So How Long Does a Transaction Take, Start to Finish?
^ The Condo or Coop Board/Managing Agent/Bank/Seller/Department of Buildings/Closing Attorney looking down upon you, knowing they have your pathetic fate in their hands
Amazon ruined us in so many ways, but let’s go through my personal heavy hitters:
1. I now buy in bulk like I’m preparing my own doomsday shelter. It started as financial savviness and now it’s just straight up hoarding, all propagated by PTSD of the Toilet Paper Shortage of 2020 and the ongoing e-commerce “Supply Chain” gaslighting.
2. I expect a package every day when I come home. I am conditioned to the dopamine rush that accompanies a package at the door – regardless of if I know it’s just an 18-pack of dental floss – and coming home to nothing has become an inescapable dark emotional void.
3. I operate under the understanding that anything longer than 2-day shipping is unacceptable, downright medieval, and I personally should not be expected to shoulder the burden of the clown show of a government organization known as the USPS.
This demand for immediacy has bled into every part of our mortal existence. The worst victim of this being our requirement that delivery food arrives immediately. Poor Khalid is out there in a nor’easter on a Duffy dodging yellow cabs and forging through 7 inches of slush with a giant backpack holding your overpriced gourmet entree with all its accoutrements, which is now lawlessly sloshing around in what is a weird paste because the rémoulade emulsified with the condensation from the cooling salmon. All of this you will assuredly complain about and demand a refund for, along with cooly mentioning Khalid’s inability to get from E 74th and 1st to 6th and Waverly in under 5 minutes. Try and tell me I’m wrong.
People tend to feel similarly about their home search – once you decide you want to move, it’s all you can think about, it fully consumes your thoughts, and soon enough, you find yourself losing hours on Zillow and Streeteasy, falling in love with homes that you never toured, that are in-contract for way more than list, and aren’t even in your price range or general parameters. But what a lot of buyers don’t realize is that purchasing is a process, especially in New York, with so many variables at play and a truly unpredictable timeline, making each transaction unique.
^Signing your contract knowing this is not a reason to celebrate but simply your tethering yourself in a legally binding way to a bucking broncho of a marathon transaction, and even though the contract says a rosy estimated close date, we all know that’s a wild unknown
Today we’re going to go through rough timelines for different transaction types and additionally, factors that could lengthen the process that you should consider.
In timing out the normal transaction in NYC, let’s start at the very inception. The first basic steps in purchasing include retaining an attorney, getting pre-approved by a lending institution (if financing), filling out the REBNY financial statement, and setting your search parameters. Once you have all of that squared away, it’s time to hit the ground running and see properties. This aforementioned process can take a varying amount of time, depending on how quickly you need or are able to purchase, and how emotionally and financially ready you are to pull the trigger. At the point where you make a proper offer on a home, the timeline becomes much more predictable, as in most cases it takes an average of 60-120 days from preparation of the offer to the closing table.
For the most basic glimpse, this is roughly what happens:
| Step | Duration |
| Prepare the offer | 1-2 days |
| Negotiate the offer, leading to an accepted offer | 2-7 days |
| Negotiate the contract & due diligence | 1-2 weeks |
| Loan application, appraisal, loanapproval, and commitment letter | 4-5 weeks |
| Co-op board package andinterview/Condo package (sans interview) | 4-7 weeks |
| Banks and attorneys prepare for closing | 1-2 weeks |
| Final walk through | Day of closing |
| Transaction closing | 3 hours |
Now this is not unanimous across the board. Here are the big hitters to consider when mapping our your timeline for purchasing:
1. Financing vs. All-Cash
If you are purchasing all-cash, you’ll save yourself about 4 weeks during which your bank would’ve been working to approve the loan. Also when it comes to closing, you may also expedite the process between approval and closing table as there’s one less cook in the kitchen (being there’s no bank). If you’re financing, the 4 weeks is fairly routine, but I’ve seen that inch up to 5-6 weeks due to hold ups within the bank, particularly in a busy market when the banks are overloaded. Please note: this time frame between signed contracts and submitting your board package is when you work on your board package. So individuals who are financing can do so at a bit more of a relaxed pace, while all-cash buyers need to jump right in and finish up their package in 7-10 business days.
2. Condos vs. Coops vs. New Development
So starting with the fastest transaction, New Developments tend to be lightning quick transactions if the building doesn’t face hiccups via the Department of Buildings. Negotiations are fairly quick because sponsors tend to be more willing to make deals happen. Since there is no existing board, you don’t have to worry about a board package so right away once you have financing (or all-cash, once you have a fully executed contract), you’re cleared to close pending the building has its Certificate of Occupancy. However, if the building is still being built and doesn’t have the Certificate of Occupancy yet, whatever their quoted timeline is take with a grain of salt. Developers tend to be optimistic with the closing dates they anticipate and there is truly no way to predict when it will close because the Department of Buildings is such a wildcard for approvals.
Condos will require all the steps in the graph above, however since Condos are a more laid back form of ownership, things move more quickly and the board can only turn down an applicant by the right of first refusal. There are no interviews for Condos and the board package tends to be much easier than Coops. Because you cut out the interview and added scrutiny of the package, these transactions move about one month faster than Coops.
Coops are the slowest transaction, due to high scrutiny of the board package and also the beloved Coop Board Interview. The Coop will take their sweet time with your package, so you should air on the side of caution for time allocated for processing. They’ll give you an interview at a time that is convenient for them so it could be a week later or a month later. You cannot refute the date or ask for one – they hold the power here and can deny you for any reason, undisclosed. I always have buyers allocate a bit more time to their anticipated close date if they go the coop route simply because these transactions tend to drag and you’re at the mercy of the board with no personal power to hasten the speed of things.
3. Seasonality affects
So you must keep in mind that there are a few periods during the year when things slow down a bit. If you’re a New York resident, you know that the majority of New York leaves in the summer time – this will lead to slower turn around with managing agents and boards members. The other time to consider is the holiday season. Starting before Thanksgiving and going through the New Year, things will begin to quiet until deal progress is moving at a glacial pace over the week of Christmas. If either of these periods coincide with your purchase, just factor in a bit of lag time to accommodate for delays.
4. If the seller wants post-closing possession
Typically upon closing, the apartment is delivered empty and the keys are handed over once closing is complete so the owners have control immediately. Rarely do sellers want possession post-closing, however if the place their moving into won’t be ready for a few months later, it’s something they may ask for. You’ll know this prior to making an offer and you won’t sign a contract without full disclosure but just something to ask at the onset!