Response from Jennifer DeLaurentis on 3/10/2025

I understand that the home-buying process can be emotional and sometimes frustrating, but I believe open communication and collaboration are key to achieving successful outcomes. I am truly sorry that your lender did not approve the loan for this building and that you feel wronged in your attempt to purchase this condo. I want to provide further insight to clarify what happened here. A lender should ideally know if a condo is financeable as early as possible in the transaction, preferably before a purchase offer is submitted, by assessing the building’s financial health through a “condo questionnaire” to determine if it meets the lender’s guidelines for a “warrantable” condo. The lender typically requests this directly from the condo association. It’s important to note that you were not my client and I did not have insight into the discussions or decisions made on your side of the transaction. I am not a mortgage professional and cannot speak to which lenders will or will not provide a loan on a particular building. Nowhere in any marketing did I expressly state that any lender would or would not approve a loan to purchase a unit in the building. All parties in this transaction were under the assumption your lender could finance this through a conventional loan as others in the building have in the past. Your lender did not request the condo questionnaire until approximately one month after you were under contract. The appraiser they hired also incorrectly noted on the appraisal report the mixed use nature of the building, considering it not adverse, only for the lender to later determine that it was, the day before your mortgage commitment date (not the day before closing). This put everyone involved in a negative predicament. You being “functionally without a place to stay” and having incurred “financial damages” as you describe, leads me to believe that you notified your place of residence that you were moving out before having a condition-free commitment letter from your lender, which is not advisable. My commitment to upholding my fiduciary duty (to the seller in this instance) is unwavering, and my client can attest to the high level of service and professionalism I provide. When we learned your lender would not approve the loan we began working with another lender to see if they would approve financing on the unit for you to try to make this all work for everyone - until we received a request to terminate from your attorney. It’s worth mentioning that during the course of this sale I upheld the code of ethics by which I am bound to, by treating all parties (yourself included) honestly and fairly. I am a dedicated professional who for the past ten years has held leadership positions within the real estate industry trade associations and have worked hard at the state level to help protect private home ownership rights. I am sorry that this experience has caused frustration, and I encourage you to work closely with experienced home buyer’s representatives: agent, attorney, lender--who can provide you with tailored guidance and representation to help you navigate future prospective properties. I wish you the best in finding the right property and achieving your homeownership goals.