Summit Funding Inc – Irvine Branch

So this is my first time buying a new home and I was pretty stressed out dealing with the Previous Lender that gave me the run around, they didn’t promptly return calls and most of the time when I asked about a certain question, he would always give me the answer by saying, I need to check with my manager etc and I will call you back. Long story short, I put the initial deposit down, had to re-​fax documents twice because they misplaced it, ultimately getting Denied after about a little over a month process, which was really irritating because I felt like I have spent so much time and felt like all the issues that I had and told them upfront, they said could easily get resolved, but in the end it didn’t.
The sellers then Referred me to Summit Funding, to a gentleman by the name of Randy Orchen with Summit Funding. I believed I called him on a Friday or Saturday with a quick brief introduction, told him my situation and by the following Tuesday/​Wednesday, all the paper work was already done and I couldn’t believe it, because the prior Lender that tried to work on my Loan took 2 weeks to get to where we were in a matter of 2 business days.
I’ll be honest and I went on Unilocal to check them as well. I read some scary reviews about them selling your loan etc. so I asked Randy, and he told me that they do In House funding and they broker your loan which made perfect sense, because ultimately … I just need the Loan approved and to get the home.
The first 2 business days working with Randy was amazing and fast, no phone tagging, he quickly picked up the calls or got back to me right if he didn’t answer, he got back to me within 15 minutes and let me know what to do next. What I like about certain questions that I had, he gave me an answer to guide me on what to do next, he didn’t have to go ask a manager to find out, then tell me, which is terrible for me because I am anxious to get things done, not sit around and wait. So like most individuals working, it was tough to take time off from work to get the necessary documents that they needed, I would efax documents around 9PM — 10PM and attach certain questions that I was unclear. I would expect an answer the following day and then get an answer or how to resolve the issue, but surprisingly, I got a reply within 5 — 15 minutes and we took care of all the paper work that evening instead of a span of 3 days which was amazing to me.
After the issues were resolved he said now we need to wait for the underwriter. Now this is where I got a bit scared because I haven’t heard back from them like 2 – 3 days and was like Oh crap, oh crap. But, before I proceed my time frame was like this.
8÷28÷2015 — 11/​05/​2015 Previous Lender, the Closing Date was 10/​30/​2015 but I was strung along saying they might be able to do this or that with my case, but couldn’t.
10/​31/​2015 — 11/​30/​2015 Contacted Randy Orchen from Summit Funding and later was given the deadline of 11/​30/​2015 from the Sellers. I was a bit scared because of the previous experience I had with the previous Lenders working on the Loan.
So now waiting for this underwriter have me scared because I didn’t hear anything back yet, then I got the devastating call saying I need to put more down and might have to adjust the paper work and in my mind I was like OMG same issue. This was probably now like the 11/​13/​2015 and I am like pulling my hair out, stressing myself to meet the criteria. I was also stressed because I will most likely lose 4 business days due to Thanksgiving and in my mind I didn’t think I could make the 11/​30/​2015 Closing date. Monday rolls around 11/​16/​2015, I call them asking, I haven’t received the new paper work, what do I need to do, I am just sitting and waiting, and I told them I needed to close before the 30^th and with Thanksgiving coming up, I am afraid we will lose days. They told me not to worry, this will most likely get done before the 30^th so you will be fine.
Another anxious night comes around thinking to myself, OK, so if the underwriter writes the new terms and then we need to sign and then wire and then etc etc I have about 8 days left. Tuesday comes around, first thing in the morning check email, nothing, stressed again, I took my daughter to school and I got a text message that said Congratulations on 11/​16/​2015. Me with my negative thinking, no you guys are wrong, I was suppose to get the new terms and sign, there must be a mistake. There was no mistake, I got approved on 11/​16/​2015 then I had to sign and record on Thursday that week on 11/​18/​2015, got the Keys to the new home on Friday 11/​17/​2015 and am writing this review from my new Home on Thanksgiving Day.
My apologies for all the grammatical error, Thanks Randy, your team was very diligent and fast. Here is his contact if you need someone working on your Side of the Loan. (949) 689‑4845
I know my case was also very difficult, but you managed and gave me a new expectation for what I expect when I purchase a 2^nd home. Thanks!

