Your case is not out of the ordinary. The second lender doesn’t care where they get the money. It can come from the seller, it can come from the first lender, it can come from you. They just want the money.
Since the first will not pay it, and the seller will not pay it, then you are next on the list.
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It is in all likelihood legit…. When you close escrow, where all the money went will be on the HUD report including which lender got what monies.
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Think about it this way, each lender is owed money. There are no gaurantees, (with the way short sales are done now) what EACH lender will accept as a payoff. If anyone ever implied to you otherwise they were incorrect. Your offer was submitted to each lender and each lender responded with a response. You were not defrauded at all. Did anyone ever imply to you that each lender would simply take what you offered?
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Your recourse is as follows:
1 – You agree to pony up and pay the second off the 20k you like.
2 – You make an offer, maybe to pay half of it and ask the agents to kick in some of their commissions and maybe the sellers as well.
3 – You ask your agent to ask the listing agent to demand that the first lender payout more of their proceeds to the second lender.
4 – You call their bluff and walk.
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Note that the second is playing a poker game right? If the home goes to foreclosure the second gets screwed and gets nothing. So would they rather have a few thousand bucks or get nothing? Unfortunately the market is so crazy here in town that more then likely someone will pony up the money if you do not want to. That is the risk the second lender is willing to take.
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I am sorry to be blunt but it is the way the market is right now out here. It frustrates all parties involved as well.
Unfortunately I do not believe anyone has defrauded you in any manner.
