I bought a home in late November, 2009. The home itself has been great but the paperwork part of the process was awful. I got a letter in the mail from a mortgage company and since I had heard of them before, I figured they had to be good to deal with.
In fact, I had a vehicle financed at one of their subsidiaries. So I contacted them first, gave preliminary information, got pre-approved and went house hunting. After finding a cute, adorable and affordable home in a great location, I submitted an offer. This is the point at which it got sticky.
This company wanted so much paperwork, it was ridiculous. Then they would lose something and request it again. Then they rejected me at least twice, based on stupid reasons.
I quoted HUD policy to them and in the end, I was able to get the home loan, but it was a miracle. We had to postpone closing twice because they didn’t have the paperwork there on time. I finally moved in right before Thanksgiving.
I did discover, while unpacking, that the previous owners had left a number of things behind in a closet, including a jar full of money. And I don't just mean a jar of pennies, I mean quarters and dollar bills, wads of dollar bills.
They had labeled it vacation fund. My kid's eyes about popped out of their heads. There was also an opened safe, complete with documents still in it and some electronic items. Needless to say, while legally, we could keep any items left behind, morally I certainly couldn't.
We had their new number because they couldn't catch their cat before they left. We called them and explained we found a jar of money. I think they broke the speed record in getting to the house.
We are so happy to have our home, although my home buying experience sure was a difficult one!
Understanding how credit scores work is the beginning of the mortgage process. Know your credit scores before you apply for a mortgage. Many free details found on this page.
