WHEN I GREW UP IN FLORIDA AND SURFED ALL THE TIME, A CLASSMATE OF MINE DROWNED WHILE SURFING.
HE GOT BLIND SIDED BY THE POWER OF A LARGE WAVE AND WIPED OUT. HE GOT SUCKED UNDERWATER, AND NEVER MADE IT BACK UP. IT WAS TOO LATE FOR THE LIFEGUARD TO SAVE HIM. IN THE AFTERMATH, THE LIFEGUARD KEPT GETTING ASKED THE SAME QUESTION: HOW COULD SUCH A GOOD SWIMMER AND SURFER DROWN?
HE REPLIED WITH AN ANSWER THAT HAS STUCK WITH ME FOREVER. HE SAID, "MOST PEOPLE DROWN BECAUSE THEY PANIC. THEY TRY TO FIGHT THE WATER INSTEAD OF JUST PAUSING FOR A SECOND, GETTING THEIR BEARINGS TO KNOW WHICH WAY IS UP AND RAISING THEIR BODY AND HEAD TO GLIDE TO THE SURFACE. THE ANSWER FROM THE LIFEGUARD,TO THIS DAY, HAS STUCK WITH ME FOREVER. IT HAS CERTAINLY STUCK WITH ME IN THIS REAL ESTATE MARKET.
FOR THOSE OF US WHO GET INVOLVED IN REAL ESTATE TRANSACTIONS,WE ALL GET "BLIND SIDED". THE BLIND SIDES RESULT IN "WIPE OUTS". IN OUR PROFESSIONS, JUST LIKE SURFING,
BLIND SIDES AND WIPE OUTS ARE INEVITABLE. LIKE SURFERS, NO MATTER HOW PREPARED AND SKILLED WE REALTORS, CLIENTS, AND MORTGAGE PROFESSIONALS ARE, UNEXPECTED POWERFUL "WAVES" CRASH DOWN ON US. THAT BEING SAID,I WILL CONDENSE THE REST OF THIS TO ONE BLIND SIDE EARLY IN MY CAREER:
MY BLIND SIDE: DISCOVERING THAT AN UNDERWRITER COULD NOT USE A SELF-EMPLOYED CLIENT'S BUSINESS INCOME SINCE HE HAD HIS BUSINESS LESS THAN 2 YEARS. MY ARGUMENT WAS THAT HE BECAME
SELF-EMPLOYED IN 1995 AND SPUN HIS BUSINESS OFF INTO ANOTHER BUSINESS AND WENT FROM A 50% OWNER IN OLD BUSINESS TO 100% OWNER IN NEW BUSINESS. UNDERWRITER DID NOT SEE IT THAT WAY. BECAUSE ONE HAS TO HAVE NEW BUSINESS FOR AT LEAST TWO YEARS TO COUNT THE INCOME, THE UNDERWRITER DID NOT COUNT ANY OF CLIENT'S INCOME. A HUGE, HUGE WIPE OUT!!
I GOT ANGRY, FRUSTRATED, AND STARTED ARGUING WITH EVERYBODY. I PANICKED. I GOT MY BOSS INVOLVED AND CALLED MY CLIENT AND HIS CPA COUNTLESS TIMES TO TRY TO EXPLAIN TO UNDERWRITING THAT TECHNICALLY IT WAS NOT A NEW BUSINESS. WE LOST THE ARGUMENT AND NOW BEGAN TO SINK FURTHER UNDERWATER. MY REALTOR AND CLIENT REALLY BEGAN TO PANIC. THEY ASKED ME
TO KEEP APPEALING THE UNDERWRITER DECISION. I APPEALED TO THREE DIFFERENT UNDERWRITERS. THE UNDERWRITERS ALL ENDED UP WITH THE SAME CONCLUSION: THIS WAS CONSIDERED A NEW BUSINESS AND THE CLIENT'S INCOME COULD NOT BE USED. NOW, WE HAD LOST A WEEK'S TIME FIGHTING THIS. THE KICKING, ARM WAVING, AND EVENTUAL FRENZY GOT WORSE. WE WERE FURTHER "UNDERWATER" AND WERE LOSING AIR . THE TRANSACTION WAS DROWNING, AND WE WERE RUNNING OUT OF BREATHING TIME.
THE PANIC ESCALATED: THE CLIENT, LISTING AND SELLING AGENT BEGAN TO TELL ME HOW HORRIBLE MY LENDING COMPANY, THE UNDERWRITER, AND THE INDUSTRY WAS.
THEY WANTED TO KNOW WHY LENDERS DON'T USE COMMON SENSE ANYMORE . I ADMIT THAT I GOT SUCKED FURTHER INTO THIS PANIC MODE. I CONSIDERED REFERRING THE FILE TO ANOTHER LENDER. THEN I THOUGHT ABOUT THE LIFEGUARD QUOTE FROM YEARS AGO: ALL OF US WERE FIGHTING, KICKING AND FLAILING SO HARD THAT WE COULD NOT CALMLY THINK OF A WAY TO REACH THE SURFACE. OUR ENERGY WAS TAPPED BECAUSE WE ALL SPENT COMPLAINING, KICKING, AND FIGHTING LOSING BATTLES. ALL WE REALLY HAD TO DO WAS STOP TO THINK HOW WE COULD CALM DOWN, GATHER OURSELVES, AND USE OUR KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE TO SWIM OR GLIDE OUR WAY TO THE SURFACE. WHAT ENSUED WAS THAT ALL PARTIES INVOLVED, INCLUDING ME, CALMLY CAME UP WITH A SOLUTION TO MAKE OUR WAY TO THE SURFACE AND KEEP THE TRANSACTION FROM "DROWNING". AS MUCH AS IT HURT THE CLIENT'S PRIDE, HIS PARENTS ENDED UP CO-SIGNING. THE TRANSACTION MADE IT TO THE SURFACE OF THE WATER, GOT SAFELY TO SHORE. END RESULT: A CLOSED LOAN AND A NEW HOME FOR THE CLIENT.
MORAL OF THE STORY:
ALL OF US, NO MATTER HOW SMART, SKILLED, AND EDUCATED WE ARE (INCLUDING CLIENTS), WE HAVE ALL "WIPED OUT" SOMETIME IN OUR REAL ESTATE CAREERS. SOME OF THE
TRANSACTIONS MAY HAVE DROWNED OR COME SO CLOSE TO DROWNING WHEN, IN ACTUALITY, IT COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED. ALL WE WOULD HAVE NEEDED TO DO IS GATHER OURSELVES,
STAY CALM, AND USE OUR PROBLEM SOLVING SKILLS INSTEAD OF UNNECESSARY ANGER. THE FACT IS, SOME WAVES ROLL IN SMOOTHLY AND SOME OF THEM COME IN WITH FURIOUS INTENSITY. :
IT IS HOW WE HANDLE THE INTENSE WAVES AND WIPE OUTS THAT MAKE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN US CLOSING OUR TRANSACTIONS, GETTING THE CLIENT IN THE HOME, AND HONESTLY KEEP US REALTORS AND MORTGAGE PROFESSIONALS IN THE BUSINESS.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR BUSINESS
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