FHA Mortgage Expert - Tri-State Area - New Jersey/PA/Delaware

FYI - (these tips in this first time homebuyers series are not just for newbies/first time homebuyers)

 

Shopping for a mortgage can be such a confusing process, even for those that have bought a home or refinanced previously. And in this first time homebuyers series, the biggest thing that I can't stress is the ability to pick that loan officer who will have your best interest at stake.  I don't want this to be a debatable subject. There can be arguments based on :

• Make sure you get the loan officer through a referral  (you can find people on the internet, such as myself - just be careful of such services that promise companies that will fight for you to give you the best rate)
  
• Make sure that the loan officer is local  (this gets debated often - in regards to myself, about 80% of my business is out of state - 10 loans that I closed this year were out of state and denied by local lenders)

Hence why I am not looking for debates based on the information above.  I wanted this to be an informational piece, just keeping you informed.

 

 

 

Here is the basic process when shopping for a mortgage : 

1. Shop for a mortgage - The loan officer should have an interview process, asking you questions.
   
2. Get pre-qualified or pre-qualified - Make sure that they went over your credit in detail
   
3. Once you choose that lender, apply for a mortgage
   
4. Get all documents to your lender, ie. pay stubs, W-2's, bank statements, credit explanation letters
5. Make sure you talk about locking in your rate or floating - understand the difference
6. Wait for the lender to process your mortgage loan and underwrite it to approve it
7. Once approved, help getting the conditions in and have your homeowners insurance ready
8. Get ready to close on your mortgage and celebrate
   

 

 

Here are some of the basics that you should be aware of......

 

Beware of those online mortgage calculators. You need to focus on :

• Property taxes - even in the same location or on the same purchase price, taxes can vary, so get an average.
  
• homeowners insurance - start early in the process of getting homeowners insurance quotes. Even if you haven't found a home. And don't wait until 5 days before settlement, because each dollar could make a difference, and could possibly affect your mortgage approval.
  
• mortgage insurance - each program is different if you don't put 20% or more as a down payment.
  

Overall, these calculators don't give you the real payment.

 

 

Mortgage Interest Rates - One of my biggest pet peeves. Too many people focus on interest rates and allow themselves to get sucked up into the hype. Your loan officer's focus should be on what kind of mortgage payment that you are comfortable with and not selling you rate right from the get go. yes, many of us have different ways of selling. But you can't get the lower rate unless you have more money to buy it down. Something a true mortgage professional will share with you and not ignore.  Please read : Payment vs Rate   And when shopping for a mortgage, don't just shop APR (Annual Percentage Rate). Please read : APR vs Interest Rate

 

 

 

Locking into an interest rate -  Another pet peeve of mine. When you actually shop for an interest rate, many loan officers will just give you a rate, but not explain to you that it's probably based on a 30 day lock. It's doesn't matter if you are shopping for a mortgage or decided to go with that loan officer.

You see loan officers that give a low rate without asking you important questions. They just want to be the lowest so you choose them. And the best rate won't always equate to a smooth or ethical loan closing. And once you do apply with them, some won't explain in detail about the importance of locking or floating your rate. You just assume and they wait until it comes up in conversation.

 

 

 

The Value of Money

This will be talked about more in Part 4 of this series. But your loan officer should be asking you about your goals. There are many different ways to save money both in the mortgage payment or in closing costs. There are also ways to take that savings and invest it also.

This post is just a quick example of how you can lower your payment :

The Myths behind ZERO point mortgages instead of paying points upfront

 

 

 

 

My biggest Pet Peeve!!!  -   Good Faith Estimates

When you are shopping for a mortgage and that loan officer actually qualifies you?? Let's define qualifying you first....  someone that asks some important questions and someone that has actually pulled your credit report or has viewed a copy of your credit report. Well, after being qualified, that loan officer should offer you a Good Faith Estimate in the next 24 hours. And to be honest, if they truly qualified you, they should be sending it to you in the next 15 minutes. With today's technology, there is no excuse, unless their building just blew up. And a hint :  even if they didn't qualify you and they gave you a rate over the phone, they should be sending you a Good Faith Estimate. And if you have to ask for it severak times and it takes days?... Red Flag  Please read : Consumers need to be aware of these Red Flags

 

And in regards to Good Faith Estimates, please read :  Good Faith Estimates  and  Good Faith Estimates.