I’ve really struggled with whether or not to leave a negative review, because Brian did introduce me to my realtor, who was AMAZING, in the end I closed 6 days early (the absolutely only positive part of this experience) and Brian called me to apologize for what I had to deal with, stating that he would use my feedback to improve the way they communicate within the office. I hope that happens. But honestly as a first-​time homebuyer, I would NOT want someone who is in my shoes to deal with the issues I had to deal with, and I feel that I have a duty to share my experience.
Brian was great at the beginning, explaining everything in detail and making me feel confident that I was in the right place financially to be buying a home. Once I was passed off to his team though, it was just miscommunication after miscommunication. It started with them putting the wrong purchase price on my documents, and telling me to sign them anyway (what?!) and any time I talked to Erica via email, there were contridictory statements, loads of mispellings and grammatical errors (making me feel like there was a serious lack of professionalism), and the one email I sent requesting that everything else be done in-​office due to the miscommunications was completely ignored.
In addition, Erica on two seperate occasions requested documents I’d already provided and then seemed to think it was funny when she realized she had them all along. Her phone calls always involved her giggling like this whole situation was amusing, and her emails always ended with a smiley face as if that was supposed to make everything okay. No professionalism.
There were also 3 separate members of their team that were asking for the same information from my employer for employment verification and she gave them EVERYTHING she could possibly think of and they kept telling her what she was providing was wrong, or «not adding up» (my HR Manager is also an accountant, I assure you the numbers were correct). This went on for WEEKS before she told me what was happening because she was afraid it would affect me getting my loan. When I expressed my displeasure about this to Summit, the response I got from Brian was «Oh, employers don’t usually tell employees that.» Well when you have my HR manager panicking because she thinks SHE’S done something wrong and is going to be the reason I don’t get my loan, yeah she’s gonna tell me!
I was new at this, obviously, and I was made to feel as if I should understand everything that was happening. Not one part of this process was stress-​free. When it was over I was more relieved than excited. This is very sad… nobody should feel that way at the close of their escrow… they should be thrilled!
My last straw, and the reason I decided to go ahead and leave a negative review, is that I’ve just recieve my FIFTH notice from Summit Funding asking me to sign up for mortgage insurance, even though I got a no-​MI loan. If I wanted it, I would have said so. I’m so tired of getting communications from them, especially trying to sell me something, and am RELIEVED that they sold my loan to another company so after I make my first payment I won’t have to deal with them any further.

I’m aware of what I signed. My problem is that my loan was sold to another company in less than 5 days of closing. I have contacted Brian prior to writing my review, much like your response to my review, he puts the responsibility on me: «well, you knew… well, you signed…»
So I just want to point out for your prospective clients in the future that they shouldn’t trust summit funding will be there for you after you get your keys to your new house. Also the interest rate given to me was 4.5% in March 2014, and I have excellent credit. Because I trusted Brian so much, I didn’t even shop around. Anyway, Brian is a professional at getting your trust and then blame you for trusting him in the first place.

I’m a notary who works closely with Mark Martinez to help facilitate the closing of his loans. He does a wonderful job of communicating with his clients about every aspect of their loan and what to expect. This makes for a very smooth loan signing and borrowers who are clearly informed of what their loan consists of and what is expected. He’s an excellent loan officer and loves helping people to understand and get through the loan process with the best results possible! Jenifer

My wife and I came to mark as young professionals looking to buy our first condo. We were not prepared for the level of compassion and knowledge that Mark brought to our meeting but left that first appointment feeling completely comfortable with the loan process and the requirements/​qualification that came along with it. Mark personally kept in touch with us throughout the next two weeks and called after hours to congratulate us on qualifying for the loan that we needed. I would definitely recommend Mark to everyone I know and already have on several occasions so far.

Brian Kimball and Erica McPeck-​Thorson were amazing! The process to get us a loan was not an easy one with many speedbumps along the way from us going from pre approved to not approved and third party companies not cooperating with the process. However, they gave us a game plan and even when we made a mistake, they still managed to find us a loan for our new home with an interest rate that was much lower than anticipated. They were also able to get our documents submitted to escrow with seconds to spare after working hard and pushing for it. They answered all our questions and we’re incredibly patient and encouraging and incredibly knowledgeable throughout the process.

Brian Kimball and his team at Summit Funding are some of the most professional, organized, competent lenders I have ever worked with. Every step of the way they updated us on the status of the loan, the timeline, and what to expect next. Brian is extremely responsive, and readily available for questions at any time. I would rank him in the top 3 of lenders I have worked with, and I’ve worked with many over the years. He knows his stuff and guess what– he closed the loan ON TIME and met every deadline on time as well.
A complete pleasure to work with!

I am actually surprised by some of the comments I read below. Brian Kimball did a refinance for my home loan back in 2013, and he made such a lasting impression that I came back here two years later to post on his Unilocal page. His entire team was quick and responsive. He explained to me market trends to find the optimal time to lock-​in a rate, and even showed me different options where I could close without having to bring cash in for costs. And he explained to me I would, and have, highly recommended him to others.

So the bank finally received the check from Summit. I hope I never have to deal with Summit again… ever…never never ever. Also Pahoua Yang of Summit who was the person I had been speaking with via phone was great. Calm, patient and a woman of her word. Thanks to her.

Mark Martinez and Lindsey Magana were absolutely amazing. They got into the trenches with us and fought for our loan approval the entire way. It would not have happened without them! We had an incredibly difficult loan package with many moving parts. I don’t think we would have acquired the house of our dreams without them.
Mark’s belief and commitment to God and His direction really shined through.
Thank you!