Three months ago, if a buyer made an offer on our listing and was getting their loan from BOA 3 months ago, I would have thought nothing of it. Today, I would think that buyer is worthless. In my experience BOA can’t close buyer loans. They made lots of promises and then didn’t follow thru. However, let me give you some other agents stories before I tell you mine.

BOA Horror Story #1: “I wrote a new home purchase contract with B of A as the lender. The buyer was putting down $140,000 on a $185,000 purchase price. Yes – it was a very small amount of money he was getting a loan for  but B of A approved it and we were all set to close 4 ½ months later. The buyer flew out the week before to do the walk-through and get the money from his bank. The HUD-1 was emailed to me on Friday and I called the B of A loan officer to confirm our closing on the following Monday at 11:00 A.M. We were good to go – so I thought.

At 9:00 I got a call from the loan office saying B of A decided not to do the loan. I asked why it was denied 2 hours before closing (signing)? He said it was not denied, B of A had changed threir mind and decided not to do the loan. ” Lance Mohr

BOA Horror Story #2: I had a Buyer for a foreclosed home. His credentials were perfect for an FHA loan. The Buyer wanted to close asap. All the paperwork was sent to his loan company (BOA). It was suggested by the Sellers agent that BOA might work faster as it was their foreclosed property. I forwarded everything on time. It was difficult to get through to the BOA contracted loan officer by phone .. my emails were never answered.

The closing date drew nearer. I kept calling the contracted loan officer, but did not receive any replies from her..I finally called a manager at BOA who informed me the closing officer was very busy with the Tax Credit. They only had a certain amount of time to present the paperwork. I accepted the explanation but explained that my customer was anxious to close on his property as he and his family were living in a hotel. The Seller’s bank had stipulated a final date for Closing or the contract would be withrawn.

Another week went by and I continued to leave messages for the closing officer with no replies. I again called a BOA manager and was told that the contracted loan officer was on vacation and there was nothing that could be done until she returned…!!!

Her vacation return date was one day before the closing date. On the morning of closing date I was forwarded a copy of the Appraisal that had been performed 4 weeks previously WITH stipulation that the glass front door had to be repaired or replaced before closing!! I was not notified of this fact at any time other than the day of closing! The Sellers agent was unaware of the Appraisal report as he received it the same day as I did.

I was finally able to talk with the Loan Officer.. at this point I was ready to scream at her! She sugar coated her actions, however, the door still had to be repaired/replaced!! We were able to find a company to go out immediately to repair the door to satisfy the Appraiser. We got the Appraiser to reappraise the property just an hour before the set time for Closing.

To say I was upset/frustrated for the Buyer is an understatement. I worked miracles to Close the house .. . all because BOA’s “Contracted Loan Officer” was too busy and went on vacation. I will never!!! use BOA services again. ” Georgie Moore

Ben’s Horror Story: Another agent brought a buyer who was buying a short sale. The buyer was using BOA for their loan. I thought it wasn’t a problem. Today, we are 2 months past when we got the short sale approval. They have asked for two extensions and won’t give us a solid time to close. Although, “It should be any days now.”

She said she could close on the 26th of August if the buyer sent her final conditions by the 22nd. He sent it and she still can’t close. The processor and loan officer will not answer my e-mails and give me an answer. So we keep on asking for short sale extensions.

My bottom line: We won’t negotiate a short sale on behalf of a buyer using BOA financing. We’re not doing the work unless the buyer uses a lender that can actually close. I’ve got bills to pay and can’t handle this level of incompetence.

Sellers (and short sale negotiators at BOA) don’t accept incompetence from me. They demand that I do my job.

Ben & Chris Curry

I thought this was something people needed to know so I did a blog post on B of A. If you have any questions about Tampa short sales or Tampa home prices please give us a call.