Wall of Shame

NonTisk, Tisk

Recently I wrote a post called “How to Cash Your Home Owners Insurance Claim Check”. Little did I know at the time that post would be destined to become one of the most commented and read on my site.

It was those comments that made me realize that there are a lot of frustrated consumers and some really awful mortgage lenders.

Since the near collapse of  US Financial and Real Estate Markets of 2008 there have been a plethora of regressive legislation to come out of of the 111th US Congress in response.  This round of laws like all legislation began well intended but what emerged into law in this loan officers opinion is some of the worse legislation in our country’s history.

These laws have caused many a lender, underwriter  and appraiser to act far more cautiously than is prudent and to sometimes abandon common sense in order to forgo the slightest hint of wrong doing. This is because the laws not only dictate how business is to be done but also prescribe harsh penalties to those who violate them whether wittingly or not.

If you are experiencing or have experienced lousy service from your mortgage lender, loan officer, processor, underwriter, appraiser or real estate agent please use this space to share from your your experience so that others can be saved a similar experience and there was an A-hah moment, please be sure to let my readers know.

 

91 Comments on “Wall of Shame

  1. Home Pointe Financial- Michigan. September 2018, Hurricane Florence hit North Carolina. Our home in Hampstead had over seven feet of flood waters in the yard, “only” four and a half feet inside the house. Consider looking around your house from floor to two inches above light switches… every single item gone, thrown to the curb, soaked and mold filled. We have flood insurance. As soon as we were capable of entering the house, so did the insurance adjuster. Their help and efficiency was spot on. However, the checks had to be sent to the mortgage company, Home Pointe Financial, out of Ann Harbor, Michigan. It is now August 2019. I have been sent one dispersement check. Every single step has been months of calls, emails, and additional hoops. Every single hoop I jump, requires three more, that are as if new and improved hoops. I am requesting one third of the insurance payment at a time, so far one third has been sent. Their inspector has inspected saying we are 40% complete. I requested the second one on June 24, 2019. I called on 7/2/19 and was told the information was with a manager waiting for the check to be cut. On 7/22/19, I was told the information must have been over looked, but she was sending it right away to the manager. On 8/2/19, I was told I needed to send receipts for the first dispersement to prove how the money had been spent. They Sent Their Own Inspector who took pictures and reported that we were 40% complete. Eleven and a half months later, I want indoor plumbing. I want a kitchen. I want a shower. I want a real, flushable toilet. Meanwhile, I have made every single mortgage payment. I want my home repaired and do not understand why Home Pointe Financial would want anything less than that. They proclaim to want to have it repaired correctly, but in almost a year, it is still unlivable.
    I need help to determine what my next step is with Home Pointe Financial, so my home may be repaired, in a timely fashion.

  2. My husband and I recently moved to the Dallas area the end of March, 2015. We’re currently living in Glenn Heights. Due to the last couple of storms and rain our roof was damaged. We filled a report to the insurrance in June, 2016 and was approved to repair damamges. We hired the contractor on June 28th, 2016. After all repair was completed, the check was sent to us but due to the fact that it was over $10,000 we had to send it to the mortgage company for signature. It’s been almost 3 months and we are still not able to pay the contractor. Our mortgage company was AMCAP Mortgage LTD who was then bought out by Pacific Union Financial, LLC. We’ve not been about to talk to anyone on the phone and haven’t been contacted by anyone. We’ve called numerous times and emailed as well. If we do get ahold of someone, they either request more documents or we’re being told something that never happens. It’s getting frustrating because the work was completed, the inspected reported that the work was completed and now it’s been 3 months we have not been able to pay the contractor. With all that being said, is there something or someone we can contact to get the mortgage compnay to finalaize this process?

  3. US BANK Ins. Claims dept…..Damage to home 2011.US Bank given all paperwork.
    Repairs $28, 438.00 .
    Check sent to mortgage for
    $ 10,438.00 from insurance in 2012 to sign for reimbursment to us along with our receipts saying we had paid in full, all paperwork from our contractor stating we paid in full out of our pocket .
    Mortgage sent us all except $3100.00 until their inspection.Their inspection said all work completed. Is bank stated we would grieve final payment . We keep calling , faxing and emailing the same papers ,receipts, release of Leon paperwork from contractor etc. over and over . US Bank states each time we call they will research it and send us our money, however it’s 2016 and they haven’t released our funds to us. We were supposed to be reimburse the rest of money by insurance however there was a death in immediate family and spouse in multiple surgeries we were unable to persue the actual cost of repair with insurance at time. We were drained emotionally so we choked it up and just paid out of pocket all but 15,000.00 but our of that the $10438.00 check had to be signed by mortgage also. .QUESTION IS …how long can mortgage keep this money IN SURPLUS ESCROW ?
    Were not late on payments …they’ve actually lost our “mortgage account ” a few times …darn they keep finding it right ???really ..how do you loose that. ..don’t answer that one…They reffer us to different states for claims loss . They say their researching and will send funds in a few days ( their last inspection was August 2013) even though we already paid out way more than the $10k check and still haven’t received the last $3100.
    Not sure how to where to it what else to do since we’ve sent paperwork… letters …and such
    Any ideas would be a blessing
    Thanks

    • CORRECTION “Is bank stated we would grieve final payment ”
      I typed US bank stated we would get final payment …
      They must be hacking into my keyboard as I type.

    • Go to the courthouse and file a lawsuit as soon as they receive the papers I assure you, you will receive your money..

