Ray Homebuyer Had to Change His Last Name: An Introduction

Hello everyone, before I begin my inaugural post allow me to say that I am excited to be able to share the stories of those who have learned the hard way that education is empowerment. I have seen first hand what a lack of due diligence can cause, especially at home. Actually…within my own home to be precise.

Having worked with many people to see if they could negotiate their notes with big banks, I have had to come home day after day and see my mother’s morose face, at times weeping, because she had no idea what she was going to do if we lost our house. The worst part? She was convinced to refinance by a slick talking, conniving, sleazy, glorified used car salesman type, loan officer. This is where my passion for home advocacy has taken root, in the sorrows and struggles of a working class family.

These roots are continually watered by the tears of the people who would come into our office until 11pm during the summer of 2008 because they couldn’t come in earlier lest they risk losing hours at work. With weathered eyes, they would still come in to see if we could help them save their home from foreclosure.

Sadly, in too many cases they had no options. Here I am a year later, I managed to graduate from college and help my family stay above water financially.

Why should you read these posts? Like everything on this website, I am not writing to push my agenda but rather to push back against THE AGENDA. I will be sharing stories both recent and long passed, that serve as a cold warning of what’s going on in this industry. That said, let me tell you about Ray Homebuyer…

Ray Homebuyer attended our Los Angeles Homebuyer Workshop to learn more about CalPERS. Ray was already in escrow with Big Bank but was still interested in learning more about the CalPERS home loan program. Ray had much to contribute about HOA fees as well as how to select a good neighborhood via speaking to the local police department. Overall, it seemed as though Ray had done his due diligence and was very educated. In fact, Scott and myself were quite impressed. Ray seemed happy with his situation and as far as Scott and I could tell he was going to be a homeowner soon.

Returning from our trip to Windsor and Santa Clara this week, some 2 months after the LA workshop, Ray Homebuyer called my cell to ask me some questions about escrow. Turns out he is still in escrow with Big Bank and he is going to start accruing $300 penalties if he doesn’t close in a couple days. I could tell he was stressed partly because of his tone but mostly because he told me “Chris, I’ve been had. The loan officer from Big Bank never returns my calls or is always in a meeting.” Big Bank’s loan officer kept blaming the escrow company, offering too many excuses and not enough solutions. Ray was in a panic.

Finally, Ray Homebuyer changed his last name. He called me Wednesday morning to say that the purchase was scrapped. The disillusionment and disappointment was apparent. Both he and I knew that there was absolutely nothing he could do at this point. He thanked me for my time and hung up. The man who had called me as Ray Homebuyer was now back to being Ray the Renter. This is why it is so important to do your homework and interview your home buying team. Scott covered this with his post “How You Know When to Not Trust Your Agent or Lender” and also “What You Need to Know About Finding a Lender for the CalSTRS 80/17”.

Let me leave you with this… the home buying process is an emotional rollercoaster. There are so many things that can and usually do go wrong. The best way to secure those keys in your hand is to be prepared. I invite you to take advantage of the resources made available here online as well as in person at our free workshops (See Schedule Here).

If you have a story you’d like to share to help increase buyer awareness, please contact me on my cell at (714)244-7368 or shoot me an email at ChrisA@broadviewmortgagecorp.com

Fraternally,

-Christopher “Doc” Apodaca

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Tagged as: CalPERS, CalPERS Home Loans, escrow, foreclosures, hiring a lender, hiring a loan officer, hiring an agent, modification, ray homebuyer, workshop