 

 

Summary : Everything that I mentioned is to give you a better education of the process and what things that you should be most concerned about. Make sure that your loan officer brings each of these issues up and that they educate you on them.

 

 

All images from : istockphoto

Good Luck

 

 

 

The First Time Homebuyer Series :

 

Understanding if you should rent or buy :

• Renting vs Buying -- Understanding the difference........ FHA? -- Part 1 of 3
  

• Renting vs Buying -- Showing the difference in $$ -- Part 2 of 3

• Renting vs Buying -- Knowing your loan options -- Part 3 of 3

• First Time Homebuyer Tips : FHA - Conventional - VA - Subprime - The Basics -- Part 1 of 5
  

• First Time Homebuyer Tips : Getting Qualified & Knowing your Credit -- Part 2 of 5

• First Time Homebuyer Tips : Understanding the total mortgage process -- Part 3 of 5
  

• First Time Homebuyer Tips : FHA, a better mortgage program? -- Best Programs & Why -- Part 4 of 5
  

• First Time Homebuyer Tips : Summary - Red Flags to be aware of -- Part 5 of 5

 

 

 Buying Tips :

• What's behind a home inspection.....

• FHA Loans & Energy Efficient Mortgages...

• FHA 203-k Loans
• 
  
• Asbestos and Your Health, Tips for Remodeling your Ann Arbor Home  -- This post does talk about some specific places in Michigan, but in general, Missy Caulk gives us some great information on homes built prior to 1980 in regards to asbestos. This is a must read.

 

 

 

 

________________________________________________________________________________________

For more information on FHA loans, please go to this link. : The FHA Expert

For more information on how you can obtain your dream home, please click here : Mortgage Financing Options

For important mortgage insight to watch for, please read : Consumers need to be aware of these Red Flags

 

Copyright © 2008 by Jeff Belonger

 

 

You might find this odd, coming from a man. But I soooo love deals and I actually like different kinds of shopping, especially when I find great deals.

 

Overall, most of us love a great deal or what I call, "a great steal". Because of today's economy, I think we seek deals more than ever before. And to capture a great savings gives us a great feeling of joy.

 

 

 

Just the other day I read a blog by another loan officer that advised consumers to negotiate for their mortgage. If you were able to negotiate for your mortgage, typically that would mean that loan officer already charged you more than they should have.  I knew a loan officer that added extra charges to the good faith estimate and then would put a line through them, telling the borrower that he wanted to give them a great deal.  Perception ....But wait, what is to much?

Negotiating power can back fire on you if you aren't careful. Especially when it comes to shopping for a mortgage. This is what the loan officer stated.. "applying for a mortgage loan is like buying a car, buying a house, shopping at a flea market etc. It involves the art of negotiating. While negotiating , the person who speaks first and lets the other know what he is willing to pay usually loses."  Huh??

                                                                                        Cartoon from www.cartoonstock.com

So, applying for a mortgage is like buying a car or a home.  Do you negotiate with a doctor?  In that case I would ask for referrals and or the best doctor. We have a false sense that doctors are expensive. But should you put a price on your life?  If I had a brain tumor, I would want the best, otherwise I could die. The same with mortgages, that you would want the best. But don't worry, if you chose someone average, you wouldn't die.  But you could lose money, time, get stressed, etc, etc.  And how would that happen? Maybe if you missed a settlement date or worse, that your loan never closed. I could give you 100's of examples just from my own experiences with borrowers and their bad choices that they made. 