  4. WARNING: CITIFINANCIAL Could “Care Less” About Their Customers

    Before choosing Citifinancial as your mortgage company please listen to what is happening to us! We have been a Citifinancial customer/ borrower for years and have a good record with them. Our state of Texas was declared a Federal Disaster during the spring when we were hit by so many storms and floods. Germania, which is our wonderful insurance company for homeowners insurance, came right out and sent a check for damages which was made out to us and Citifinancial. We understood that they needed to monitor the repairs which happened in April and they would disburse the funds as we went along.

    It is now the end of July and have been trying to get repairs and reimbursements for almost 2 months. I need to mention that my 70 yr old mother is the homeowner and has paid over $4000.00 in repairs to prevent further damage and is now been told that “they don’t know when she will receive her money since it has to be approved”. Normal approval takes 3-5 business days and she has been asking for a month. In the meantime she has went without air conditioning in texas ‘summer time’ due to paying for repairs without realizing they weren’t going to send her the insurance money so in the meantime she cant afford to even fix her ac unit since her “emergency money” went to repairs. We have called daily now and finally today a “supervisor” was going to call back and they didn’t care about that either.

    My elderly mother will now contact FEMA since her home was located in the disaster area in the hopes of help. Personally I have never seen anything this tragic as what my mother has had to endure….she’s always paid her bills and done things the right way to get this slap in the face by a company who isn’t even putting money out of their pocket. I will warn as many as I can to find an alternate lender and not go with CITIFINANCIAL so this does not ever have to happen again. I was given the number to The State Commissioner of Banks and Insurance as a next step….hopefully they can help! What a nightmare….

  5. Problems with Bank of America
    We had a slab leak in our home and had damage to our flooring and walls. After dealing with our insurance agency, we finally got our check to make repairs to our home. They sent 2 checks, one was made out to my husband and the second one was made out to my husband and B of A (we have only a mortgage with them). The check was less than $6000. When we went to Bank of America to get it endorsed, we had to wait for help for over 45 minutes. Then when we finally got someone to help us, they didn’t know what to do with the check. After 2 branches and several phone calls, we were told we had to mail the check to their office. I was informed by 2 different people in the insurance claims department that I didn’t need to send any extra paperwork, I just had to write our account number on the check, and it should be endorsed and returned promptly. So I did as they said and a week later I received a letter from them saying I should send the check with paperwork from the insurance adjuster. I was very frustrated that they didn’t tell me this a week ago when I spoke with them. So I faxed the paperwork and I’m still waiting for the check. I will be calling for the 4th time to see what the status is of the check. They have poor costumer service (each person I speak with in the insurance claims department gives me a different answer.
    The claim process already took a long time for us to receive the check and Bank of America makes the process take even longer!!!

  6. Citi Financial Escrow Services…….. after my Chapter 13 is up you will never hear from us again….Guess a Insurance check of $5500.00 will pay for that Vacation that me and my wife have wanted for 12 years, while our home sit’s in ruin from a water leak.
    Seriously, sometimes you all need to do what’s right and release the funds, but no, easier to stick to policy…. Janice Cook and Escrow Services of Citi Financial apparently feel that we would rather sit in moldy floors with the possibility of illness so they can dictate the repairs.
    P.S. Citi you get ripped off and so do the consumers daily, I could actually do the repairs, which by the way were so grossly understated by the Adjusters , for far less and use the additional funds to repair other aspects of decay that were to minimal to file a claim…. But the kicker is we have no funds to get repairs started and you sit in judgment? I wish someone would’ve judged you lenders more harshly when the ceiling fell out of the lending industry. Shame on you…

  7. I’m in kind of tricky situation but I thought it would be resolved long ago. My house burned and my insurance company (foremost) has been excellent. My ex-wife is still on the mortgage despite a court order for her to be removed and quit deed claim being filed. So foremost insurance after receiving the divorce decree and quit claim forms did not put her names on the reimbursement checks . On the other hand Selene Finance has repeatedly put her name on it . They of course have recieved the divorce decree and quit deed claims forms on multiple occasions. After telling me she would be off the paperwork after a loan modification she was not removed. After sending my insurance claims checks in over 180 days ago they still won’t release the checks without her name on them . At this point insurance has payed out all the proper funds including depreciations as well , but Selene Finance will not release a dime. I call them every week multiple times and they always say the same thing management will call you back , and they never do . At this point A-1 / High Tech of Amarillo , Tx who did my contract work is fixing put to put a lien on my house. And frankly I don’t blame them they did excellent work and they deserved to be paid. At the same time though me and my children will be out on the street . I’ve heard that this is a common practice of companies to sit on insurance claims money to profit off of interest. It just shocks me that they would let a family be homeless rather than release money on repairs that are 100% complete. At this point I’m calling Selene Finance every 30 minutes and there management has not been available yet. Even if I do talk to them they will just say it’s a corporate issue out of their control.

