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The good, the bad, and the ugly - discover what customers are saying about First Option Mortgage

Welcome to our customer reviews and complaints page for First Option Mortgage. We understand that making informed decisions about where to invest your time and money can be challenging, which is why we've created this platform for our community to share their honest feedback about their experiences with First Option Mortgage.

On this page, you'll find a comprehensive collection of reviews and complaints from real customers who have used First Option Mortgage's products or services. Our reviews are authentic and unbiased, providing you with a complete picture of the company, its products or services, and their customer service.

Whether you're considering doing business with First Option Mortgage, or you've already had an experience with them, our community's reviews and complaints will give you a valuable perspective on what to expect. Our goal is to help you make informed decisions about where to invest your time and money, and we hope that our platform will be a valuable resource for you.

Please feel free to browse our reviews and complaints and share your own experience with First Option Mortgage. Your feedback is an important part of our community and will help others make informed decisions.

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5:50 pm EST
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First Option Mortgage Lied to about the loan

I was in financial distress and needed to refinance my home, was told by loan officer that my application was Really looking good ! When I thought we were ready to close on the loan First Option Mortgage decided that my debt to credit ratio was too high. So I asked if I sold my truck with a payment of $550 per month would the deal go through? They said yes that would bring ratio down enough to complete the loan.I sold my truck, called them back with proof of the sale, and they still refused to complete the loan. So now I have no truck, no loan refi. and still no credit relief ! Horrible company, You must get everything in writing . [protected]@hotmail.com

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sharon abbott
Faribault, US
Feb 22, 2013 8:10 pm EST

I have been working with First Option Mortgage for almost a year trying to get a hose refinanced at a lower interest rate. Initially, the broker (or what ever he was) said that it should close within a few weeks, that went into a few months, and now it is approaching almost a year of them either giving promises or avoiding me. They set a "closing date" this past Thursday which was then moved to Friday, then to tomorrow but will not answer my phone calls to confirm. This "company" should be banned from existence because they are cruel, fraudulent, and keep giving people false hope and do not have the integrity and honesty to just say they can not help us. I would not suggest that anyone go to this so called mortgage company.

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First Option Mortgage Fraudulent charges

First Option Mortgage, LLC terminated me on July 21, 2008. Subsequently, I did not receive commissions on two pre-termination transactions. In addition, the company deducted $1, 300 in “employee expenses" and a Fed-Ex overnight fee of $10. The commissions total $2.400, resulting from $8, 000 in fees generated on two mortgage transactions. The total base amount owed to me thus comes to $3, 710.

In Indiana, failure to pay income when due (I.C. §22-2-9), and/or making of deductions that are not authorized by the employee or able to be deducted under the 13 limited categories permitted under Indiana law (I.C. §22-2-6) subjects employers to treble damages (three times the total amount due) plus the employee's attorneys' fees (I.C. §22-2-5). Consequently, I am pursuing the matter in court currently. As of October 21, 2008 we had to file the lawsuit in Marion County, Indianapolis IN do to the fact that we were told to “Go ahead and file the lawsuit by Kim Winslow, Corporate Executive to Kurt A. Nikolai, Partner and Owner" in a last ditch effort to resolve this matter. I should be able to recover nearly $12, 000 due to the failure to pay commissions and improper deductions, along with attorneys' fees that could easily amount to tens of thousands of dollars.

We are willing to settle the matter immediately for the payment of the principal amount due and of a reasonable attorney fee's thus far. Consequently, the matter is ripe for resolution still for something less than $5, 000. Along with that, we would anticipate willingness on First Option Mortgage, LLC to provide a positive letter of reference.

We have attempted to contacted Kurt A. Nikolai, Partner and Owner through mail, email, and phone to achieve a resolution and have had no response. If we do not achieve a resolution not only will we seek recovery for the foregoing amounts under Indiana law, but also due to the failure of the organization to properly remit the amounts it was obliged to pursuant to federal and state withholding requirements, including the 8% employer share under the Social Security and Medicare Acts. It also may be that Mr. Brown could pursue an equal rights claim under either or both Title VII and state law.

