If you want to do business with a bank that doesn't manage the loan process, doesn't take…read moreresponsibility when problems arise and shifts blame to anyone and everyone else (including you), lies about what they can deliver, lies about what information they were aware of, and speaks rudely to you when you're trying to get information - by all means, give First Bank a call.
We wish we never contacted First Bank for purchasing our home. From beginning to end, and beyond, it has been a complete and unmitigated disaster.
Our real estate agent, who was wonderful, recommended Ron at First Bank to us. Based on her recommendation, we decided to contact him and get a quote for our home loan. During the process, we were VERY clear that we were purchasing a house that we would be COMPLETELY renovating, including redoing the plumbing, mechanical, and electrical systems.Obviously, we wouldn't be able to live in the house until the renovations were completed.
As the closing date approached, we were getting worried that we hadn't heard anything from the bank on closing costs, etc. No one was managing the process or keeping us informed on the status of the loan and closing. Two days before closing, we called our agent to see if she knew what was going on. She had to scramble to make sure the bank had everything in order for us to close. The lack of management and communication almost delayed the closing.
After the house was purchased and renovations were underway, we reached out to Ron (despite the horrible closing experience) to find out about lower rates and the possibility of refinancing. Ron replied with a dismissive email, telling us to apply online to find out rates. Because he seemed to have no interest in doing our refinance, we (with a sense of relief) approached our previous lender. They offered us really good rates and, knowing we were still in renovations, said they could use the property assessment from our initial loan. They reached out to First Bank and hit a wall. FB refused to transfer the assessment to them, saying that they "couldn't" transfer the file - on an assessment we paid for. Ron, realizing he was going to lose out on his commission, suddenly became very interested and said he could beat their rates and get us refinanced in a couple of weeks. He also said he wouldn't need to pull our credit to do so. Since FB blocked our refinance with the other bank, we hesitantly moved forward with them.
Well, Ron came back with higher interest rates. Oh, and his assurance that our credit wouldn't get hit again - well that was a lie as well. Still, we continued forward, looking to take advantage of the lower than our original loan rates. Then, the week we were supposed to close, Ron tells us that because we are renovating the house and not currently living in it, our refinance cannot close. When I called him to find out what was going on, he rudely snapped at me multiple times and rushed me off the phone. He later wrote a long email, claiming he knew NOTHING about the construction and trying to blame our insurance agent for causing the refinance to fall apart. Again - a complete lie in an effort to cover himself (we had documentation showing he knew - but probably just didn't care to pay attention).
So yeah - lack of management and communication, lies, blame shifting, rudeness and disrespect...if that is what you are looking for in a lender, then First Bank is a perfect choice.
