Does anyone have experience or feedback using Flexfund through Guardian and ISN? They offer a pay at closing option, which costs the client $50. I signed up with them and during my onboarding I asked specifically if I could toggle it on & off in the settings. I was told yes but I tried to toggle it off and got a message that I should fill out a form and they would respond within 24 hours.
Curious.
What relationship with them are you trying to toggle off, specifically?
The service is offered automatically as part of the payment processing. I wanted to toggle it off until I heard back from them because I left them both a voicemail and an email on Friday and didn’t get a response. Maybe they were understaffed due to a vacation or it being Friday but I had a client sign up for it and then change his mind and I wanted to have more details when I see him on Monday.
Thank you for clarifying for me. I am not familiar with the companies or offering.
So it is an offering (payment at closing) that you agreed to offer your clients electronically?
And once your client agrees/signs up for payment at closing, they (or you) are not able to change your minds and stop the payment at closing? Do they, do they promise to, cut the inspector a check immediately after the inspection?
Let us know if they respond in 24 hours and what they say.
I’m going to reach out to them again on Monday, before I see my client. I assumed that they wouldn’t be available over the weekend and I’ll update the topic then.
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Nope.
I use ISN and Guardian, but I’ve never been interested in pay-at-close options.
I think the fees are insane.
Not offering has not hindered my growth at all.
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What happens if they don’t buy the house and don’t go to closing? How do you get paid? I get payment at or before the inspection. If they don’t buy the house, it is not my concern as I already got paid.
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I get paid like normal, as soon as the flexfund agreement is signed, the transaction is processed like a credit card, which usually takes 2 days to clear in my bank. The client has to enter a CC and if the transaction doesn’t close, the CC is charged. That was an obvious question that flexfund clarified for me on the initial call.
It doesn’t cost the client anything, they charge you the $50.00
Passing that fee to the client would be illegal, as you are not a financial institution and there for not allowed.
You pay the fee as it brings you more income, as the client is more likely to add more services to the inspection. But if you don’t offer additional services there is no benefit to you.
And why toggle it off, keep it on, not many clients will use it, but it is likely to bring you business if agents know you offer pay at closing.
You are completely wrong, the cc is only charged if it doesn’t go to closing, otherwise they get a check from the closing company.
You need to read how it actually works.
That’s pretty much exactly how I explained it, or how I thought I explained it.
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You could get all that information on your own without going through a third party, and costing anyone extra money.
Here are some documents for inspection payment at closing:
I don’t do the pay at close thing, but there are some benefits of using one of the service options if one is going to do it.
- You don’t take on any risk. You get paid at the time of inspection. The PAC service provider takes on the risk of either not closing, or failed cc payment. That’s why they charge the fee, to compensate for the risk of not getting paid.
- If you do it yourself, you may technically need a finance or lender license in your state if you are going to charge extra to clients who use the option. That’s because when you charge someone extra in exchange for paying later, it is viewed as a “finance” charge.
If you do it yourself there’s no need to charge extra.
Like you I do not accept payment at closing either as far as that goes.
Though I have a few times in years past. And I got their credit card number in advance just in case.
That’s true, but you take on extra risk of not getting paid. Also, sometimes closing doesn’t happen for 30+ days after the inspection, so you are losing the time value of that money. That’s why the PAC service providers charge a fee, for the extra risk, and finance charges.
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