How to Vet a Finance Brokerage

[Michael Taylor]

Hello Bigger Pockets family, I need your help.  I found this great small multifamily property and I have an agreed upon price with the seller, my broker is working on the contract now.  There is a finance company that I have been in communications with for several weeks that seem legitimate, but I am wanting to do my research and confirm that they are real.  With the internet these days, a company can look and sound big but could be a scam operation out of someone's basement.  I Google map the address of the business, and yes it is a nice southern California home (I guess this is ok, as I work out of my house as well).  What can I do to vet this finance company?  The contact I deal with emails me, but doesn't communicate via phone much.  We talked only twice and he has some kind of foreign accent, and it reminds me of the time some Nigerians tried to scam me when I sold my boat (you know the guys that will send you a cashier's check at or above your asking price, but has to have the boat shipped because they are in the military).  

Is this normal and legitimate:

LOAN ORIGINATION/UNDERWRITTING FEE: The borrower(s) shall make a one-time deposit of 2%, ($8,400.00), which is a
compulsory and mandatory deposit to cover all cost incurred on the loan process and it is expected that once this fee is
made, the loan funds are wired within 48 hours maximum time interval. Therefore, the total funds to be wired to the
borrower(s) shall be $420,000.00

So they want me to send them the fee first before closing.  Is this legitimate?

Thanks in advance.