How do you make a bad choice?  It's very easy to go for someone that makes promises that can be broken. Someone that wants you to feel comfortable and not to worry, so they tell you what you want to hear. This happens more than you would think. You want to see a good example?  Darin Osenberg writes, When good faith estimates go bad!!   Picking a loan officer because maybe they gave you the best rate? It could change on you.  It happens. sometimes because that loan officer is so worried about losing you, that you negotiated with them, that they gave you something that they shouldn't have given. Yes, you make negotiations on homes and cars, but it's not the same with a mortgage. Here is why this loan officer thinks this way.

This loan officer goes on to say this.... "if a client tells you initially that he is looking for a $720 payment on a $120,000 loan that would give him a 6% rate.  What incentive does the loan officer have to offer him the 5.5% rate should he qualify for that if he already knows you would pay $720?" 

There are so many ways to look at this. But one major thing missing is that this person leaves you with false assumptions. Another sales tactic in my opinion. I wrote this blog the other day, Is a lower rate just a quick fix?  It talks about the fact that we as loan officers should be asking what payment you are comfortable with.  In the above statement, there are 3 things missing.  Every rate comes with a specific price. I will be writing about this in the next day. Example (this is just for show, it's not today's rates) :  At 6.0%, I get 2 points back that you don't see. I can use those 2 points anyway that I see fit. I could pocket them or use part of them to pay for your closing costs.  At 5.0%, it's costing me a point. Everything comes down to 2 things. What is my profit margin and how much money you have to work with.  The second part being the most important.  Why?  In the example above, how do I lower my rate from 6.0% to 5.0% if you don't have the money to pay a point or so???  Secondly, you still need to know taxes and homeowners insurance to build this into the equation. So, knowing payment is a lot more important than knowing rate at first.

 

 

Conclusion : I can't stress the importance of dealing with a true mortgage professional and not one that talks circles. Yes, many of us have our own ways of interviewing a potential borrower. But a loan officer that doesn't put a lot of emphasis on a question, such as payment, could be dangerous for you. You need a professional loan officer that is going to walk you through the process, and educate you along the way. Payment should be talked about in the first 5 minutes and your focus should not be rate. This loan officer would make you think that I go this route because it gives me a better way to make more money off of you. Don't you think that we should make money like a doctor?  I am not talking about how much they make. Yes, it comes down to costs and rates. But more so, it comes down to service, ethics, knowledge, trust, and education. Because that promised rate that is broken later, could end up costing you more money later on. Ask the people that this has happened to..... FYI - Shopping & negotiating are two different things.

Happy and Safe Mortgage Shopping

 

 

 

 

________________________________________________________________________________________

For more information on FHA loans, please go to this link. : The FHA Expert

For more information on how you can obtain your dream home, please click here : Mortgage Financing Options

For important mortgage insight to watch for, please read : Consumers need to be aware of these Red Flags

Copyright © 2008 by Jeff Belonger

 

 

Warning… this blog is thought provoking, but is only for the weary sole that can outlast and read 1,500 words. But it’s worth your time…. Just my .02.

 

Today was an interesting day. My Google Alerts told me that someone mentioned me in a post. The title was "Mortgage Professional or Used Car Salesman? Why it pays to know the difference." 

In order to get an idea where I am going with this, you first need to read this blog.  I need a quick fix !!  Please pass me that 4.5% rate over here now !!  (hint-I was trying to make a specific point, but was accused of not showing the value of money - again, my post was not about the value of money, but why lowering rates could hurt our economy. Secondly, I even stated this in my post. But that was failed to be recognized.)

picture from istockphoto

 

And before I continue, let me make this statement. "I am not god, nor am I perfect, but I do consider myself to be damn good"  Opinions are fine. Debates are fine and I think are healthy. But telling people to do one thing because someone else wrote something that they don't agree with?? And make it sound like it's the gospel?  And when it's very misleading and missing facts?  That's where I do get upset and wonder why we are in such a financial mess. Wondering if some advice by some so-called professionals are lacking truth and true value. But again, this is just my opinion. But I did a quick survey on what I am about to talk about. Out of 26 people that I talked to today, only one disagreed with my point of view in regards to what questions that a loan officer should ask the consumer.