  8. I have a loan that started with Citi Mortgage, sold to Green Tree, then to DiTech. This is a rental property that used to be my home. I take great care of it, and am an engineer in the construction industry. One of the units had a fire at the front door and caused damage on the ground floor and had smoke damage on the second floor. I informed the inspector that the second floor was cleaned thoroughly but would not repaint until the next tenant occupied. The second floor is and remains rented and everyone is fine for now. I said i would repaint that when the unit turns. The ground floor unit was significantly damaged, and all repairs were done. The downstairs tenant moved out for 3 months and reoccupied 2 months ago. I had to fund the work with 25k of my own proceeds to get going and now can not get DiTech to pay out the balance. They say its because I did not do the repaint of the second floor. My units are some of the best in class and I thought the entire purpose of this process was to insure the mortgage companies loan was protected from loss. I reminded the mortgage company that their loan to value is 45%. The property is in great shape, and fully rented. The stupidity of following rules blindly is unbelievable. I have been searching for the fundamental basis on why this rule exists and fully understand the policies are in place to provide guidance to allow less qualified persons to execute procedures. But once informed of the status of the house, the condition, all work done to allow occupancy, and the expertise of the property owner, that someone with a brain could access a condition not anticipated by the general rule and subject to evaluation. Do they have a right to make me wait a year or two to get paid when I finally repaint? I am trying to put together the right info to send them a letter from my attorney and copy the Bank Licensing Bureau? or Consumer Protection Bureau? I don’t know who proper government oversight organization is. Please advise. Thanks

  9. My name is Jessica Littrell, our home was partially burned on August 31, 2015. The home is able to be restored to its original condition. The damages equaled $47,216.87. The insurance wasted no time getting our check in the mail to us and our mortgage company. State Farm has been phenomenal to us. We hired Servpro (an international restoration company) to restore our home. They are a licensed restoration company for those that don’t know of Servpro. Bill, our Servpro franchise owner, has been amazing as well. He told us that he would be able to get it done well before Christmas. That’s all my kids have requested for Christmas this year, they haven’t even asked for toys they just want to be home for Christmas. Our home is a 4 bedroom 3 bath home that was burned. We have moved into a 2 bedroom 1 bath mobile home awaiting repairs to our house. We have 4 kids and 2 adults living in this mobile home. We originally had our mortgage through Utilities Employee’s Credit Union out of Pennsylvania. In 2011 they sold our mortgage to PHH mortgage. We sent our insurance check to PHH mortgage on November 1, 2015. We also sent everything they requested to process the check and get our payments sent to us to pay our restoration company. Now Phh is saying that they have to have a licensed contractor’s license on file. My sister in law works for UECU as a mortgage loan officer and says that the only reason you would need a contractor’s license is for a new build. If the home is restorable that a restoration license is required. As I mentioned above, Bill is licensed through Servpro restoration. Now the mortgage company is refusing to use his restoration license and refusing to send us a payment for him. It is now November 30th and they are refusing to talk to us about the situation until they receive his contractors license. We are current on all mortgage payments and never missed one. Why is this process getting so drawn out? Also, can they hold our check when they were sent all original paperwork asked for? They originally said a licensed restoration company could do the work and now saying it will not work. I have kept a diary of all phone calls made and 9 times out of 10 had Bill conferenced in on the call so he could speak to them directly so there wouldn’t be any miscommunication issues. We are trying to do this as stress free as possible and haven’t had any issues until we started dealing with PHH loss draft dept. What else can we do? Also, we have faithfully called everyday since November 5, 2015 to keep updated on the process. Oh, sorry one more thing they sent us a list of everything they needed but after sending them every paper they requested they keep asking for more paperwork. Please help!!

  10. I have a mortgage with STATE EMPLOYEES CREDIT UNION and they have turned our first-time home buyers experience into an absolute nightmare! First, we bought our bank owned home from SECU last year. In July we had water damage to our home from a bad storm. Our insurance company sent a check for $14,000 to fix the damage. The insurance adjuster let us know that our house has faulty recalled shingles on the roof. He assessed this by inspection, as he informed us that any qualified inspector can tell this. SECU has escrowed the insurance check and will not pay any contractors until all the work is done. We have hired 3 contractors, two of whom has already completed their part if the work and are waiting to be paid. Not to mention that the floor contractor needed a deposit of 1/2 the appraised amount because I have a large area of hard wood flooring that needs to be replaced. SECU refused to pay them this. We are so frustrated and disappointed!
    Do homeowners have any rights?
    Is there anything we can do at this point to get the rest of the funds released to enable us to complete our home repairs?

    • Desiree – of course you have rights! But so does your mortgagee yet unlike your rights, theirs have been codified into the Deed of Trust that you granted to State Employees Credit Union which was recorded at the county when you took the money that they loaned you. The good news is that none of your headaches are mandatory if you will just choose a company to do the work who will work with your lender and insurance company. Most reputable and well capitalized businesses are able to complete the work within the parameters set forth by your mortgagee.

      Best of luck!

  11. New York Community Bank – Avoid them if you can.

    In April, I had a water leak in my home which ruined flooring and cabinets in my kitchen and leaked into the room below (my kitchen is on the second floor). My insurance company dealt very satisfactorily with the claim and agreed to all the repairs that were needed. They sent me a two-party check for over $16K, made out to me and New York Community Bank (my mortgage company). I mailed the check plus other documentation to New York Community Bank on July 1 – and have yet to receive any release of funds. I had to pay 90% of the cost of new kitchen cabinets in advance (they took 6 weeks from time of ordering), which is standard practice. All the kitchen cabinet places I got estimates from said they expected 90% of the cost upfront. My cabinets have been installed and I’ve paid for them in full. I’ve also paid for repair to my downstairs room, plus some repair in my kitchen. I’ve sent receipts, waiver of lien, contractor taxpayer ID to New York Community Bank. New York Community Bank sent an Inspector to my home to report on the repairs. It took the inspecting company 10 days to submit the report to New York Community Bank, which states that 70% of the work has been completed. Every time I call to request a status on payment back to me, there is some excuse not to send me a check for the money I’ve already paid. There is either missing paperwork, or an exception has to be put in since I’ve already paid for the repairs, and their check to me needs to be made out to me only (not to me and my contractor).

