By Susana Field

Fannie Mae-owned homes are like their own country. They may twist and turn the playing field, toot their horns and puff their chest. But in the end, they abide by the laws just like we do. I recently helped my vacation ski resort home buyers recently purchase a Fannie Mae-owned condo in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. But wherever you are located or hoping to buy, here are 5 hard-earned tips to keep you sanely in the game.

1. Negotiate first. Submit contract later.

Fannie Mae didn’t want to look at a Contract until after we’d verbally negotiated terms; me on behalf of my buyers and the listing agent on behalf of Fannie. They just wanted to know the names of the buyers, the price being offered and the Closing Date. We went back and forth a couple of times, but once we agreed on the price we put it in writing in the form of a Contract.

2. Ready Set Go. The clock starts ticking.

Along with the standard state contract which we produced, we were given an Addendum by Fannie Mae, which overrides anything in the standard Contract. Read it very carefully. And then read it again with a pencil so you can take notes. Then sleep on it. But even while you are trying to figure out what the thing says so you can explain it to your client, the clock has started ticking and most importantly with regards to your inspection timeline. Forget what dates you put in the standard contract regarding the inspection. The Addendum (yes, bow to Her Majesty) allows you ten days from when Fannie Mae first agreed to your terms, to object to the inspection. Did you read that correctly? Ten days from when Fannie first agreed to your Buyer’s terms, is the deadline by which you can object to the inspection. Which means you need to have gotten the inspection done and have a report in your hands and reviewed it and written your objections, etc., by the tenth day after acceptance of the terms. Which was probably yesterday.

3. You don’t really have to give up your first born.

After reading the first paragraph of the Addendum, which sent you immediately to the phone to schedule the inspection, your eyes might glaze over from mining the legaleze, your blood preasure might start rising and you may be tempted to throw the thing away. But after calming down and reading it for the third time through, you’ll see that most of it is just Fannie saying, “Hay, when this deal is over, it’s over – don’t come running back to us with any issues.” And I don’t blame them – they want those those properties off their books for good.

4. They may huff and may puff, but don’t let them scare ya.

Yes, Her Majesty the Addendum says on the first page that the Buyer can choose the Title Company and the Closing Company. Yes, there is no place in the Addendum that counters Colorado’s standard Contract’s requirement that the Seller pay for the Owner’s Title Policy. And there is no place that says the Seller doesn’t have to pay if the Buyer chooses the Title Company. No matter what they say. No matter what they threaten. The Contract is the Contract. And if they can’t prove something to you by showing you exactly where it says what they say it says, then by all means don’t let them bully you. Her Majesty Fannie, does have to follow the rules. But she will huff and she will puff.

5. Hurry up and wait…all the way to the end.

You hurry up. And you wait. And you do it again. You hurry up. And you wait…We waited six weeks for Fannie to sign the Contract. So yes, we passed several deadline dates including of course the inspection, before we even had a signed contract we could submit to the lender. Over at Fannie it seemed like the left foot had no idea it was even meant to wear a shoe, little alone what the right hand was doing. Humor came in handy around that time, as well as several stiff drinks. But that’s another blog post. And why should Fannie change their pace at the very end? Disbursement of commission checks takes place a few days after Closing.

What a sense of accomplishment though, I must say! To have closed the deal on time! To have only broken down crying once! To have stood up to Her Majesty’s bluff and won! And to have helped my Buyers get a really good deal! I wish you luck. I wish you fortitude. Let me know how I can help.