We are hopeful to be able to achieve an expeditious resolution along the lines proposed. Our effort is to compromise this dispute with First Option Mortgage, LLC how ever we have had no cooperation from any representative or Kurt A. Nikolai, Partner and Owner of the organization. In which it seems this matter will now be brought before a Judge in a court of law in the State of Indiana.

Note: We have all documentation in regards to the above referenced report.

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First Option Mortgage Awful company

First Option Mortgage RAISED our fees at closing with NO notification or authorization. We were told by Josh Fitzwater to close the loan and he would see what he could do.

In the beginning we were told we would have fees of $2, 600. All fees and schedules were listed in all the documentation that we signed. How ever the day we were to close we were asked to resign documents with higher fees totaling over $8, 000. This company tried to tell us they were a good company that they were not a broker and that they are a bank. So we felt like we made a good decision. I should have known when we went in to the appointment at 8888 Keystone Crossing, Ste. 900 Indianapolis, IN 46240 that we were about to be taken advantage of. I have closed on several loans in my 20 years of home ownership and I was not about to let them do this to me and my family.

We never ended up closing on this loan at First Option Mortgage. I would suggest if anyone decides to refinance or buy a home to consult with your local bank or credit union. BANKS AND CREDIT UNIONS DO NOT CHANGE FEES AT CLOSING. Further more I found out First Option Mortgage is a Broker according to the Secretary of the State here in Indiana. They wasted our time and money that we paid for an appraisal out of our own pocket. The appraisal First Option Mortgage had done we could not use because our home was over appraised by them by over $10, 000 and the bank said they could not use it. If we would not have listened to the loan officer from First Option Mortgage and just went with our bank it would have been the much better choice.

I am very thankful we did not close on that loan...

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Homeless in Atlanta
Atlanta, US
Feb 21, 2015 1:20 pm EST

Never, Never, Never use First Option. This company will still your money and house. We were at the closing table to see our current home as we were passing around the papers, I got a phone call from the lender saying to hold up on the closing. We were literally almost done, I had signed all my papers and was waiting until our buyer finished signing hers. We were supposed to close on our new home the following morning. The underwriters said they never knew we had s short sell almost 3 years ago. Well it's on my credit report. We should have never been sitting at a closing attorney's office. We ended up homeless and living in a rental property. We had a preapproval letter, put a contract on a home, put our home up for sale. First Option said their was nothing they could do. We had to get legal representation. So we will see. Please use this as a cautionary tale. First Option does bad business.

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Very Concerned Citize
Champaign, US
Jul 21, 2014 12:26 pm EDT

Former employee at First Option. Fitzwater is a complete fraud. His new commercials in Indianapolis are a joke. He may be the most immoral person I have ever met. I will never forget when he forced me to convince a customer to get a $400 appraisal, knowing full well her loan would never be approved due to her debt to income ratio (DTI) because she was helping her daughter pay for college. Josh told me to make her get the appraisal and then we could somehow manuever around the college loans her name was tagged to on her credit report. Well guess what... it was never approved and she was out $400. To him, $400 was nothing, because he's getting PAID. To this woman, $400 was everything. I quit 3 weeks later. DO YOURSELVES A FAVOR. GO DIRECTLY TO A BANK TO GET YOUR MORTGAGE. LESS FEES, LESS HASSLE.

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anonymous1234567889
, US
Jun 06, 2014 11:32 am EDT

Truley Dissatisfied,

"We started the whole process the beginning of March 2014 and as of May 2016 we still have not closed." Nice to meet someone from two years in the future. Who won the 2015 and 2016 Indy 500? Is Andrew Luck still our Quarterback? LOL just kidding! I think most of us don't trust brokers or banks now and days. It is like going to a car dealer anymore-- all about the sale with hidden fees and costs. I am glad to read the reviews and it helps to keep my eyes open as I get into this mess of refinancing.