    I’m at my wits end dealing with New York Community Bank. I’m trying to find out the email address of their CEO, Joe Ficalora (Joseph R. Ficarola) to tell him of my disastrous experience. I have a legitimate insurance claim, fully approved, and New York Community Bank expects me to pay for my repairs without sending me any funding. I now have interest owing on my credit card all due to New York Community Bank’s refusal to release my own funds to me. I’m unable to get my floors repaired and sink replaced as I’ve run out of my own money and need my funds in order to complete the work. It’s as if New York Community Bank expect me to personally fund all the repairs, no matter what hardship this causes me – and then they’ll reimburse me, at some stage, when 100% of the work is completed. MY understanding is that the insurance approved the claim and provided the money to FUND the repairs – it should not be a REFUND. New York Community Bank shows no concern over the fact that I cannot use my kitchen, and the huge inconvenience I and my family have to go through each day. I am current on my mortgage payments (never been late with a payment). Yet New York Community Bank have been holding my funds for over 70 days, with no status as to when they’ll release even a portion of them.

    I would not recommend New York Community Bank to anyone based on my experience.

  12. Last July we suffered a job loss and a decrease in our income. We were facing foreclosure, but were happy to receive an approved short sale with BB&T Mortgage. Before closing, we had a leak which ruined the floors in the home. BB&T was notified, as well as Nationwide Insurance. Nationwide immediately came out and we had a check within days. BB&T received the check, and we proceeded to fill out the abundance of paperwork required. However, BB&T kept “adding” paperwork every single time we called. This continued for weeks on end. Our closing date was quickly approaching. We notified BB&T of the closing date, and that the short sale could be jeopardized by the floors not being installed. The loss and damage department just couldn’t seem to get with the short sale department. The buyers decided to pay a deposit on the flooring so they could have their appraisal done for the closing. The flooring company installed the flooring, and we stayed on the phone for hours with BB&T, begging for them to release the cheek directly to the flooring company. BB&T agreed, we had an invoice from a the company, a contract for release of lien, the W-9 from the company, and countless other paperwork submitted. BB&T sent their inspector to the home, and approved release of the funds. The closing was April 8, 2015, and there has been NO CHECK sent to the flooring company. Today we were told that the funds appear to “Not be in the escrow account due to a change in the loan status”. That’s because the closing proceeded and BB&T has been paid for the short sale. Where is the insurance check now? Thursday, April 16, we were told the money was being released to the flooring company. Today, April 22, the funds are not there. We need help.

  13. PNC Bank – Insurance claim check nightmare.

    My mother recently passed away and I am the custodian of the estate. Actually, I’m her only child so there is no one else on the will.

    After she passed I noticed the kitchen tile were lifting up. The floor is a concrete slab, no basement. I discovered there was water under the tile and the sub-floor was saturated as well. After further inspection I found the kitchen sink drain was leaking.

    I contacted the homeowners insurance company and filed a claim. The claim was for $14,000 which was paid in full within a few weeks.

    When my mother passed she had a $17,000 balance of a $75,000 secured loan with PNC Bank, where the property was the collateral.

    The claim check was in my mothers name, my name, and the banks name.

    Since I’m experienced in remodeling, I did the repairs myself. Upon completion I met with the bank rep to cash the check but she said due to the amount they had to get approval.

    This is almost a month ago now and after several contacts I’m still waiting for this approval.

    I consider myself a common sense type of guy, but I can’t seem to find any “common” in this, let alone sense!

    To me this is very irresponsible on their part. I even to the lady at the bank I’m willing to use some of the check to pay down the loan. But I get nothing! It’s like they laid it on someones desk and totally forgot about it.

    Very frustrating!!!

    If this is how PNC Bank regularly treats their customers I would say find another bank or credit union to do business with.

    • Have you tried appealing this to your local PNC bank and see if you can get some traction that way?

      • Thanks for your prompt reply Ricardo!

        Yes, that is who I’ve been dealing with until last week. At that point I did get a call from the home offices in Pittsburgh and she was actually shocked at how long this was taking. She then sent it to the Loss Prevention department and said they would have take 24 to 48 hours to approve it. That was a week ago today.

        Since I posted this original post earlier today I took another step. I posted it on their Facebook Page where they have Social Media customer service reps answering everyone’s complaints.

        I did get a phone call from one and she worked her butt off trying to help me. This prompted a call from someone who said she will make this her top priority.

        She said they are waiting for the insurance adjusters report. Again, I can’t understand all this red tape when the check has been issued over a month ago and all they have to do is make sure it’s not fraudulent, which I would think could be done through a phone call and/or fax.

        • It sounds like you have the right people on the case – when you have a legitimate grievance, and it sounds as though you do, it is amazing what a few well crafted words posted for the world to see can do to level the playing field. Best of luck and I hope this gets resolved to your satisfaction soon.

          • Still no resolution on this issue. I have the email for Bill Demchak, the president of PNC Financial Services. Do you think it’s wise to reach out to him about it?

          • UPDATE: The check has been approved.

            I’m not sure what prompted it. It may have simply ran it’s due course, or possibly the wall of shame, or maybe the mention of emailing the CEO on several platforms. Nevertheless, it’s approved.

            I do have to give credit to the PNC Social Media customer service reps on their Facebook page, specifically Cathy and Alicia, as they stayed on top of things and did truly show concern. I would advise anyone who has a legitimate problem with PNC to make use of that resource.

            As for the wall of shame, whether it was instrumental in helping or not, I appreciate the platform if not for any other reason it’s a place to vent frustrations!