 

Now, many of us that hear used car salesman, we think of a sleezy type of a sales person. The first sentence in this specific blog was this..... Please read below.

Wow, that sounds like harsh advice, doesn't it?  Well people, the very first question that I ask all of my clients is just that. "What payment are you comfortable with...."  Yes, I will admit this and I am damn proud that I actually care about my clients. Other loan officers that try and sell against me, usually it's about rate. But many of those same loan officers lack knowledge, the service is just average, and they aren't usually good thinking outside the box. Again, just my opinion, but after being in this business for over 16 years. Maybe you should read : payment vs rate - Then this person went on to say this.....

 

HHhmmmm... interesting explanation. My take?  How can you compare shopping for a car vs buying a home?  Besides, I actually know some very professional, successful, and excellent car sales people. I know some people that never went to college, that not only went on to have very successful careers, but they were very savvy, great at what they did, and extremely smart. But it's easy to label people that we really don't know much about.  And the last statement?  First off, define best deal.  I think virtually impossible. To me, best deal would be something that didn't cost me a penny. What about you? Secondly in this person's statement, "the difference between what you can qualify for and what you are willing to pay equals big profit"???  Says who... In my opinion, this is a very loose statement.

 

My quick fix....  getting that low rate will get me off the fence...   As stated before, I didn't address the value of money or the value of obtaining lower rates, because that wasn't my point in this blog. My main point, I think lower rates could hurt us in the long term. Quick explanation.....  refinancing people doesn't add real money into our weak economy. If I saved a client $150 a month, they might want to go to a nice restaurant once a month. If I lower their payment on a purchase?  Many people aren't great savers, they will find a way to spend it. Maybe want a few new outfits. This person even made a comment about taking the extra money and paying down your mortgage principal. Sorry, but in most cases, I disagree with that advice. You should talk to a true financial planner and look at your options. My advice, find out vehicles that will allow you to invest your savings at a higher percentage than that of what you are currently paying on your mortgage. Besides, think about this... if you run into a real emergency, you just can't go to your house in 24 to 72 hours and get your money back. You would have to sell your home or refinance, that is even if you could refinance now. But if your money is another investment, in most cases, you could take that money out in a quick, timely manner.

 

This is very interesting..... there is no reason to ask my question in the beginning of the interview.  Wow... then when is the reason???  15 minutes later? What is the first question?  The one person that I found who disagreed with me and actually agreed with this person?  I asked them what their first question is.  They stated something like... "I want to know what you want to do" ... "what you are trying to accomplish."  I am sorry, but even as a loan officer, I don't truly understand the question. If I was a consumer, I would even be more confused.  Here are Jeff Belonger's basic questions asked when speaking to a potential client. 

 

 

Now, what is all the fuss?  Why am I so hung up on the statements made above?  Let me try and paint a picture for you.

Jeff Belonger -  "Mr. Borrower, what payment are you most comfortable with."

Mr. Borrower - " I don't really want to go over $1,000... but if I had to push it, I would not go over $1,100."   You as the borrower, wouldn't you know these better than anyone, right? I know how I spend my money... I know my expenses and how I live.

 

 

Now...  I will be the loan officer that approves you for the largest mortgage... and disregards payment in a certain sense.

Average loan officer - "Mr. Borrower, do you know that I can actually approve your for $1,500 a month? Do you understand that can get you a $300,000 home and not the $250,000 home that your payment would get you?"

Mr. Borrower - "interesting, I'll talk it over with the wife. We have seen some homes that cost $300,000 and we really would like that.  Maybe we can make it work."

