Fannie Mae's Homepath Lipstick on a Pig (404 McKinley St. SE)

     

We just wrapped-up a truly miserable experience with a Fannie Mae property in Salem, Oregon.  Sadly, Fannie Mae complaints and controversy are nothing new.  Our particular experience, though, displayed such a clear and intentional deception, however, that I felt compelled to briefly share some of the details.

     At first glance, the McKinley property appears to be in pristine condition.  (This is no accident.)  We even inquired about possible roof issues, but the representative assured us that Fannie Mae professionals had gone through the property with a fine-toothed comb; that must have been one bad comb.  We were taken-in, offering significantly more than the asking price, which led to our misguided offer eventually being accepted.  Upon later inspection, however, we leaned the following: heating/cooling system requires replacement, roof requires replacement, compressed wood siding needs to be completely or partially replaced (west side), and animals (alive and dead) have taken up residence under the house.  Oh, there's also likely asbestos in the garage.  The repair bill for the above?  Well, let's just say that it's in excess of $30,000, or so.  Without a home inspector (or our great realtor), we could have missed all of this.

     When made aware of deficiencies, Fannie Mae's local representative (Coldwell Banker's Brian Smith) declined to make any concessions.   It was, we were told, an as-is deal.  Yes, but it's crystal clear what they were trying to do with this property; it was lipstick on a pig.  A naive buyer could have been sent to financial ruin with this house by an organization his tax dollars helped bail-out.  Incompetence or deception?  You decide.

     If you are a buyer considering 404 McKinley St, please contact us for the complete inspection report--at no cost to you. Don't waste your time on Fannie Mae.

Who Are You Gonna Call?

Let's face it, sometimes you just need someone on your side when it comes to customer service complaints. Short of hiring an expensive attorney or taking someone to small claims court, are there sometimes other options? I think so. I've had great success over the last decade in righting (sometimes writing) many different kinds of business wrongs. Now, I'm not talking about corporate law here.

Looking for an example? I was misled by a bank. Not exactly breaking news, but it really came at an inconvenient time. (I was preparing to launch a campaign fundraiser for state political office.) I was respectful to the local bank representatives, and they probably thought that was that. Only, it wasn't. That evening, after some well-placed and targeted messages, I received a call at home from one of the chairmen of the bank's board. Needless to say, the matter was resolved to my complete satisfaction.

So, I like think of myself as the Complaint Equalizer...but I don't use that term, because that would be kind of weird, right? Well, you may wonder why you need a professional in your corner? I suggest that many people these days are not strong communicators. Well, I'm happy to e-mail, call, and, if necessary, tweet, blog, or Facebook. (Is that a verb?) I also have media contacts who might always take an interest in your situation. Many times, though, a lot of good can be accomplished by just understanding the structure of the regulatory machine. Another success I have had is e-mail address identification. Upper corporate leadership likes being insulated from the customer front lines, but I have had great success in breaking through to the right person at the right time.

Do you have a problem, but you're unsure if I can help? Send me an e-mail today describing your situation in detail, or drop by the new webpage first. Take care to articulate why you believe you're in the right, because I won't likely be able to help otherwise. 

As this is a trial stage right now, I am charging less than ten dollars for the first handful of clients. (I'll explain how it works, when you write.)