What are some things that could go wrong during escrow that could delay or cancel the purchase of a home?

Answer 1

Assuming away any of the reasons having to do with someone changing their mind...

The appraisal could come back showing the house is worth a lot less than the contract price. The inspection could show termites or something uncorrectible about the structure. The credit report may be really bad, even if because of inaccuracies. The buyer could lose their job and the lender pulls out because of it. The title search could reveal that the Seller only owns half of it, and the other half belongs to his brother or ex-wife. The seller could be a total fraud and not even be on title at all. The actual property the seller owns could be significantly less than everyone thought because of a difference between legal descriptions and where the fences are on the property. There could be tax liens on the property that combine with the mortgage to be paid off and seller costs to be more than the price and he's not willing to bring any money to closing.

I've seen all those happen, there are more.

Answer 2

Oh just about a hundred things such as buyer not qualifying, interest rates going up, property infested with termites and seller won't fix, seller dies, buyers get a divorce, a cloud shows up on title, the house catches on fire, the escrow company burns down, the sellers get a better offer, the realtor shoots the loan officer....

Answer 3

Tha bank usually has their own appraisal done, and if you are trying to buy the house for more than it appraises at they won't loan you that amount. At that point, though, all you do is drop your offer because your original offer would have contained that contingency; the seller can back out and have to pay you back your escrow money; the loan could fall through completely.

Answer 4

Here's a couple more...

Death: had to be mentioned, if either of the parties dies there is no contract

Condition of property: My first boss went to take his clients for a final walk-through of a property an hour before closing (in CO funding and often possession happens at closing)to find that an ex-tenant went in there with a chainsaw and cut all the beams in the walls and the ceiling. The house had to be condemned. We had another one that got hit by lightening three days before closing and burned down. (weird and unusual, but it can happen)

---- LESSON HERE---- ALWAYS DO A WALK THROUGH

Answer 5

Inspection, Title Search,

Answer 6

LOAN FALLS THRU
SELLER CHANGES MIND
BUYER CHANGES MIND

TITLE DOES NOT CLEAR

TAXES OWED PAST DUE