 

 

Here is my issue with this and why I truly feel that this was a small part of the reasons to the mortgage meltdown. We gave mortgages to people that were qualified by quidelines, but that many consumers should have not bought higher in price. There are many costs that aren't factored into the equation when buying a home. Which are :

• higher taxes
• new home - buying new appliances. buying curtains or window accessories.
• maybe a large item that breaks down?
• credit - we are creatures of habit and use credit that we can get now, and worry about paying it back later. If we get ahead of ourselves, we get way behind. It happens and happens more now than ever before. Ever hear about the phrase, "living pay check to pay check?"  I would bet that this is about 50% of all Americans.
• there are many other issues to add here, but you should get the picture

 

 

Summary :  If we give people many options, show them bigger and better, and let them think about it... many will take that risk now and go for it. Talking themselves into it. We as professionals need to remind them of what payment that they are comfortable with. We need to understand their goals, current and future.  We need to educate them and make them think the whole process out. But without asking them the first question, "what payment are you comfortable with" .....  aren't we bypassing most of the problems that could arise due to the examples that I gave above?  

I will say this, the person that attacked me in a certain sense, did give some good input on how to look at rates and the value of money. But to make a bold statement that we should not ask about payment, at least as the first question?  Then I ask you loan officer... Then I ask you America... what should be the very first question that I should be asking the consumer?  Please list them in your comments.  I will admit this, my first 5 years in the business, I did ask how much of a house they wanted as my first question. But after I educated myself, taught myself reasoning, and understood that with that question, we were giving a rope to the borrower to possibly hang themselves.  I get blasted because we need to find out what a client wants. But wait, aren't we the experts?  And we are asking the borrower to tell us a home price, but we need to factor in taxes and homeowners insurance? Don't we know that some programs and or rates could have pricing hits that the consumer doesn't know about? And that rates do make a difference in payment? So, I ask again, smart loan officer, what should be the very first question?

 

 

Beth Forbes writes a basic post about what you can afford....  How much can you really afford?

 

 

 

- FHA Loans - USDA Loans - Conventional Loans - VA Loans -

Experience & Knowledge at its BEST !!!

 

 

________________________________________________________________________________________

For more information on FHA loans, please go to this link. The FHA Expert

For more information on how you can obtain your dream home, please click here : Mortgage Financing Options

For important mortgage insight to watch for, please read : Consumers need to be aware of these Red Flags !!!!!

Copyright © 2008 by Jeff Belonger

 

 

WARNING…WARNING…         

                     information overload...

In the last few days, I have seen several blogs talking about the 4.5% rate.  Fred Chamberlin  wrote this post. Could Mortgage Interest Rates Drop to 4.5% with Treasury Intervention?   He put some good information out there which ended up with some thought provoking comments. But are lower rates just a quick fix???    

 

I have read all the comments and I am a little disturbed at the lack of knowledge and or the lack of common sense that some of us show. I feel that there is something lacking in these comments, lacking in today's society, and in our profession of lending & real estate. Yes, this is my opinion... but I want to share a little thought.

 

Just for the record, before I move forward. Some have said that I come across harsh, or like a know-it-all with a twist of ego. I will admit, I have come across harsh sometimes in comments, but for reason.  It's time to wake up.  I take my job seriously...Not saying that you don't.  I have a lot of pride in what I do... and lots of passion.  And I truly believe in taking that extra time, educating the consumer with more than opinion that just blows in the wind. We need to tell the consumer what they should hear, instead of what they want to hear. I want real thought with my comments and stats. The kind of talk that I am talking about is hard core real estate talk.  Lenn Harely  is very good at this and she tells it like it is. Chalk full of real information and not fluff, allowing the reader to make up their own conclusions and not false thinking because it was just a happy blog with good news.  Today she wrote, The Housing industry is in a recession, what are you going to do about it.   Don't get me wrong, I despise the doom and gloom type of blogs, but we do need specific details with a positive twist.. back to the issue at hand.

 

 

 

Watch out for the trap..... The credit trap aka the mortgage trap aka the RATE TRAP !!!   

Here is my thinking on this. More than half the comments stated :

• Hurray for lower rates. 4.5% would be awesome.
• Wow, business will pick up. Those on the fence should get off.
• This should jump start the economy.    

 

Yes, I will admit, when hearing a low rate, that sells. But haven't rates been low for the last 3 to 5 years?  Didn't people buy with 12% or 18% rates back in the 80's ??

Again.. payment should be key. Rate just makes payment. You live with the payment, not the rate. 

