Recently I helped a really nice first time home buyer locate the perfect condo for her.

Things started slowly as there is not a lot of inventory. But we viewed a lot of propertis that looked interesting and were in a good place to see anything new as it came on the market. (We also get a lot of listings coming through our office that clients get first dibs at through our Off Market Listing Opportunities.)

This buyer came really close a couple of times to making an offer but something about each of these condos held her back. Eventually, I recommended another area that would provide her with more condo for the dollar. We targeted the area and headed out with a list of open houses with appointments in between.

I love the look on a buyer’s face when they walk into the right place!

In a competitive market, we were even able to get her mother in to see the condo the next morning and have a closer look. Offer was presented and accepted!

And then the other shoe dropped. With the buyers permission, the mortgage broker called to let me know that, although buyer’s credit was excellent, she had an old dispute on her credit that had never been removed. Not only was she not eligible for Mass Housing, no one would give her a loan until this dispute was removed. This process can take months.

Ironically, a dispute is caused when you find an error on your report and its your way of saying “I don’t agree.” I highly recommend you find another way to settle any accounts as it could come back to haunt you. Please make sure your mortgage lender has not only looked at your credit score but looked at the report. If caught early enough, you can work on removing a dispute prior to writing an offer. Moreover, there are some differences between major credit scoring models, so you also need to keep in mind that there is always Vantage Score vs FICO.

I called my favorite attorney as we the offer was already accepted and I did not know how much I was required to disclose to the listing agent. My loyalty is with the buyer. I really do love this attorney. She is unbelievably knowledgeable and helpful.

She gave me the name of a credit repair specialist. The buyer had already started contacting the credit bureaus but was being sent in circles. Very trying for a first time home buyer.

I asked for a 2 week extension to closing early on as last minute surprises are not pleasant and it was granted. We were originally aiming for a 30 day closing but 45 days is not unreasonable.

The credit repair specialists were able help this buyer to remove the dispute from all 3 credit bureaus and we closed on time. A small miracle!