Rehab held up because of deed recordation

[Lenzy Ruffin]

Hoping some experienced rehabbers in Prince George's County, Maryland can offer some guidance or insight. 

I bought my first property on July 22nd. The money from the hard money lender was not going to be available in time to meet the seller's deadline (I'd already paid him $500 for a two-week extension), so I cashed in my IRA and borrowed money from my parents to buy the house. I wouldn't have money for the rehab, but taking ownership of the house by the deadline was my priority because I'd then have time for the lender's process to complete and then refinance. The rehab is about a 30-day rehab, so I was hoping to have the house on the market by the second week of September.

I own the property, but the lender won't refinance it because the deed hasn't been recorded reflecting my ownership. After asking questions, I've been told that there's a staffing shortage at the Treasury Division (where the transfer and recordation payment has to be processed before the file gets sent to Land Records for the deed to be recorded) and the backlog on recording deeds is between two weeks and two months, depending on whom you ask. I've talked to my title company. I've talked to the title abstractor that they use. I've gone down to the Treasury Division to try to walk it through and they are unsympathetic because this is something they hear every day. Apparently, this deed recordation lag has the same impact on rehabbers trying to get permits that it has on me trying to get this refinance done, so they're not expediting anybody because everybody needs it.

So I'm stuck. I have a house that I need to rehab and I'm held up for an indeterminate amount of time because of the county. I'm hoping that somebody has some helpful advice. I'm already thirty days behind the schedule I had in mind and each passing day moves me deeper into the off-season for selling houses.