            Thank you Ricardo!

          • I’m so glad to hear that you got this issue resolved. Never underestimate the power of social media when combined with a legitimate dispute. I know from personal experience which is want cased me to write this post about Bank of America.

  14. CONSUMMER BEWARE!!!!!!

    US BANK IS A MAJOR FRAUD RESEARCH COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE LOSS DRAFT DEPARTMENT!!!

    US Bank loss draft department. It’s been three weeks since all the work completed all the inspections done. Everything is complete. Everyday its the same story the check is going out overnight today and it don’t happen. I recommend a class action suit against this fraudulent bank. They pay no interest on the money and hold it in escrow. I am owed $50,000 from these idiots and now my patients have ran out. contacting the Better Business Bureau in my state and the state of Ohio, along with the states banking commissions office to file..

    I too will be looking to refinance my mortgages, move my investments, business account and my banking with anyone but US BANK. The Loss Draft department at US Bank is the most dishonest, phony, lying bunch of people I have ever witnessed.

    Ms. Brown the Supervisor in the Department your the leader of the lies. Send me a tracking number and you didn’t send the check!!!!

    Michele you too are totally dishonest the check is going out last Friday over night right???

    US BANK YOU CAN KISS MY ASS!!!!

    THE LATEST EXCUSE, Well your check wasn’t printed and because of a snow storm it won’t be printed for another 5 days????

    Ms. Brown, US BANK RESOLUTIONS DEPT. SUPERVISOR why did you assure me the check was ready to send 4 days ago and provide me a tracking number and then deny I was sent a tracking number??

    The entire operation with this company is a fraud… AVOID AVOID AVOID THIS BANK……

  15. 100% current sir, always on time, and the escrow account is 100% fully funded.

    Thank you for your quick and timely reply.

    • MJ – That’s what I thought but I had to ask. You probably already know this, but Coldwell Banker Mortgage isn’t really a mortgage company any more than say Home Depot is a credit card issuer. Like Home Depot, Coldwell Banker Mortgage contracts with a third party to provide private label mortgage solutions or basically another revenue stream. It sounds as thought you may be caught in servicing department purgatory which is likely to be yet another company! Buried deep within the Coldwell Banker Mortgage web site legal disclosures in squint print I found out that PHH Mortgage is actually the mortgage company that provides the mortgage solutions to CBM. Here’s a link to a screenshot of the contact page for PHH Mortgage – I recommend contacting of the VP’s of Media/Investor Relations and ask them to be connected to the “Office of the President”. Once you get beyond the sheeple employed by the servicing company I think you will find immediate relief.

      Please check back and let me know how things turn out, OK?

      • I am absolutely floored by your effort in helping me out with this. Thank you so much. This may be the proverbial holy grail we were looking for.

        I will be sure to return the favor some day. I will absolutely let you know how it turns out…

        Thanks again and I will keep you posted!!!

  16. In July of 2013, Duke Energy caused a power surge as a result of faulty equipment on their part (A transformer blew up right outside my house, causing half the block to be without power for some time, and damages to many people’s homes and appliances). I had damages to the electrical system, personal items, and appliances, and I was six inches away from being electrocuted. They admitted to being responsible for the damages, and sent me down to their claims department to settle the claim. They had me pay out of pocket for a complete electrical inspection, as well as an estimate, which they had agreed to reimburse me for.

    The claim’s department of Duke Energy then had me go to our home owner’s insurance to subrogate against Duke Energy’s insurance, and we went through the process by-the-book, and followed all the instructions. The Insurance adjuster verified the estimate, which included the reimbursement for the fees paid out of pocket for the inspection. However, the insurance company settled the claim for less than the amount on the estimate, and after the fees and deductible, the available funds came out to less than what the initial estimate was to repair and replace the parts of the electrical system that were damaged as a result of Duke Energy’s power surge. They sent us a check for some of the personal items (not for reimbursing me of the inspection fees) and a check made to us and the mortgage company, Coldwell Banker, for the remainder of the claim funds after the deductions for fees and the deductible to get the home repairs done.

    So, I was forced to find a new contractor because the amount in the check would not cover the repairs, and we were without power in several parts of the home, and our heat would not work, leaving us without heat for the coldest winter in this area in 10-15 years. I had to get the electrical system fixed ASAP.

    Coldwell Banker sent us a detailed set of instructions as far as what we needed to do to get the funds released. I found 4 contractors who bid on the job, and the one we chose had the most complete proposal and was able to do the job and keep the price very reasonable, and under budget, leaving some money left over after the repairs were done.

    So, Coldwell Banker went out of their way to make this as difficult as possible. We provided them with all the documentation, the bid, the contract, the W9, the intent to repair, the conditional waiver of lien, and all of the copies of the forms from the insurance adjuster and their documentation. (The insurance adjuster verified the initial estimate, and provided their own adjustment of the estimate for the claim). First, they said the check for the repairs would arrive at a certain date…and they lied to us about when it was sent out, leaving us without the repairs and heat for Christmas and new years, and also during sub-freezing temperatures. It actually took them a moth to send the check to us, after they said it was already sent. They seemed to have no regard for us as we had to have the repairs done during the dead of winter, and for approx 3 days, my power was off during the winter frost of the South East of 2014.

