each home he builds. Some home loan processes can go on forever, costing the builder more money.

[dbussone]

The only way to complete a 30 day closing for certain is to do a cash closing.