 

 

             Opinion or Facts……

Here is my issue with everything that I mentioned above. To many people focus on rate and loan officers in general don't help with this. This post is about 1 1/2 years old, but the basic concept is the same.  Rate vs Payment 

When I first speak to a potential client, my first question usually is, "what payment are you comfortable with?"  Not, how much house do you want....  how is your credit.... what kind of money do you make. I really do stress payment over rate. Yes, a lower rate lowers your payment or increases your purchase amount. But as a loan officer, we not only need to educate, but set reasonable expectations.   Here are my top 6 questions that I ask any borrower.

 

 

Let's take a quick look at today's rate vs lower rates and payments......

 

Mortgage Amount	$120,000	$120,000	$120,000
Interest Rate	6.00%	5.50%	4.50%
P & I Payment	$719.00	$681.00	$608.00
Difference in Payment	--	+ $38.00	+$111.00  +$  73.00

As you can see, going from 6.0% to 4.5%, you would save $111.00.  Now, it's a savings, but nothing spectacular when you say that you are going to lower the rate 1 1/2%. And keep in mind, if this was a refinance, now you have costs that you would add onto the loan amount, which would reduce your savings.

 

Mortgage Amount	$200,000	$200,000	$200,000
Interest Rate	6.00%	5.50%	4.50%
P & I Payment	$1,199.00	$1,135.00	$1,013
Difference in Payment	--	+ $64.00	+$186.00  +$122.00

As we know, real estate is local. In some parts of the country, many people don't see purchase amounts above $100,000, or $150,000.  In some areas, you will see an average of $250,000 to $400,000.

As you can see, the higher the loan amount, the greater the savings when the rate is lower. If you go from 6% to 5.5%, you save $64.00 a month. But if you go from 6% to 4.5%, you would save $186.00 per month. But look at this... if you went from 5.5% to 4.5%, you would $122.00 per month.

 

 

Summary :  Keep in mind, these are just rate comparisons, not to include closing costs, points, or lender fees. It also doesn't take in consideration of pricing hits if you are putting 5% or 10% down with credit scores under 680 on a conventional loan. As many of us know, FHA loans don't have pricing hits until you get under a 620 score.  Overall, these are just examples without profit margins to make my points.

Keep this in mind..... just because they said that rates would be lowered to 4.5%, you don't know at what cost to the consumer. So again, hence why I consider many of these blogs that talked about lower rates to 4.5%, don't mention information such as what was discussed in this post. It's almost like misinformation. How can you truly gauge the difference of a lower rate to what rates are now, until you know what it will cost?  What will this cost us long term? Just food for thought...

One last thing.....  look at it this way... >> This is a 3 part - food for thought...

1. If $200 extra in your pocket was going to make or break the deal for you. Now by saying, I will have something left over... ouch. You should have more left over than that. You can't survive, especially in today's market with just $200 extra in your pocket. Maybe if you are single, but not if you have a family. Things happen last minute. Hence why I sell payment and not rate.

2. If you told me that you didn't want to go over a payment of $2,000. I tell you that you could qualify for $300,000 and you are shocked at such a high purchase price. Then I tell you that your rate is 20%...  you say, no %$#$ way.  Okay, but it fell into what you wanted and so did the house. Again people, rate is just a thought stuck in the head. We want things at a discount, it makes us feel happy. We feel like we got a great deal. That comes with shopping at the store. Buying a home is one of your biggest investments ever. You need to focus on payment, not rate.

3. Here is one another reason for my fear of lower rates. It could be a part of this.... inflation vs deflation, which could lead us into a great depression. And that is no joke.

4. Lastly, even though much of this post was about payment, the underlying message is that lowering rates now, could hurt our economy in the long haul. There are many reasons for this. But basically because we will be paying for this ourselves, even though the gov't will be in charge of this. Robert Ashby wrote about this in his 4.5% rate blog, which is a must read.

