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Lending a Hand: a Happy Ending and a New Beginning…

By an Adam Leitman Bailey, P.C. closing attorney

At Adam Leitman Bailey, P.C., we strive to provide the greatest customer service and legal advice in our performance as lender’s counsel. We will do almost anything in order to represent our lenders in a manner that gets deals closed accurately and with a smile. We try to always be courteous, knowledgeable, efficient and capable whether this be a first mortgage, a subsequent mortgage, or a mortgage re-finance, relating to real property loan transactions such as consolidation, extension, and modification agreements, or loans secured by cooperative shares and proprietary leases.

Although we have many wild stories when discussing the refinance boom this winter, I have chosen one story to show how our lending department was able to overcome obstacles and achieve successful results for our clients.

With three inches of snow already on the ground and New York City Public Schools closed for the 7th time since 1978, New York City faced one of the worst snow storms in years. Despite the aforementioned, I was at my desk at the usual 8:30 am entrance time. I received many surprised and excited phone calls from borrowers scheduled to close that day. Although I was happy to talk and reassure the borrowers that we were still on, I had to politely excuse myself so that I could get to work preparing for the eight closings that lay ahead. I knew our clients had rate-locks expiring and I had to get the borrowers closed that day to prevent excess costs and increased rates.

By the end of the day, I had closed all eight loans, but the last borrower was one I will never forget. I had received a few frantic calls earlier in the week from a borrower who was 38 weeks pregnant. She was nervous that she would go into labor before she could close on her mortgage refinance and her rate-lock would expire. I made a promise that I would close her loan and save her rate-lock. Towards the end of the closing, the borrower began receiving contractions. I then knew that the closing had to be completed efficiently and accurately, while preserving the health of the borrower. While making sure the lender was protected, I helped the borrower sign the last documents shortly before she went into labor. At 5 am the next morning, I received pictures of her beautiful baby boy. Once in awhile, I realize that being a lender’s counsel becomes more than assisting people in buying homes…it also means providing their families with shelter.

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