1 post from July 2009

I don't need to remind anybody that these are some difficult times.  Just like many others, all I wanted was a place to call my own.  Not being saavy about the housing market, stocks, bonds and other financial investments, the one thing I knew was that owning a house was better than renting.  And, like most people, I did my research and found a place just before the real estate prices went through the roof.  I mean, I barely got by just under the wire!  The condo I was interested in already had a buyer but the deal fell through and I was the next to bid.  The sellers were so worried that the place wouldn't sell so they accepted my counter-offer.  Yay for me.

My new (to me) home isn't exactly the Taj Mahal, but it's comfortable and suits the needs of me and my family.  Because I'm always looking for a good deal and wanted to pay off the principal in addition to just the intererest, I decided to refinance a couple of years ago.  After some number crunching, a nifty, new job, and some creative checkbook balancing (heh), I was finally able to meet that goal.  I've always had good credit and paid my bills on time.  I set up my mortgage payments, as well as other monthly bills, to be paid electronically through my bank.  I always wanted to cover my bases and make sure nothing fell through the cracks.

Unfortunately, eight months into the nifty, new job, I got laid-off.  This was the beginning of the "economic recession/depression of the 00's" as I like to call it.  What does one do in this situation?  I immediately started the Unemployment Insurance process going, but that wasn't going to take care of my $3K a month mortgage!  Thankfully, I received severance pay along with any vacation time accrued but it wasn't that much since I hadn't been there a whole year yet.  The combination of all the emotions -- the shock, the WTF-ness of it all and the feeling of what-the-hell-do-I-do-now really made it difficult to think of the future.

Going into full "job-hunting" mode, I treated my search as a full time job.  Minus the paycheck.  As much as unemployment (benefits) helped, it wasn't enough and it wasn't going to last forever.  I needed a plan.  After using the severence funds, I turned to my savings account to maintain my mortgage payments.  I guess at first I was a bit optimistic about finding a job sooner rather than later.  Unfortunately, I ended up digging into my savings for about 5 months, and when things looked bleak on the job-hunting front, I needed a backup plan.

Unbeknownst to me at the time, I could have discussed certain "options" earlier with Chase, but I guess I didn't want to alarm them so soon with my predicament.  After all, this is the first time I've been in this situation.  After month 5 of unemployment, I decided I couldn't continue to pay the full mortgage each month so I decided to pay most of it...just not all.  At least I was making an honest, sincere effort and I hoped that they would notice.

Dealing with Chase under the most noblest of circumstances was a challenge in itself.  I first inquired about my "options" in January.  I heard nothing back in the couple or so weeks they said they'd get back to me so I checked back again a month later.  I had to call several times between January and April in order to get any answers.  I should have known this was a bad sign.  It could have been due to the fact that Chase was busy trying to acquire WaMu, because they sure weren't too concerned with my case.  The first time I checked back, I was told that someone was reviewing my account.  The next time I checked back, I was told that my request (for a loan modification) was "rejected" due to the fact that I didn't have adequate income (well, DUH!); the next time I checked I was told that my account was still in review, and the last time I checked I was told I'd be receiving an information-gathering packet in the mail. 

By this time, I finally found another job (though paying a lot less) and felt hopeful about getting things back to normal...with a slight modification, of course.

The paperwork I had to fill out was just as extensive as the refi I had done only months before.  During this forebearance, I was given a set amount to pay for the 3 months this process was going to take.  What killed me is that they required payment in the form of a cashier's check or money order.  I had been making payments through my bank up until this point and everything seemed just fine and NOW they want special payment procedures.  Ugh!  Really Chase?  I'm going to start writing bad checks NOW?  Really?  Whatever...I figured I'd play their game in order to show that I'm sincere in my efforts to resolve this dilemma.  Before each payment was due, I'd make a copy of the letter and send the cashier's check or money order via Fed Ex (so I can track it) to the special address given.  I did this diligently for the 3 months.  At the end of the 3 months, I was to send more paperwork providing tax info, income statements, bank statements, assets, etc., etc., etc.  During this time, I even went to a foreclosure seminar in hopes to avoid such a scenario.  They had representatives from several mortgages companies present and each homeowner had an opportunity to spend some time with these representatives to go over any questions, etc. 

