I closed on my cooperative apartment yesterday and I am so happy it’s over!!!! Besides providing Schwab with all the normal financial information to secure the mortgage, there was the additional stress of providing an even more comprehensive array of financial and personal information to the Coop to get their seal of approval. Their process also included a formal background check ($350 and a hard inquiry on Experian), a personal interview, (did also mention that the board only meets once a month) and a 4:1 income to expenses ratio.
Then there is the dreaded question can the Seller or the Seller’s bank locate the Coop shares (stock) certificate and proprietary lease so the Coop’s lawyer can transfer them to me, well really to Schwab the holder of my mortgage. As expected, Bank of America lost these documents and it took 7 weeks before they would admit it so replacements could be prepared for the closing by the Coop’s lawyer. But in the end other than writer’s cramp due to signing and initialing documents for an hour, I have the perfect apartment.
Just want to say thanks to everyone for the wealth of knowledge and support you have provided to me during this process. You are my daily dose of financial therapy.
Homeowner in Bergen County, New Jersey
Just a note: If you are the Seller of a Coop and you don’t personal have the stock certificate and proprietary lease in your possession, make sure you or your lawyer contact your mortgage lender ASAP in the process so they can start looking for them. Who knows what silo in Nebraska they filed them in.
