Lender: This file is not a top priority to review…

Lenn:

You are right that for the lender it is all about the numbers, that's the way a business should operate.  But consider these facts from my article:

The lender wasted 6-8 months in responding, typically losing a thousand a month - is that good business sense?  In this particular case, they were not losing as much, since the seller was sacrificing everything to try to stay current. 

While the business does not have a heart, certianly, the negotiator is a human being.  In this economy, who of us does not know anyone on a personal level going through this kind of a situation.  We should all be able to empathize.

With my help, my client will be sucessful, we are close to a closing now.  But look at all the programs that are happening now to "help" people in mortgage trouble.  It is the ones who never should have gotten the loan in the first place, sometimes via fraud, that are getting bailed out.  Others bail out the lender and do nothing for the homeowner.  Only one program is aimed at those who play by the rules - the one that offers to help folks renegotiate their loans.  But the rules on that one are so narrow and specific that few qualify.  The loan must be with Fannie or Freddie to begin with, the value of the home must be between 95 and 100% of the loan amount (94 and 101 do not qualify), and the mortgage must be over 28% of your gross pay.  This last is utterly logical, but the other two screen out large numbers of people who really need help.

Most of the programs are bailing out the wrong people(those responsible in part for the problem) at the expense of (and paid for by) the ones who are responsible for their own lives.

But you are absolutely right, clients such as this deserve the respect of everyone for what they're trying to accomplish.  As for respect from the lender, is it not reasonable to expect everyone to be respectful of everyone else?  Whether they agree or not, whether they're willing to help or not, respect is something we should all be able to expect, and we should also demand on behalf of our clients.

Adriana

Sally and David:

Like you, this is not the response I normally receive - that is why I thought it worthwhile to bring it to everyone's attention.  I close over 85% of my short sales, and have worked with most every major lender there is, and this is an extreme case.  Few of the companies care about the client in any way, but this one went way beyond that.

I appreciate your offer, but I negotiate all my short sales myself.  The one time I turned negotiations over to someone else, the transaction was so badly mismanaged that I had to take it back and resurrect it.  If you look further down my blog, you can find the story explaining why.

Adriana

Cindy:

Based on my experience, the top priority files are those with the largest amount in default and months of not having received ANY offers.  Most (unfortunately not all) lenders feel a sense of urgency about capturing this buyer - though they will try to finagle the transaction with counters, deficiency notice threats, and all sorts of other things, at least they respond relatively quickly to these.  My client's problem is he was trying to do the honorable thing and keep current.

We have to be sensitive to the astonishing workload these negotiators must have, and respectful of their time, but they need to return the favor.

Adriana