When I met with the Chase representative, I brought a whole portfolio full of all my paperwork from my first contact in January through gathering all the information requested after the forebearance period.  The rep was quite taken aback by the progress I had made and said that all I needed to do was fax the information to the contact in the letter and things should get rolling for me.  She even said that I could bring the completed paperwork to their branch office and they would make sure it was complete and fax it in for me when the time came.  Turns out I didn't need to go far because my local neighborhood WaMu was now a Chase branch.  

As per the instructions, before the 3 months forebearance was up, I faxed all the info they required to Chase Headquarters for their review.  I put my loan number on all the documents and had a representative fax it for me from their office in California to the special Chase office in Ohio as indicated in the letter. I wanted to make sure there was no room for error and that I covered absolutely everything that was required.  The next step was the waiting...

Because I'm the type that needs to budget and plan ahead for my monthly expenses, I really needed to know what my new (if any) payment was going to be.  So, three weeks after I faxed the tons of paperwork, I decided to be proactive and call Chase to follow up.  After all this time and effort, one would think that in bringing up my account number, the whole history of my dealings in the past few months would pop up and speak volumes.  Unfortunately, that was not the case.  This is what actually happened on Monday when I called:

8:45 am - Called number on forebearance letter (Mortgage Assistance Dept.), Kristy answered.  After explaning the reason for my call (not to mention providing loan number, SS#, phone # and promise of first born), she determined that I needed to call the Loan Modification Dept. and proceeded to give me that number as well as transfer my call.

Loan Modification Dept. - Spoke to Amanda.  Again, after giving my name, rank and serial number, she determined I needed to speak to the Forebearance Program Dept. and proceeded to give me the number and transfer me.

Forebearance Program - Spoke with Mark.  Again, after providing my loan #, SS#, phone # and explaining the nature of my call, Mark decided that what I needed was to speak with the Home Owners' Assistance Dept.  He gave me the number and transfered me.

Home Owners' Assistance Dept - Spoke to Lafayette.  By this time, I had my loan # memorized, provided the SS#, phone #, etc. and gave my spiel.  And you know, much to my non-surprise, Lafayette suggested I talk to someone in Loss Mitigation.

Loss Mitigation - Spoke with Nina.  At this point, I tried my best to not show my complete and utter frustration.  I deserve an Oscar award for maintaining my composure.  Of course, Nina wasn't able to help me.  But guess who could?

Yup, the first number I called -- the Mortgage Assistance Dept.  I can't remember who I spoke with but they couldn't help me either and said to call back at the end of the month.  So much for follow-through.

When I arrived home, what do I get in the mail is a letter from Chase suggesting that they could assist me in a loan modification.  WTF?!  Don't these people/departments/computers ever share information or talk to each other!?  How long have I been in this process now?!  Unbelievable.

But wait, there's more.

I also received a notice that a certified letter was waiting for me.  I called the post office and asked them to deliver it again and someone would sign for it (on the dotted line...twice).  I was hoping this was the letter I was waiting for (discussing my new loan plan), and that the earlier letter was some sort of fluky oversight.

The letter finally came today.  The subject?  A warning that my loan is delinquent and that I need to take action in order to prevent foreclosure. 

There are just no words to describe how infuriating this has been.  The saga continues as I get on the phone first thing in the morning and yell at a few people as well as pay a visit to their branch office to continue yelling at some more people who maybe didn't hear it the first time.

As soon as I am able, I will be taking my business elsewhere.

Buyer beware. 

UPDATE: 10-19-09

I decided to add this update to the current blog so that I can keep my documentation all together in case the occasion arises when I have to forward/print this for legal reasons.  Oh yes, it's coming to that.

