Ducks in a row...

"We need to cancel," are the words the ring through my cell phone.

Unfortunate words...mostly because we had all of our ducks in a row. We had talked about all of the pertinent issues (financing, down payments, deposits, inspections, found home, etc...).

As we have talked about previously, buying a home is not a spur of the moment transaction. It requires planning and effort. It also requires diligence...following up with the lender, providing them with tax returns, pay-stubs, credit reports, signatures.

My clients and I had spent hours looking at homes. We had spent hours pouring over listing after listing, hoping to find the perfect home. We had written a few offers...had a few rejected. We hit a snag on the home that they wanted...it had a snag due to the FHA 90 day flipping rule...or should I say the amended rule (see FHA Amends Anti-Flipping Rule). The lender and I worked our way through this "snag" only to find out that the home was sold a few hours earlier.

So, here we are...having found another home...having reached agreement. The lender began to flip-flop on loan programs. He began to call all sides (seller, buyer, myself) and tell us all different stories.

"We are in underwriting," he tells me.

"You need to fix your credit," he tells my client.

"Tim is not getting me the info I need," he tells the listing agent.

We have spent 3 weeks working on a deal, signing disclosures, paying for appraisals and inspections and out of nowhere the deal is dead. The lender (or should I say more specifically the mortgage broker) is unable to perform on his promises.

My client is mad. The listing agent is frustrated. I am left trying to figure out the details...with a lot of unanswered questions. Am I working with a qualified buyer? Do my buyers want to buy a home?

The result is that we have to cancel the transaction. My clients are out $300 for the home inspection and $375 for the appraisal (and are lucky that their deposit is not in doubt). I am frustrated because of all of the effort put into this transaction. And the listing agent has to put the house back on the market. All because the mortgage broker didn't do what he said he could do.

So we are left to wonder how the most important duck got out of the row.