Asked and Answered
The seller’s bank can’t locate the stock and lease for the co-op closing. Can we still close?Yes. First some background. Banks hold the stock certificate and proprietary lease associated with apartment as collateral for the buyer’s co-op loan. Large institutions frequently sell the loans and the collateral gets transferred to various storage facilities. As a result, it can take up to thirty days to locate the documents, so the seller's attorney should be putting in the request to the bank as early as possible. If the request is not made in a timely manner, there is a good shot the closing will be delayed. From time to time, the stock, lease or both documents can get lost. When that happens the bank will execute a “Lost Stock and Lease” affidavit in which the bank represents that they looked all over but can’t find the collateral. The co-op will rely on that affidavit to issue the new stock certificate and lease to the buyer. Once the co-op, through its Managing Agent, issues the new stock certificate and the new lease, the buyer is protected if someone claims ownership to the shares. If no bank is involved, a seller who loses his or her stock certificate or lease can provide the same affidavit to satisfy the Managing Agent when the documents can't be located. Delivering a Lost Stock and Lease affidavit at closing is accepted business practice and lost documents should not prevent the closing from taking place. Of course the affidavit has to be in a form acceptable to the Managing Agent, so don't wait until the last minute to let the Managing Agent know that you need to go to Plan B...