So, after receiving the certified letter reminding me that my loan was delinquent (nevermind the fact that I had been working with the bank on rectifying the whole situation), I called their special-toll-free number to yell at someone.  Turns out they "automatically" send those out to everyone and anyone who falls under the delinquency period regardless of any active steps they may have taken to work on the situation.  Well, great.  This from a corporation with big bucks, and more big bucks from our President in order to help folks like me, but they can't get their $#*% together enough to program their computer to know who is working on a modification and who isn't.  The person I spoke with advised me to just "ignore" it since it obviously didn't apply to me.  Well, if their high-tech automated system is going to "automatically" send me these harrassing notices every month, does that mean that after a certain period of time, especially if I don't respond, they will also "automatically" send Marshalls to my house where I'll discover a huge padlock on my door? 

UPDATE: 11-23-09

Because I wanted this whole ordeal to be over with, I called Chase again to find out the status of my request.  Mind you, my original forbearnce plan was from April - July.  I called in late July to let them know the paperwork to review my situation was on its way and I needed to know what to do about August's payment.  I was told to go ahead and continue to pay the forbearance amount until I heard back from them.  Good enough.  However, because I didn't want to find out that I've "fallen through the cracks" or get in trouble for not following up, I (like an idiot, in retrospect) followed up at the end of October.  In doing the math, I'd been on the forbearance plan for six months at this point with no word from Chase.  And in bein proactive, I opened up a whole can of worms.

First of all, the moron I spoke to was more of a "collections" guy instead of a "modifications" guy.  Due to the previous games of phone tag I'd gone through, I made sure to ask if the person on the other end if he/she was with the correct department.  This guy said he was.  I think he lied.  I explained to him that I'd been working with a forbearance plan for six months and that I was just following up as to the status of my modification request.  He asked me a few questions to see what kind of program I was qualified for.  And then he went into "collections" mode.  Immediately, he told me that I wasn't qualified because I wasn't making enough money (no DUH) and that I needed to cut back on expenses.  I don't know what kind of expenses he was talking about other than food, utilities and HOA expenses but he seemed to think that I was living too high on the hog for my situation.  I didn't need cable?  Really?  My cable company and internet provider are within the same group.  No one can watch TV without a cable these days, and I don't even have good cable, I have basic.  I can also argue that I need internet access for work.  He was just going on and on and I didn't want to deal with him at this point.  He was going to send me yet more paperwork to fill out and return.  Deja vu.

Dealing with this clown bothered me so much, I decided to call my local Chase office (which is what I should have done in the first place, I know) to talk to a real, live human being.  During the foreclosure seminar I attended, I met with a Chase representative who gave me her card so I called her number.  Unfortunately, she was out on vacation but I spoke with another representative, Jim, who walked me through the (umpteenth) application process.

After getting all the necessary information, copies of the necessary information and files of the necessary information, I sent in the paperwork.  Not two weeks later, I received a letter from Chase asking me to fill out their form (I've lost count at this point) and send it back.  I called Jim and showed him the letter.  He said to go ahead and fill that out as well.  I already had all the info in triplicate, so it was easy.

I sent it in, fingers & toes crossed, hoping that all my efforts, all the diligence I've shown, would somehow clearly illustrate that I'm earnest at making this work.  I received the latest correspondence from Chase dated November 11, 2009.  My request for a modification has been declined due to the fact that "Borrower does not meet eligibility requirements."  I was stumped. 

I sent Jim a message telling him of the latest news, and still had not heard back.  I guess my next recourse is seeking legal help.  It it my wish that someone would audit Chase and find out what exactly their parameters are in qualifying someone for a modification.  Do I need to make less money?  Do I need to give up all my utilities, get kerosene lamps and get used to cold showers?  Should I start sending my son to a soup kitchen?  The whole thing is ridiculous and I'd really like to know what it would take in their eyes.  I wonder if this is what President Obama had in mind.