It is a national lender who services the loan and she wants to list the property with a broker.

A big problem I see is people exchanging trying to use their attorney or real estate broker to hold the funds.With a few exceptions all of these are considered disqualified parties:A close family member or a controlled corporation,partnership,or trust.OREmployee,attorney accountant,investment banker or broker,real estate agent or broker.If you use these people you can get disqualified from the exchange and create a taxable event.You have to use a proper QI or years later you can get a nice surprise from the IRS.Some clients have asked me and I tell them they need to place the funds and the whole process with a proper QI.No legal advice

Kevin Barker Is the seller a licensed real estate broker/agent?

I think the problem is you are seeing Multifamily rebounding in most markets and the buyers have blinders on.I always enjoy talking to other brokers.One in particular I talk to every once in awhile.He is in Georgia and has been a broker since 1960 (14 years before I was born!!).

I have friends here (also agents/brokers) that are using a local custodian here, but from what I've learned so far I think they are doing things that if audited would cause them some grief.

Ask some brokers as well as banks and credit unions.

Have you tried a mortgage broker?

I would suggest working with a mortgage broker and looking at all 3 bureaus to see where all of the damage is.

There are a lot of banks that will now do FHA loans immediately, so ask around to a couple loan officers or brokers and find a bank or two that will do an FHA loan without any time restriction; most of the regional banks will do these, but even big banks like Wells Fargo are now doing them.

Sean Don't let the prices scare you, a deal is a deal, you have to find them of course and they are not falling off the trees like the old days back in the 50's but they are there.As a broker and investor in the Bay Area since I turned 16 I have done deals from one end to the other, from Santa Rosa to Gilroy and From Stockton to the Pacific.