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Truley Dissatisfied
Ingalls, US
May 16, 2014 12:44 pm EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

We worked with Nicole Lidester, Jarad Vinup, Brandon McDonald at the First Option Mortgage company in Indianapolis. We started the whole process the beginning of March 2014 and as of May 2016 we still have not closed. Between all of the incompetent people we dealt with all of them went on vacation and just pushed our paperwork off to the side. I would never recommend this company to anyone and the two realtor's that have worked with us the sellers and ours are going to DISCOURAGE anyone else they work with to use this company.

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bubbagumpshrimp
Lilburn, US
Nov 15, 2013 9:17 am EST

They may well be crooks. Most lenders have a little larceny in them. The problem is that we put them on a pedestal, especially banks and credit unions. Don't kid yourself, B's and CU's want to make every dime they can. They charge as much as they can get away with within the law and still be competitive. Buying a home is not for the simple minded. If you don't understand it, learn it. Or keep renting. Take responsibility for your own actions. But you are correct about one thing, banks don't have fees, but it is only because they have special relationships with government agencies to pay them. I know Santa pays his share and some banks are in bed with the Easter bunny. I have even heard a few companies have hooked up with the tooth ferry because he has an endless source of funds. Oh and yes, you really can buy a new car, finance it for 6 years and pay no interest on the money. Don't complain if you don' know what you are talking about. The big banks, insurance companies and other financial institutions have raped the American people for years, but why act surprised? It is the nature of what they do. They buy and sell a commodity, it just happens to be money. They are not charitable institutions. You are responsible when you don't educate yourself and shop for the best when you are buying and selling money.

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Danno2013
, US
Apr 24, 2013 3:13 pm EDT

Tried to refinance with them about a year ago and worked with that Scott Swensen guy. He is horrible. Little to my knowledge I'm still finding little trinkets of fees like they want expedited payoff amounts which I was charged $30 a piece for. They are horrible to work with.

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Jlbarker
Clayton, US
Feb 01, 2013 1:01 pm EST

I wish I would have read this before I wasted my money on an Appraisal. I was told from the beginning that they could refinance my home and I laid out the money to get the appraisal. Plus money to fix the house because they wouldn't give me a full appraisal until work was done. Then after everything was said and done my appraisal came back way to low. Now I am out over $1000 and now loan. I would not recommend this company and would tell everyone that I know to not use this company. They are just out to get your money. I am a single mom and didn't have the money to spend in the first place. They assured me that I would get the money back at closing and then not have a payment for two months. That is the only reason I put the money out in the first place. I went over every problem and situation that I have come up with and was told it wouldn't be a problem. I got tones of excuses and in the end was told I couldn't get the loan for reasons I can to them with in the first place that I was told wouldn't be a problem. I don't trust this company and you shouldn't either.

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Pissed and deflated
Salt Lake City, US
Nov 15, 2012 2:49 pm EST

First Option mortgage is the worst lender I've encountered. I have sold real estate for 7 years and have never had such a horrible experience. DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY! I have been lied to on an ongoing basis. Once their lies have run out they will blame you even if when are not their client! DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY! Worst lender experience ever! I have worked with all sizes and types. This is by far THE WORST LENDER EVER!

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katluvsdogs
Ranburne, US
Nov 06, 2012 3:27 am EST

I thought this was a reputable company so we applied for a refi with them and was told everything was good when they had their appraiser come out he was totally unknowledgeable about the houses in Alabama because he was from Ga.. We waited over two weeks for them to tell us they couldn't find any comparable houses so they shot our appraisal low and we did not get the loan after over a month of waiting. The bad part is we had our house appraised three years ago and it appraised $30000 higher then so what's up. They need to get a more professional appraisal co. working for them and care more about their customers.

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indygal
Martinsville, US
Oct 15, 2012 3:46 pm EDT

I would NEVER recommend First Option Mortgage. After working with them for nearly an entire year, I have all the same complaints as listed above. I am completely exhausted by this company and of course they will never respond to your negative feed back or when you personally call them out on the trauma they have caused you and your family. They make zero effort to reconcile any issues and they are not straight with you from the beginning. They disappear from communication after you have thrown away money on appraisals, inspections and other costs. Do not take advice from this company to save your own sanity!

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