My buyers were a pre-qualified young couple moving to Denver from Texas. I did my usual Buyer Interview and we found the “perfect” house in Washington Park and proceeded to go through the normal hoops of house buying: Going Under Contract, Inspection Resolution, Appraisal & Final Loan Commitment.

There had been a previous contract on the house in which the buyer just walked away prior to the inspection. To reassure the sellers that they were serious, my buyers almost doubled the Earnest Money to the tune of $35,000 and got the asking price they wanted.

We were using an out of state mortgage broker my buyer had done business with previously so both I and the listing agent checked him out. He said he had done several real estate loans in Colorado and was well aware that we were not an escrow state and thus our deadlines were just that-deadlines that needed to be met.

The Friday prior to our Tuesday closing, the Lender sent us a Final Loan Commitment. Early Monday morning I sent him an email with contact information for him to send his numbers to the title company so a final settlement sheet could be prepared for my buyer. He phoned me right away and informed me there was no way we could close the next day and we should just get an extension. I explained that by not meeting the closing deadline he was putting my buyer’s entire $35,000 Earnest Money at risk! Nonetheless, he said there was no way he could be ready.

The sellers (bless them and their agent!) agreed to give us a 4 day extension with a $500 a day charge for everyday we didn’t close and if Friday came with no closing they would take the $35,000. I phoned Gretchen Faber, and she suggested it was time to find another lender. She gave me the name of a lender she was familiar with and I immediately called him. He called me back after two hours and said he would give it a try.

Sean worked literally night and day on the loan package: he told me he talked to my buyer more than he saw or spoke to his wife. I didn’t dare stray too far from my computer because he needed various kinds of information and I knew he needed it asap! ( I have a total of 214 emails for this deal).

Thursday evening arrived and Sean said they were pretty sure they could meet the Friday deadline-How extraordinary! There were a few more ups and downs but the result was by late Friday morning my buyer had a fully approved clear to close Jumbo loan. We closed Friday afternoon.

    * Caution buyers if they are using out of state mortgage brokers-even if they know them.
    * Having a seasoned professional on the other side of a deal is critical when loans go south.
    * Having, as my buyer kept saying, “a Golden Roladex” of names from which I can draw is essential.
    * Sometimes we are only as good as the people we know.
    * Working for a top company with fabulous managers makes my life a whole lot easier.
    * If you team up with extraordinary lenders and their managers anything is possible-even in this market!