First International Bank & Trust

Reviews

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  What a terrible experience! I should say that I was referred by a good friend that got a loan from them and had a good experience. I was expecting a smooth process both based on my friend's experience and my history with loans. I am 840 credit, annual income better than the property value, and 25% down. John Edwards was not helpful and tried to charge in excess of 8k in fees on a real estate lot loan that I would have less than 6 months!! It would have been cheaper and less painful to get a loan from a loan shark. A week after expressing discontent at the insane costs (and my decision to pay cash for the property) an appraisal was apparently ordered and $325 was demanded. John insisted that I had agreed to the appraisal (signed in my packet) so I asked for copies of authorization of the appraisal and was refused multiple times. I asked if I would be able to use the appraisal for a future construction loan and he refused to even answer that question... It was a silly interaction and very unprofessional on his side. To top it off, apparently asking for copies of my authorization made him mad because just 4 days after being notified of the payment for appraisal, he gave me 4.5 hours to pay it or take me to collections. This is a company at the top of the avoid at all costs list! Despite many emails back and forth, John continues to refuse to provide a copy of this document. Ironically had he told me he had ordered it without me authorizing in order to expedite I would have felt compelled to pay for it. Had it applied to a future loan, that would have been a bonus. At this point I believe he has outright lied about it and threatened me (all communication via email, and have to provide to anyone wanting) not only with collections, but also with a threat to share personal information "when my business(es) come up in conversation". I never attacked this man, and kept all interaction professional. I'm shocked at his insane responses and would encourage any and all to steer clear.
  By Brandon Johnson, November 18, 2017

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