Final Walk-Through?

[SmartMoney]

I'm willing to bet you are also using the builder's lender. This is a classic reason not to, as it is not uncommon for the builder's lender to accept routine closing documents post-closing.

As the others have said, DO NOT close on the home until it can be occupied. I have seen gas companies backed up 6 weeks or longer for their hook ups.

This request to close sends thousands of alarms off for me. If you had not already considered hiring a home inspector to do your walk thru, I cannot recommend this strongly enough. A builder pushing for this kind of short cut to close most certainly took short cuts to build, short cuts that would not be covered by a warranty down the road.

Put your gut on high alert and trust it.

[tiffany77]

Thanks for all the responses!

We are currently in "wait and see" mode. As in, wait and see when the power hookup is complete. I spoke with the builder and told him we will not be closing until we are able to go through the fully functional home with our own inspector. He was a little arrogant about the whole thing, but when I told him that I had already discussed our concerns with the lender, he changed his tune a bit. In fact, he even became somewhat optimistic...ha, saying that maybe the power company would get out there today or early tomorrow and everything would work out anyway. I said we'll see.

SmartMoney, we are not using the builder's lender. That was actually the first call I made in order to inform our lender that the scheduled closing may not work for us. I expressed our concerns and was told that they fully understand our position, and it will be no problem to move the closing up if necessary. We may have to supply updated documents, but this is not a problem at all. I would much rather do that than be stuck with defects that are the builder's responsibility to repair.

IMHO, I think the builder shot himself in the foot on this one because now our inspection will be much more critical than it would've been had he not raised the red flag on us right before the finish line.

Thanks again for all the thorough replies.