This past week, I got an ING Direct Short Sale to closing.  Getting there was full of directives from ING Direct that every Short Sale Agent in this country should be aware of.

For starters, our contract had the Buyer requesting closing cost help from the Seller.  After reviewing the contract, ING Direct, as the Short Sale bank, determined they wanted more money in the sales price and that there would be no closing cost help to the Buyer.  Since my Seller was now officially an investor, having moved out of state and rented the home for a couple years, he faced a tax implication on every penny that didn't go toward the pay off of his loan.  So when the Buyer agreed to increased sales price and no closing help, Buyer and Seller signed an addendum to those terms and we moved forward.

Next up was the forced use of ULS for the title company.  ULS stands for United Lender Services and they are located in Pittsburgh.  When I asked my negotiator how this was NOT a violation of CRESPA (a Buyer's right to choose whatever title company they like), the response was something like, "ING's lawyers have reviewed it and it's legal.  So does the Buyer want  this house or not?"

As the Listing Agent for this Short Sale, knowing that ING had also asked for a cash contribution from my client and that we were working with a title company that had no clue about our local tax rates and fees, I begged for a preliminary HUD.  I wanted to make sure my Seller wouldn't be overcharged for anything. The week of settlement, we finally saw a preliminary HUD.  Despite the fact the ING Direct has said that the Seller was not permitted to pay the Buyer's closing costs, there was the optional owner's title policy on the Seller's side where it did not belong.  When questioned, our ING Direct negotiator's response was, "Since we (ING Direct) is forcing the Buyer to use the title company, we have to pay for the title policy."  Problem is, ING Direct is not the Seller.  And the money was coming directly out of the net proceeds that was going to pay off the mortgage.  And remember, every penny not paid was a tax liability to the Seller.  THE SELLER WAS BEING FORCED TO PAY BASED ON WHAT ING DEMANDED.  And that was forcing the Seller into a higher tax burden with the IRS.  ING Direct seemed to not understand that they were NOT a party to this contract, merely a contingency to it.

We did an addendum, though none was needed and our regional sales contract clearly spelled out whose charges were what.  That was the only way ING Direct and ULS would have the owner's title policy on the side it belonged. 

Then came the sheer ignorance of working with an out of state title company.  They transfer charges, a Bueyr's fee, were on the Seller's side and there was no Grantor's Tax.  Again, I had to point out to the ULS and ING Direct the error or their ways.  They were in the process of violating our state statutes.  When I explained that, and who was to pay for what, and on what page of the contract they could find that information, it was corrected.

If you ever have to deal with ING Direct, make sure you save your emails and know your local charges and statutes.  I've already reported this to higher authorities.  And since it involved interstate commerce, I can probably add the US Attorney General to the llist.  I know that mortgage fraud is not worth anyone's time unless it involved a big fish.  Well, I believe ING Direct is a pretty big fish.  If you've had similar experiences, please contact the authorities.