 

All pictures from istockphoto

 

 

 

 

________________________________________________________________________________________

For more information on FHA loans, please go to this link. : The FHA Expert

For more information on how you can obtain your dream home, please click here : Mortgage Financing Options

For important mortgage insight to watch for, please read : Consumers need to be aware of these Red Flags

Copyright © 2008 by Jeff Belonger

 

 

........ even though I really didn't care for you as a client. For many of you that know me, I would give you the shirt off my back. And I truly try to live by this fact that I don't judge others or hold things against them when it comes to business. My job in my opinion is to get it done in such a professional manner that you understood most of the mortgage process and that you got a good deal. 

This is the kind of story that makes you wonder if I should still be in the mortgage industry. I do digress when thinking about this, but it will never change me, who I am, and that I love what I do in helping people to obtain a mortgage.

So... the story begins. I was referred a client by another loan officer because it was a very hard deal. This person was actually a realtor. Not only were his credit scores around 550, but there wasn't enough credit to support the deal at that time. After doing my preliminary questioning and review, I issued a pre-qualification letter for $184,000. This client had about $15,000 to $20,000 to work with, which means that he could buy a home for about $204,000.

A week goes by and this loan officer informs me that not only did he find a new home for $230,000, but that he needed to settle in about 2 weeks. In frustration, I laughed. Not only did this person not listen to me, which wasn't the first time in regards to a previous offer that was higher on another home, but that he wanted to close in a few weeks. This was not an easy deal from any wild imagination. By doing this correctly, I would have been lucky to get this deal closed in 30 days, just because it needed a lot of elbow grease and creative thinking.

After taking the application, I tell the client that this will not be an easy task. That I was upset that he didn't listen to my pre-qual letter and that he thinks this will be easy. Let me fill you in on 2 other key points to remember. His lender couldn't do this deal and I was set to go on a 7 day vacation. Now, any of my past clients and referral partners know that I will still respond to e-mails and phone calls every day. But I made sure that I had most things done and out of the way prior to leaving for the beach.

 

Current day mood...  I know that we can't please everyone every time... life would be to easy and not challenging. It wouldn't matter if it was an excellent transaction or just an average transaction. And sorry for this next few sentences... but some people you can't please or make happy, no matter how good you are at what you do. Yet there are some people that have that anal syndrome, that grumpy attitude, or that "I am never happy even if I won a million dollars" attitude.

Oh yea, you want the ending to this story?  Well, we closed their loan....  but our investor didn't like the loan. Now we are in panic mode, because it sits on our warehouse line until we get someone to buy it from us. I spoke to the client and asked them for his help, to get the credit score up to 580, so we can do a FHA streamline and sell their loan. This person was not cooperating and wanted some of the points back that he had paid. He then dragged his feet. I had to get the owner of my company involved. After he spoke to this client, you would not believe what took place.....

 

 

I was thrown under the bus. This client felt that he was treated unfairly. Told my boss that I would get back to him several hours later. Wait, I was on vacation and it took me a few hours?  Okay, I am confused on this one. Did he bother to tell my boss that I talked to him at least twice a day for the 7 days that I was on vacation? He complained that he received a high rate. Wait, did he not listen to me, when I told him that there was a 2 1/2 pt penalty when his credit score was under 580. Let's back up, not every lender can even do credit scores under 580. And there was a lot more complaining.

 

 

Overall, who said that blogging was not therapeutic.  But it really makes you wonder on how some people think that they should get the best of everything, when they couldn't listen to your instructions from the get go. And because we bent over backwards and had to get some things fixed on his credit.... and paid for his closing costs and refinanced him at a lower rate, just so it wouldn't cost us more money as it sat on our warehouse line....  the end result was that we lost over $7,000 in real money. This is not in reference to time equals money, I am talking about real green dollars.  I know I could sleep at night because this person still got the same treatment as my other clients. But I wonder if this same person can sleep at night, for his lies and how he was able to portray me as such an evil person. Luckily I have been with this company for over a year and my boss knows the type of person that I am and how I treat clients. But some people want the world and it's something that I have to live with, unfortunately.

 

 

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