I know the mortgage loan business is in a state of flux right now (See my August 3 post to Keep it Real in Sacramento,a??Two years of changea??) but why would a once reliable lender drop the ball when dealing with clients. A lender I referred not only to Randi and Tony but to my sister and her husband has embarrassed me by all of a sudden stopped returning calls and emails. Leta??s face it if you are in the market for a loan these days and reading and hearing about lenders going out of business, loan programs vanishing and a host of other negatives about the mortgage loan industry the last thing you want is your contact and guide through the loan process to disappear. That is exactly what happened to Randi and Tony.

During this time, the folks at Centex were pressuring Randi & Tony to use their lender. Because they had been working with my recommended lender, leta??s call him Mr. Dufus, they felt a certain loyalty to him and wanted to confirm the loan he had suggested and make sure it would be available when they closed on the new home. After repeated attempts, they finally got back a long email with several paragraphs about the changes in the loan business and demise of American Home Mortgage. It boiled down to Randi and Tony having no confidence in Mr. Dufus and his ability to get their loan completed and maybe as important his availability to answer questions when they had them.

Centex was offering a nice incentive to use their lender but Randi and Tony wanted to at least compare it to a loan they could get on their own. I called Vivian Lawrence who I have known for a few years and who had just started her new business, Vantage Lending. Within a couple of hours Vivian had found something new that looked good to Randi and Tony and by the next day they had a a??Good Faith Estimatea?? that outlined the loan program and was easily comparable to what the
Centex lender was providing. Although the final decision has not been made, it appears the incentive offered by Centex to use their lender is quickly recovered in the higher interest rate loan.

This is a case where one experienced and usually reliable lender seems to have been frozen like a deer in the headlights because of the changes going on in the industry while another decides this is the right time to start her own business. To Vivian Lawrence at Vantage Lending, thank you to stepping up and helping me save my reputation with my clients. With this kind of service during a difficult time I know you will be successful. To you, Mr. Dufus, you have lost two loans and a great referral source. I hope you get the new world figured out before you lose more.

Note: Vivian and her business are so new, I dona??t have any links to give you but if you are interested in contacting her you can reach her by email.