    But that was only the beginning; the repairs got completed, and the city came down to inspect in order to put the power back on. They said it was repaired, and up to code, so the power was put back on. Next, Coldwell Banker had their own inspector come down, *twice*, and inspected the premises to make sure the repairs are done. One of the issues was an open ground of several outlets that needed to be grounded. I showed the inspector the outlets, and physically plugged in the device that showed the outlets were now grounded, in which she took pictures. She took pictures of all the now grounded outlets, the new 200 amp service, and the new REWIRING of the inside service. I signed two documents that showed the home was repaired, in addition to the city verifying that the home was brought up to code and the power was allowed to be turned back on,

    Now, Coldwell Banker will not release the remaining funds because they claim that the home was not repaired, and that the rewiring was not done, irregardless of their inspector confirming that the repairs were in fact done. They claim the re-wiring was not done, when in fact it was, and they claim that we did not repair the home, so they are withholding the remaining, extra funds from the insurance claim check. The contractor was paid, but the remaining funds have not been released to us, and they refuse to tell us what happened to the funds, and why they are confiscating the money. They are creating “new levels” of confirmation that the repairs were done, and yet they refuse to tell us if they will release the remaining funds into our possession. They have been rude, incompetent, and complacent with us. They keep asking us “why do you want that money”? They have had inexperienced, young kids working on this case, and none of them have given us consistent information, which changes from person to person. They sent us documentation, in writing, as far as what the process is for us to retrieve the money, and they have not followed their own documentation. (for instance, the document said they would release 1/3 of the funds or $10,000, which ever was greater, and they released the lesser to us in late Dec 2013…)

    This money is from our HOI subrogating Duke Energy’s Insurance; We made all the repairs, we followed all of the instructions as per the documents sent by Coldwell Banker, and we did everything by the book, and had to deal with Coldwell Banker’s lackadaisical approach to handling our situation. Our escrow account has been fully funded and we have never been late on any mortgage payments since 2011 when we bought the house. We even spoke to the broker who closed on the mortgage, and even they said that this is unusual and that we may need to retain a lawyer to get the rest of these funds.

    We are at our wits end now, because there is no reason for the mortgage company to hold the remaining funds, and of course. At this point, we are looking for every way possible to find another mortgage holder to take our mortgage because of how utterly awful this company is, and we are looking into legal representation to get the remainder of the money from them.

    If you have any advice at all regarding this, we’d really appreciate it. To me, this is a matter of principle, of a bank bullying one of its customers. I refuse to allow them to treat me and my family like this.

    Do you have any thoughts on how we should proceed?

    • MJ – it’s obvious that you have done everything and then some that could be expected of a reasonable person, therefore a legal remedy may be your only recourse at this point. However, I would be remiss if I failed to ask you what may be an obvious question; have you recently or are you now past due on any of the mortgage payments owed to Coldwell Banker Mortgage?

  17. US Bank Home Mortgage – Loss Draft
    Our home was damaged by a small tornado back in June of 2013, with damages totaling $85K. USAA insurance has been great, but they are still holding $24K in recoverable depreciation. They will release these funds once we provide evidence that repairs were made and that we spent the amount of money claimed. To date, US Bank has released $40K to us against the $85K claim. In addition, we have spent almost $10K out of our own pocket to keep our contractors working, however, we are now out of money and our contractors have left and moved on to other projects. We provided documentation to US Bank in early December detailing where every cent of the $40K (plus our $10K) was spent, along with supporting receipts. When we call them, almost daily, we get the impression that we are starting over from the beginning again. No one seems to have reviewed the documents that have been sent, or has any detailed knowledge of our claim. In addition, the agents seem unaccustomed with working with multiple contractors, as opposed to a single general contractor. Due to the variety of damages to our home a single contractor was not an option for us. US Bank says that no new payments are necessary because we have stated that our project is 55% complete and they have released 66% of the $60K received from USAA. While this is true, they fail to grasp that $40K is only 47% of $85K required to complete the repairs, not $60K. Between USAA and US Bank they collectively hold $45K that is inaccessible to us to continue working. If we can’t complete projects, then we can’t submit receipts to USAA for payment of the recoverable depreciation…which would then go to US Bank to be held for some indeterminate amount of time, requiring us to continue or daily begging and pleading for funds.

    My wife and I have collectively spent an estimated 80 hours assembling documents, fielding payment concerns from contractors, and countless hours on the phone with US Bank. We have day jobs and can not afford to spend this kind of time engaged in this activity. In addition, we are emotionally exhausted and at a loss as to what to do next. We can’t see how this process serves anyone’s interest.

  18. Wow! I didn’t realize there were so many other people in my same shoes! I put in a claim to American Strategic Insurance for wind damage on the 27th of February 2013. They sent out an adjuster on the 1st of May and and the paperwork was done. American Strategic Insurance sent out a check minus the recoverable portion made out to myself and the mortgage company. I was advised to sign it and send it to the mortgage company, Green Planet Servicing, LLC overnight with a return overnight prepaid envelope. After several phone calls and almost 3 weeks later, Green Planet released 1/2 of the check. They only wanted to release 1/3 of it, but I pleaded with them that the contractor needed the money to get the materials needed to replace the roof and to pay his workers and they relented. They sent the first check of $3500 to replace a roof of approximately 2000 sq ft and between the contractor and myself we came up with a more out of pocket. About another 3 weeks after their local inspector turned her paperwork in, Green Planet Servicing, LLC finally sends the next half of that check. I received the recoverable portion of the check from the insurance company made out to both myself and the mortgage company again..and this after the ASI agent told me that anything under $5000 didn’t need to be made out to the mortgage company! Again, I had to send it to Green Planet Servicing LLC. This time I spoke to “Holly” who assured me that if I overnight-ed the check and included a prepaid overnight envelope, she would send it back as soon as it was received. Well, they received it on Wednesday the 22nd of May at 11:36am. I was not able to track it with the label number so I called them today the 24th and was told that it would be in the mail on Tuesday morning. Why did she say that she would overnight it back to me if she had no intention of doing that? I ended up losing $40 for listening to her instruction. I guess I should’ve expected that! They sent the last check through regular mail and kept the prepaid envelope I had sent. So now I’ve been dealing with this claim and all this red tape since the 27th of February ..and it’s now the 24th of May! Whatever you do, try not to mortgage your home under Green Planet Servicing, LLC. EDITOR NOTE – Here’s a link to the Better Business Bureau of Connecticut’s rating for Green Planet Servicing, LLC

