Sam is at it again! When he came into work this morning he announced, “I’ve got a boat payment due so we’ll be making a loan today!” My heart sank. It meant another unsuspecting homeowner was about to get taken for a ride.
The nicest couple came in just after lunch – Mr. and Mrs. Brown. They were elderly and not very knowledgeable about mortgages. Sam ushered them into his office with a big smile. He pretended, as usual, to be their “trusted mortgage advisor” looking out for their best interests. The only thing he was looking out for was his boat payment! He left his door open and I heard everything.
The Browns told him that they wanted to consolidate some debt to lower their overall monthly payments. They also mentioned that their credit might be poor so they were expecting to pay more for their loan than someone with great credit. Dollar signs lit up in Sam’s eyes! Without even looking at their credit score, he agreed that a loan for people with credit like theirs would definitely cost more. He then took all their information and got their loan approved through the automated system. They were so grateful they practically had tears in their eyes when they left.
I had tears in my eyes when he gave me that file to process. All those fees! I heard him tell the Browns that their payments would be lower than what they were paying now on their mortgage and those credit cards. What he “forgot” to do was go over their Good Faith Estimate. If he had, they would have clearly seen that they were paying more than three times what the local bank would have charged to make the same loan. He just told them not to worry about “all those confusing numbers” and had them sign the papers. The closing costs would just be rolled into the loan. “No worries!” he said. They didn’t even notice that they’ve increased their loan amount by rolling in his exorbitant fees. In fact, they will now owe so much that no reputable lender will ever be able to refinance them out of this mess! Worse, their credit is fine. Any bank would have done this loan for thousands less!
I really have to find a new job