Will I ever recommend the VA Vendee program? NO. My conclusion after this experience with the VA Vendee loan program has been that it is typical of other 1-800 or other internet-based lenders. You as an agent or as a buyer or both of you are going to have to to follow-up and follow-up some more. It's a loan program offered through a Bank of America call center in Texas. You will not get the same service as you will from a reputable local lender.
You will find little information regarding this program on the internet because there are very few home buyers using this loan program. There are very few home buyers using it because it is a very difficult process. Hence, the long and lonely road.
You can read Part 1 here. And Part 2 here about my buyer's experience buying a home in Georgia.
Do you qualify for the VA Vendee program? Click here.
The closing was a great mystery. There were no answers from the loan originator. There were no answers from Bank of America. The loan processor for Bank of America demonstrated repeatedly that she knew very little about real estate transactions. She asked me several times if she should order title? Yes, yes, yes. Then she asked if she should arrange for closing. YES!! YES!! YES!! I gave here names and numbers galore for a closing attorney.
NOTHING.
After many many phone calls and emails we finally find out that she didn't know she was supposed to use a title company contracted by the VA for VA Vendee loans. That title company was Service Link, which is a the closing service for Fidelity National.
How can a loan processor not know this? She kept asking me what she should do because she was getting no answers from her own company. She even told the listing agent that she couldn't let her know the status of the buyer's loan because that was private. WHAT???
Well, Service Link finally gets the package together from VA Vendee/Bank of America, sends an attorney to my buyer's workplace to have her sign the loan papers, and declares the transaction closed. (The attorney first shows up with completely wrong papers.)
NOT.
More than two weeks after closing my buyer and myself had to scream in emails and phone calls to get her copies of the loan papers. She was left with none. The closing coordinator thought the B of A loan processor would take care of sending them and vice versa. Finally, they sent them.
Two months later my buyer has to jump up and down to get a copy of the warranty deed, which 2 months later was still not filed. Oh, because it wasn't signed and notarized at closing.
This is what you get with Service Link, an attorney who at first shows up with the wrong loan docs, then doesn't make sure everything is signed properly.
Did I mention the HUD had many mistakes?
Beware of Service Link. Watch them like a hawk. It was later revealed that this sloppy closing was one of their firsts with the VA Vendee program and that they genuinely cared about these details. They did finally take care of the mistakes on the HUD, the copies of the loan papers, and filing the warranty deed. But, it was only through prodding.
Perhaps there are success stories out there of "smooth as butter" transactions with VA Vendee. Perhaps now, they have worked out the kinks.
Remember the squeaky wheel.
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