socal_engr's Q&A

I shopped for, found, and funded/closed a refi on ZMM, so it's not all smoke and mirrors. It's just that ZMM is also not some consumer nirvana where you can walk around with your head in the clouds, do no research to educate yourself on the loan products/processes, and expect everyone to be looking out for your best interests.With that said, the answer to your questions are fairly simple.If I ask for product A, and you offer me product B, that is "non-responsive". You have chosen to ignore my input and offer me whatever you feel like.If you offer me product A with a basic awareness that I will not qualify, but hoping to move me to some other product, that is bait-and-switch.If you offer me what I ask for, and then offer to provide me alternatives which I may not be aware of, that's called customer service.Cheers

Just as an FYI...This post originally went dormant back in July. For whatever reason, a RE decided to post an "I agree with what they said" with spam...which revived the thread.Not that the thread isn't of interest, just that it's somewhat of a zombie.

That's considered "normal maintenance" and should not be claimed as a deduction on your taxes. Of course, this doesn't stop you from trying, but...

It's been a few years (maybe 2001?), but I went through the same scenario as you did. I had to call several banks, butI ended up with a loan through WAMU.The minimum down was 25% (without a house, there's less to guarantee value), but the rates were not unreasonable. With the mortgage/housing meltdown as a background, this info may be dated.One thing I had to do was ask the banks that I initially called - who did not handle loans on land-only - to point me to other potential sources. If you ask, most will give you some leads (i.e., it's not business that they are losing, since they don't service the loan type).

Citibank pulled the "declining market and lower LTV" on me earlier this year when I refi'd, but it was on resubordinating a second. They capped the CLTV at 65%. Fortunately, I came in at just under 64% on the appraisal, but I'd hate to think about how the numbers would play out now.Before the lower LTV because of declining market, Citi told me their CLTV limit was at 90%.

You're being worked, this is an old scam and well documented on the internet. The check is going to bounce (but not until after you've wired the money) and you will be left answering to your bank.

You don't mention a couple of key elements: the purchase price and the agreed upon commission. Also, is the realtor handling your sale also representing you on your purchase.There are three groups with an interest in this transaction. First, there is you. Second, there are the buyers, And, third, there are the realtors. Of course, the realtor is going to want you to make up any differences - they don't want their payday impacted. However, you may or may not be able to absorb the $5K hit.It sounds like the buyers have the least amount to lose by having the deal blow up over $5K, but it never hurts to see what they can do about closing the gap. My guess is that, given the choice, they'll walk.You are in a bit of a bind if you need the sale to close in order to close on the purchase (which sounds like your situation). While I wouldn't be overly caustic about it, try putting some of the honus back on the realtor (she did agree to market your house for a set price...and it sounds like she may have missed the boat on the market analysis). Depending on the price/percentages, a half-point concession on the commission could help close the gap - especially if you could get that concession from both realtors. Remember, if the deal falls through, they get nothing - so there's some incentive for them to help you close the gap (as long as you're reasonable). 

"Typically?"...I'll have to say a qualified "yes". But, only because way too many buyers are ill-informed and unprepared for the experience.Just like any purchase, if you walk in the front door without having done your homework - you're going to get hammered.With all of the resources available today, it doesn't take much effort to get a feel for prices of new and existing homes. With this information and just a little bit of actual footwork (i.e., visiting various new home constructions in the area), it is very feasible to get a feel for how quality, level-of-amenities, lot size, applicable HOA fees, etc. are going to affect the basic cost/sq/ft.The real effort is in following through on the build-out and making sure that you get what you paid for, that all agreements and concessions are in writing, etc. If you're willing to educate yourself, then the answer changes to "no".p.s. Whether you go it alone or with a realtor, think about getting your own home inspector to periodically check on progress and let you know if they see anything that should be questioned. The cost is minimal, but having the pair of objective eyes can be extremely valuable.

I'm not a lender, but thought it might help to hear from a loan consumer...I got a loan earlier this year, and I got it through Zillow, and I used one of Zillow's "manual quoters".Those who are using ZMM and are buying into the robo-quotes, especially those that are just wacky...you don't want to deal with them. Too many have been WalMart-ized and are just looking to squeeze out every last penny, not just get a good loan. IMO, these folks don't appreciate quality service - and by that I mean they won't pay for the service, but they'll complain when the newbie screws things up.When I posted my mortgage request, I pretty much already know what the general rates were like. I then sorted the quotes by rate to see where the "sweet spot" was. In this process, I tended to pay more attention to the quote(s) that were not obviously spammed. While I did look at some robo-quotes that "seemed reasonable", my interest was often tempered by the fact that the robo-quotes did not address some aspect of my quote request.I guess I'm trying to say "hang in there". As well as the flood of robo-quoters, there's also a flood of WalMart-mentality loan shoppers, and I don't believe these are customers that manual quoters will want  to do business with. Those customers who have reasonable expectations and understand that service/knowledge has value and needs to be compensated are still out there - it's just that they're just as obscured in the noise as decent quotes are in the wall-o-sound generated by the robo-quotes. The good news is, ZMM's tools actually are a decent filter that allows informed consumers to find the quotes that address their needs.

Do yourself, and everyone else that has to deal with this agent, a favor. Talk to his broker and determine what, if any, buyer representation agreement you have.Unless you signed a buyers representation agreement where you agreed to pay a 3% commission to "your agent", then what this agent is doing is slimy at best - and should be brought to the attention of his broker. If the broker won't help, then go to the broker's local franchise board (assuming the broker is affiliated with one of the larger RE franchises).