Print the value of index0
Seckel Capital John Seckel AVOID THIS MORTGAGE BROKER Newtown, Pennsylvania
PLEASE, AVOID THIS BROKER AT ALL COSTS!!! I started the loan process with John Seckel about six weeks before we were scheduled to close. I was a bit uneasy in giving him money up front but his recommendations looked good and I could not find any negative information on him or his company. I gave him every bit of documentation has asked for (usually within 24 hours if not immediately). Our closing date came and he said he the lender was still waiting on a final report from an appraiser. This situation continued for 12 DAYS. John was extremely unresponsive during this time. He would not take or return my phone calls, he would rarely respond to emails and when he did the information was never helpful and he would not answer my direct and specific questions.
He continued to claim that it this report from the appraiser that the lender was waiting on. I spoke personally to this appraiser multiple times and he assured me that he had submitted everything he needed to the lender. There was clearly something more going on here that I was not privy to. During the entire time, John took no responsibility for these problems and blamed everyone he could for them from the seller to the appraiser to the lender. It was never his fault. Things only came together once I told John that I was beginning to work with another mortgage broker. In addition to all the hassles just to close, it also too me six weeks to get my up front deposit back and this only happened because I successfully disputed the charge with American Express.
As for all Johns guarantees, they are nothing but empty promises:
* Always accessible. Hard to claim if they wont speak with you, answer questions, or return emails and phone calls.
* We pride ourselves on Truth&Honesty. Still dont know the whole story as to why it took 12 days to close. If they wont give the customer a straight story, how can they claim to be truthful and honest?
* On time loan closing guarantee. They will blame any delays on someone else so it is never their fault. You will notice they claim this guarantee, but never say what they will do if they do not close you on time.
His rates may be low but it is just not worth the stress and risk of choosing this mortgage broker. If you are lucky and things go smoothly (as it looks like has happened for some of the other people who have rated him) then great, but if there are any bumps, be prepared to deal with horrible customer service and zero communication.
I am sure John will have slick rebuttal for this review but I assure you he and his company are best avoided. Thank you for taking the time to read this and I hope you will consider my experience before choosing this lender.
2 Updates & Rebuttals
Jim
Portland,Pennsylvania,
USA
Appraisal took some time but, on balance, I'm satisfied.
#3Consumer Comment
Sat, October 09, 2010
I read this report before I decided to give Seckel capital my business. It gave me some pause, but I went ahead with it anyway.
It's taken just over a month, but I just finished signing all the paperwork tonight and my loan will fund next week.
I appreciated your comments regarding the appraisal. There were considerable delays. It almost seemed like the appraisal companies were too busy to respond to them...but I am fairly confident that Mike Hutchinson, who handled everything for me, did what he could. He was also quite responsive to any calls or emails.
The Notary came tonight, on time, and the signing went smoothly.
As long as this loan funds when promised, (and I have little reason to believe it won't) I am quite satisfied with my experience....and getting what is likely the best rate at the lowest closing cost I could find! (As always, shop around though...)
One thing about the appraisal - once they found someone to do it, he was out here on the date promised and it took less than 24 hours for the report.
Seckel Capital
Newtown,Pennsylvania,
United States of America
Seckel Capital has 95.2% Customer Satisfaction Rate and follows all applicable lending/brokering laws.
#3UPDATE Employee
Fri, December 18, 2009
Mr. Artinger,
First and foremost congratulations on your new home and your amazing wholesale interest rate.
As we explained to you over the phone, via e-mail and so forth, as you may or may not still be aware, due to HVCC guidelines we were unable to contact the appraiser to help him push through the right documentation in order to satisfy the condition. As I explained, if we would have contacted the appraiser, this would be against federal guidelines and it would have jeopardized your settlement as a whole, and the lender would have had the right and obligation to cancel/withdraw your application. While this settlement was not as smooth as normal, we stuck by your side, contributed significant resources and got you in your new home as soon as possible and according to new federal/appraisal guidelines.
The last thing that we wanted to happen was to get your loan denied because we broke guidelines. In that event we would have had to start from scratch with a new application. We are confident that we acted within your best interest, absorbed all the costs we could, kept you informed every step of the way and completed the goal of getting you into your new home. While this was not a typical closing for Seckel Capital (20 out of 21 five star reviews on Zillow alone http://www.zillow.com/profile/SeckelCapital/Reviews-received?my=y) we are very apologetic that the appraisal situation caused you stress, and we're hoping the dinner at our expense help ease it a little bit.
Best and Warmest Regards to you and your family,
The Seckel Capital Team.