New York mortgage commitment contingency: dates, notice, extensions
How the New York mortgage commitment contingency works: when the clock starts, the cancellation window, weekend rules and extensions, with 2026 dates.
By vikas · Published · 6 min read
On a downstate deal, the New York mortgage commitment contingency is usually the date that decides whether a buyer who can’t get a loan walks away with the downpayment or loses it. It is written by attorneys, counted from a date many agents never see, and it ends with a short cancellation window that is easy to miss.
Quick answer: In most attorney-drafted New York contracts, the buyer has a set number of days, often 45, from delivery of the fully signed contract to get a written loan commitment. If none arrives by then, the buyer typically has a short window, such as 5 business days, to cancel by written notice. Miss it and the right is usually waived.
How does the mortgage commitment contingency work in a New York contract?
New York has no statewide purchase form. In New York City, Long Island and Westchester, the contract is drafted by the attorneys, often starting from a bar association Residential Contract of Sale plus riders. Upstate, local board and bar forms are common, and many give each attorney 3 business days to approve the contract.
The court in Nuzzi v Gallagher quoted bar form language that shows the usual structure. The buyer’s obligation to buy is conditioned on a written commitment from a lender issued “on or before 45 days after a fully executed copy of this contract is given to Purchaser or Purchaser’s attorney.” That deadline is the Commitment Date. The number of days is a blank, so yours may differ.
When does the commitment clock start?
Day zero is not the day the buyer signs. It is the day the fully executed contract is given to the buyer or the buyer’s attorney. Signatures often come in on different days, and the countersigned contract may reach the buyer’s attorney well after the buyer signed.
Under New York General Construction Law section 20, the day you count from is excluded, so day one is the day after delivery. Get the delivery date in writing, usually the email from the seller’s attorney attaching the signed contract, and build every date from it.
What happens on the Commitment Date?
One of three things.
- A commitment arrives in time. The contingency is generally satisfied, subject to the commitment’s own conditions. Calendar those conditions too, because a lender can still decline to fund if they are not met.
- No commitment arrives, and the buyer cancels in time. In the form quoted in Nuzzi, the buyer could cancel by notice to the seller “within 5 business days after the Commitment Date,” and the notice had to name the lender or lenders the buyer applied to. The downpayment is then refunded.
- No commitment arrives, and the buyer does nothing. The same form says the buyer “shall be deemed to have waived” the right to cancel. From that point the buyer is buying with or without a loan, and the downpayment is at risk.
Notices go out the way the contract’s notice paragraph requires. Downstate, that usually means attorney to attorney, by the method and to the address the contract lists. A text from the buyer’s agent to the listing agent is not notice.
What if the date falls on a weekend or holiday?
New York General Construction Law section 25 provides that when a contract act falls due on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday, it may be performed on the next business day, unless the contract shows a different intent. New York’s public holidays under section 24 go beyond the federal list. They include Lincoln’s Birthday on February 12 and general election day, which fell on Tuesday, November 3 in 2026.
The 5-business-day cancellation window skips weekends and public holidays too. Christmas Eve is not a public holiday in New York, so it counts as a business day.
How do you extend a New York mortgage commitment date?
Ask early and get it in writing. The buyer’s attorney requests an extension from the seller’s attorney before the Commitment Date passes, and the seller’s attorney confirms the new date in a letter or email.
Nuzzi shows why the writing matters. The buyers said the date had been extended during a phone conference. The court found no proof that an extension was agreed, granted the sellers summary judgment and dismissed the buyers’ case. Sellers often grant a short extension when the lender is close, but they don’t have to. If the property is a co-op, the board package and interview run on their own clock as well; our co-op board approval timeline covers that side.
What does a worked example look like?
The seller’s attorney emails the fully executed contract to the buyer’s attorney on Monday, November 2, 2026. The contract sets a 45-day commitment period and a 5-business-day cancellation window.
| Item | Date | How it was counted |
|---|---|---|
| Contract delivered to buyer’s attorney | Mon, Nov 2, 2026 | Day zero |
| Commitment Date (45 days) | Thu, Dec 17, 2026 | Day one is Nov 3 |
| Last day to cancel (5 business days) | Thu, Dec 24, 2026 | Dec 18, 21, 22, 23, 24 |
| Same file with a 30-day period | Wed, Dec 2, 2026 | Cancel by Wed, Dec 9 |
| Delivered Thu, Nov 5 instead | Day 45 is Sun, Dec 20 | Moves to Mon, Dec 21 under section 25 |
On this file we would send the extension request around December 10, a week before the Commitment Date, if the lender had not issued a commitment. If the buyer decides to cancel, the notice should reach the seller’s attorney well before Christmas Eve, when offices thin out.
What should the coordinator track?
- The delivery date of the fully executed contract, confirmed in writing.
- Any deadline for the buyer to apply for the loan, and proof the application went in.
- The Commitment Date and the last day of the cancellation window, both on the calendar.
- A reminder to request an extension a week before the Commitment Date.
- Commitment conditions and the co-op or condo approval steps, if any.
Our free New York closing deadline calculator applies the section 25 weekend rule and New York’s public holidays, and exports the timeline to a calendar or spreadsheet. The executed contract and riders control, so confirm every date with the attorneys on the file.
Frequently asked questions
How long is a mortgage commitment contingency in New York?
There is no statewide default. In attorney-drafted New York contracts the number of days is a blank the attorneys fill in, counted from delivery of the fully signed contract to the buyer or the buyer’s attorney. Forty-five days is a common choice, and some contracts use a shorter period. Your contract’s number is the one that counts.
What happens if the buyer has no commitment by the Commitment Date?
Under the bar association form language quoted in Nuzzi v Gallagher, the buyer could cancel by written notice within 5 business days after the Commitment Date and get the downpayment back. A buyer who sent no timely notice was deemed to have waived the right to cancel. Check your own contract and riders, since attorneys often change this paragraph.
Can a New York mortgage commitment date be extended by phone?
Relying on a phone call is risky. In Nuzzi v Gallagher, the buyers said the date had been extended in a phone conference, and the court found no proof that any extension was agreed. Ask for the extension before the date passes and get it confirmed in writing by the seller’s attorney, with the new date spelled out.
Does a New York commitment date on a Sunday move to Monday?
Usually, yes. New York General Construction Law section 25 lets a contract act that falls due on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday be performed on the next business day, unless the contract shows a different intent. Read the contract for language that overrides this, and remember New York public holidays include Lincoln’s Birthday and Election Day.
Enter your delivery date in the free New York deadline calculator to see the full timeline, or book a call with Lisa to talk about coordinating your New York files.