9/25/2008
Well, the Deal From Hell continues to live up to it's name... The buyer finally got the money together for the down payment, and everything looked like it was good to go. I spoke to the lady doing the loan at around 3:30 on Tuesday and she said we should be able to close in a few days. I still had not heard from the bank's title company at this point, and I figured I would wait a day or so before I started pushing them to close, because I have learned that "I can get it done in a few days" is loan officer-speak for " I'll get it done whenever I get around to it, and if you try and call me to find out how things are progressing, I will ignore you until you rip all of your hair out of your head in frustration"..... So, anyway, a few hours after I spoke to the loan lady, I get a call from the buyer telling me she had bad news. Apparently, she has another loan with this same lender, and is way late on her payment this month, so they decided to not do the loan after all.
ARE YOU EFFING KIDDING ME??
The buyer, of course, has some BS story about why she hasn't made the payment yet, and says she is going to go in and speak to the lender first thing in the morning and see if he will still do the loan. I give this about a .0000001 percent chance of happening.
Yesterday morning, I finally get an email from the listing agent telling me that the bank is ready to close. AWESOME. I figured I would give them a taste of their own medicine, and I just ignored the emails, and also shut my phone off for most of the day. We are out of contract anyway, and no one has bothered to even call me or email me up to this point to let me know what is going on, so screw it. Once I turned my phone back on, there was a message from the buyer telling me that she has good news, and they are going to do the loan for her after all. So, I call the loan lady up for the 75th time to ask her what is going on, and she tells me that they will do the loan if the buyer brings in a cashier's check in the morning for the payment she is late on. I called the buyer back and asked her at least 100 times "Mrs. Hancock, ARE YOU SURE you can make that payment tomorrow? ARE YOU SURE? ARE YOU SURE YOU'RE SURE? And, of course, she swears to me up and down that she will be in first thing in the morning with a cashier's check to make the loan current.
Shortly after that, I called the listing agent to ask for an extension until the 30th (next Tuesday). She wasn't too happy about it, but they were the ones who couldn't close on time, so they don't have much of a choice.
And, there you have it. That's where we're at with The Deal From Hell. I am expecting a call any second now from the buyer telling me that something went awry.....or from the lender telling me that they changed their mind again and aren't going to do the loan.....or from the listing agent telling me the bank won't sign the extension and they want to close today.
The other deal that was supposed to close Monday, is still in limbo. I guess they finally got in touch with the attorney who handled the foreclosure on the property, and they are trying to get the one remaining lien taken care of. Or something like that.
Hopefully at least one of these deals will get to closing by the end of the month. I'm not holding my breath, though.
Ahhhh, the glamorous life of a wholesaler...
Deal From Hell. Part Deux.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Deal From Hell. Part Deux.
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3 comments:
Hey Steph,
I know you start talking to your buyers immediately once you begin negotiations with the bank....couple questions:
1) Do you call buyers once a bank actually gives you a counter offer? Is that when you start?
2) Ever have a potential buyer undercut you while you were still negotiating with the bank? You're giving them the address and everything to check it out so they *could* make an offer themselves...although I'm thinking most wouldn't. Just wondering since you're talking to them before you have a signed contract.
Thanks for the input! I'm making offers on several REO properties now that are close to homes that other investors have purchased and I just want to get the timing right in terms of when I'd start talking to them.
And have a Merry Christmas!
Hi Shae,
If I am getting close with the bank, I will send my buyers by the house and give them a ballpark figure (within 5k) of where I can probably get it to them, and ask them if they are interested. For example, say I offered 20k on a house listed at 40k, and the bank comes back with 30k... I will call my buyers and tell them I can probably get it to them in the mid 30's. I see what they say, and then counter back accordingly.
I have really good relationships with my buyers, and have never had the fear of one of them going around me. If it's a new buyer, I can usually get a good feel for what type of person they are, and if I have doubts, I will not send them to anything I don't have a contract on.
Hope that helps.
Steph
That makes a lot of sense, Steph. Thanks! I don't operate in fear so if someone undercuts me, so be it...move on to the next deal and know that person is a creep going forward. :) Nevertheless I was definitely curious as to whether that has ever happened particularly with new buyers that there is no established relationship with. As you mention, I'll feel the person out on the phone and take steps accordingly as I'm building relationships with new buyers. Thanks again!
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