Thank you for your questions. Once your wife has orders in hand, you need to immediately submit your application to HAP. As I just mentioned in the response to Mallory above, we are seeing a very recent transition from short sales to HAP providing funding at closing, so the sooner you apply for HAP the better off you will be. But you will need those orders to complete the full application package. Now, how active are they in buying homes? I hear different stories from different parts of the country… but the best advice I know of is to not wait on them to buy the home, but to get it sold via the open market. Two reasons, first, it is entirely likely that you get more benefit (money) from the program, and secondly, it is an easier scenario for the program to manage. Give us a call if you want to discuss this situation further.

There have been some changes very recently in what is happening in the actual application of the HAP program. It sounds as if your situation the home is not actually being sold with post-closing reimbursement to the lender, but in fact they are waiting on HAP to participate in the closing. A couple of months ago this wasn’t happening, at least in our area, where HAP was funding anything at closing. We are starting to see that now. It looks like in your case, that probably… again I say probably because I don’t know the details, that the property (really the military members situation) you are wanting to purchase has not yet been approved by HAP.

So, you are in a situation where you are awaiting third party approval, that approval being the HAP program. The length of the wait is a question that I wish I could answer for you… there is no standard application that we have seen. Your last question, how quickly will they want to close… usually within 30 days of final approval of the file.