Save Failing Transactions
1:23 Minute Read.
You know how it feels.
Only days before a closing and you’re left helpless, watching your transaction unravel.
It may be the most frustrating thing about our industry. Those hours you spent working (along with everyone else’s time) are gone – all of them. You can’t save every transaction that’s headed to the dustbin. However, here is an easy plan to decrease that risk.
Once you know a transaction is dead,
get your client out of it fast – before rigor mortis sets in.
Early detection is key.
If you know about an issue early in the transaction, you might have time to fix the problem or at least minimize wasting your energy.
Once a purchase agreement is complete, gather all documentation including all necessary signatures. Difficulty in getting docs quickly might reveal sloppiness on the part of an agent, their client’s or lender. That alone serves as a red flag that trouble might lay ahead.
Take time each week to manage the transaction – either personally or through your own transaction coordinator. Don’t leave this work to the other agent, a closing office or anyone else. It only takes a few minutes to send an email keeping all parties on the same page. Do it early. Stay ahead of Type A clients by sending emails out early Monday mornings. That email should include a transaction update, questions that need answering this week, next steps and a wire fraud alert.
Click here for a PDF of sample language to use. It’s not fancy but it works beautifully. I merely copy and paste any important information from this document directly into the body of an email.
Also, use a good checklist to identify necessary tasks and mark them off as completed. Click here for a PDF of our Closing Coordination Checklist. I’ve included a form that you can copy and a sample of how it’s used.
I have caught and saved plenty of transactions because someone disclosed (usually the lender) that something was amiss. That leads me to my second key point to minimize transaction failure: Use a good lender.
You may not have any influence over the choice of lenders. But some lenders don’t have the ability to offer the right mortgage that fits the buyer or the transaction. Others promise more than they can deliver. And when a transaction goes bad, lenders often run for the tall grass to hide and hope their problem just goes away. That’s when their problem becomes your problem.
When a transaction starts to wobble, it’s good to have a capable, professional lender who’s available to discuss the situation with. Many times they can offer assistance that can get the job done when someone else cannot.
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