    Personally I think these companies are holding out to collect whatever interest they can on these checks. This really should be illegal. Hopefully by next month I will have re-financed this home so that I will no longer have to deal with them. I also plan on dropping American Strategic Insurance since every time I questioned them they said that the Mortgage company required it. When I mentioned the last check that was under $5000, Green Planet Servicing said the opposite!..

      • Nelson I wish that I could offer you some pearls of wisdom that hasn’t already been expressed in earlier posts but i can’t. The only thing I could suuggest is to spend a few minutes reading some of the earlier posts and replies from me on these threads.

        Good luck!

  19. We don’t live in North Carolina but the posts I’ve seen are so similar to what I’m going through. The mortgage company is Green Tree Servicing, LLC. My mortgage was sold to them in March 2013. Feb 24th 2013, roof damaged by hail. Our insurance company had all inspections done and sent a check to replace the roof and small check to cover landscape light damage on March 29th. Sent the checks, and all required forms from the roofer, to Green Tree by FedEx on April 2nd, received by signature at the address given by the Green Tree on April 3rd. Roof replacement was finished April 18th. Called Green Tree April 22nd and was told a first check for the roof would go out by April 26th, the second check after an inspection was ordered and done. When no check arrived I called Green Tree again on April 30th and was told by a supervisor that they can’t explain the delay, and they would expedite the first check (and the inspection for the second check to be sent) and I will have it by the end of the week, (May 3rd) by overnight service. May 3rd, inspection for “second” check was done. When no check arrived by the morning of the 3rd I called again, could not get to speak to the supervisor again but was told the check should go out that day, (a Friday) and that the supervisor would call me. By the end of day, no call. I called them again and this time I was told the check isn’t there yet, the person sending it used regular mail instead of interoffice, and to call back Monday, May 6th. Monday May 6th I received the small check for the lights and deposited that on Tuesday May 7th. I waited till Thursday May 9th and I called again. I was told the checks never arrived from the department that handles reissue, they were send to the wrong place but they don’t know where, a stop payment was ordered and the checks would be reissued and they will call when that happens. Told them I got the small check and deposited it and they could not explain this but said those finds won’t be good because of the stop order. All this has caused frustration which has led me to be less pleasant on the last few calls.
    Green Tree Servicing, LLC has now had my insurance money for over 5 weeks and the reasons for the delays seem to be getting absurd at this point. The roofer is talking about putting a lien on the property to protect himself, which is understandable. In the meantime all we can do is wait as they hold ALL the cards. There ought to be a law against being treated like this in a day and age where all the funds can be transferred online and this could be a done deal at this point.

  20. JP Morgan Chase – Loss Draft Department:
    I had a house fire on 07/04/2011 and lost everything inside the home. I was under a modification with Realtime Resolution because I had a loss of income two year prior. I paid my payments every month but when I received my insurance check I found out that I was no longer under my modification and that JP Morgan had taken back over my loan. I was told after they received my check that I could payoff the loan with my check. Then weeks later was told I could not because it was for repairs to the home. I was told that I would have to pay the loan off in full after about four months of going back and forth with them. I called their loss draft department everyday for 7 months. They never told me exactly where the money was. They sold my loan to Ocwen in February 2012 and now they’re calling. I don’t know what to do.

  21. So, since my post earlier today, an acquaintance at the local USBank branch was able to call the insurance claim folks and get them to speed up the process. It seems I will receive the long awaited check next Tuesday, instead of the following week! So grateful for the help!

  22. So, evidently the greedy big banks (USBank in this case) have found a new way to make up for the money they used to make on the “float” (before technology eliminated the old excuse of transit time). US Bank has had the insurance claim money for over six weeks now (the full claim amount). I am a general contractor waiting five weeks now for the first major draw on work completed so far. Meanwhile, my supplier bills, subcontractor bills, payroll tax bills, workers comp payments, etc, etc, have been paid with funds from other sources. Those sources are now dried up, and the best guess promise from US Bank is still at least a week out. This is after countless broken promises (lies) and countless hours on the part myself and my client (the home-owner) on the phone, faxing documents repeatedly, etc. etc. Wouldn’t it be nice if the bank had to pay the kinds of late fees, etc. that they impose on us?
    Hopefully this blog will be read by some of our so-called government “representatives” (I know they march lock-step to the big banks directives, but they should know they are killing the geese that lay their golden eggs).

    • Same here, lost faxes, need more documents (that’d I already sent) and every single time I called they had “no record of anything in the file” until I gave them the date and time of the fax, then they’d say “no one scanned it and attached it to the file, I’ll do it.” Next time, same thing…over and over. STALLING to hold onto money that isn’t theirs. I scheduled their inspector, who came out and determined the job was 90% finished, and they STILL haven’t sent the FIRST draw. I look like a deadbeat to my hard working and honest contractor because of these CROOKS at Us Bank loss draft department, and I mean you Sherry and Amber in the resolution dept.

  23. We are on a modification(umemployment forebearance) to be specific. Hurricane Sandy spared our home but we had to replace covered items on the property. A contractor completed work, which we paid in full. Received checks under $9000. Good ole Chase bank took my checks after I submitted ALL necessary forms and receipts and promised an inspection. Lo and behold we receive a letter regarding our mortgage payments and they can’t release checks. I call loss dept and they claim the adjusters report is not specific enough. Three agents gave me 3 non specific answers. I paid for the repairs, now I want OUR money back.

    • Donna,

      I am surprised that they are putting you through so many hoops over $8,000. First I would try to understand what specific language is missing from the three adjusters reports and see if the asdjusters can modify or otherwise accomodate your lenders request. Or, if that doesn’t work. if your mortgage is held by a bank with a local presense, you may get faster results by seeking someone locally with the title of Vice President or higher. If all else fails, try doing a Google search for “(lender name) Office of the President”. Bank Presidents dont like to get customer complaints, especially when they are legitimate.

      Hope that helps and remeber to check back and let us know how it went.

  24. We had a complete loss of our home due to fire. We waited 2 weeks to hear back from Bank of America to see what would be done. They had a policy on our home, because other insurances kept dropping us due to a tree or our roof.
    Finally, Monday a man came out, snapped photos, took measurements & asked about the flooring & structure. Today, Friday, we received a call from the adjuster stating we lost a house worth $300,000 and had a loan of $85,000. Then, he stated the insurance only covered $1000. He said it pays off our loan & nothing else. This sounds fishy to me. Does this sound legitimate to you? If this is so, what are our steps to take. Our family is scattered w/ 2 kids living w/others & my youngest w/us in a home connected to Amish. I feel queezy most days, and after this news, can’t eat much. There must be something we could do to get a good home put back on the property, but we’re at a loss.

    • Barb – as much as it pains me to say this, there is nothing fishy about your story to me at all.

      The mortgage that you gave Bank of America to backstop your Promise to Pay required that both parties to the agreement fulfill certain obligations. Among yours were to keep the property insured and name bank of America as an additional insured. When you failed to do so, Bank of America was well within their rights and was in fact dutiful in purchasing a Single Interest Insurance Policy to cover their interest.

      It is a sad situation for sure, but the up side here is that your newly vacant, if not slightly improved lot should now be debt free. When you are ready, the equity in that lot should be sufficient for any lender to make you a construction loan without having to come out of pocket further.
      You are now free to begin rebuilding your life without being encumbered with a mortgage. It may take some time before you get back on your feet but thankfully all that was lost in this tragic event was property. Kiss your babies, hug your husband and find a place to live while you get back on your feet.

  25. I have one last question. Should be an easy one, for someone like yourself with vast knowledge in these matters! If worst comes to worst and we are not allowed to keep the check from our insurance company, will it ALL be applied to the principal of the loan? In our mortgage contract, which I’m sure you are very familar, it states
    2. Application of Payments or Proceeds. Except as otherwise described in this
    Section 2, all payments accepted and applied by Lender shall be applied in the following
    order of priority: (a) interest due under the Note; (b) principal due under the Note;
    (c) amounts due under Section 3. Such payments shall be applied to each Periodic Payment
    in the order in which it became due. Any remaining amounts shall be applied first to late
    charges, second to any other amounts due under this Security Instrument, and then to reduce
    the principal balance of the Note.

    This is confusing and sounds as if the money would be applied to interest first. Please set me straight!!

    • Your loan accrues interest on a daily basis and it has a Latin name which is called per diem. Per diem is calculated by taking the principal loan balance as of the date of you last payment multiplying it by your note rate then dividing by 360 and multiplying by that number by the number of days since your last mortgage payment. When you payment posts, the interest is calculated on per diem basis and deducted from your payment accordingly before any principal reduction occurs. This is where timely or early payments work to your advantage while chronically late payments can cost you dearly. In lending we call that the hidden late fee but I’ll save that for another blog entry.

      If you have made your payments on time, then this amount should be slightly less this month than it was the prior month because the starting loan balance this month was less than the prior month.

      The language used in your mortgage instrument is placed there to protect the lender in the event that the account has become delinquent or has accrued unpaid late charges and attorney and related fees. However, because most states require that interest and principal be paid before late charges or delinquency fees can be collected by the lender, chronically late payers tend to accrue enormous unpaid late fees and penalties. Most reasonable people would agree that it only makes sense that if the lender were to release funds that were not being used to repair, restore or otherwise preserve the property that is securing their interests from further damage that those funds should be first used to bring the mortgage account current of any past due or outstanding fees and interest.

      In your case, once you convince your lender to do the right thing, they will simply issue you the check.

      I hope that has been helpful.

  26. If I get my home appraised AGAIN and it is deemed to be of the same value, could this help my cause? On what grounds can they do this? DO I have any rights or options? I’m assuming seeing a lawyer is the best thing. Of course the contract says “fees for public adjusters, or third parties retained by borrower shall not be paid for out of insurance proceeds ect ect, so I know that will be paid for by me and if another appraisal has to be done, I’m sure we’ll have to pay for that too. So, in order to get the money that is “ours”, it will cost money!!

    • Of course your mortgage states that, you didn’t think that the security instrument would be written to NOT give preference to the senior party to the agreement did you?

      Seriously, having the home reappraised sounds like a reasonable option because if the value is the same or more or less the same then the argument could then be made that BB&T is simply trying to renegotiate their leverage position, after the fact, and at your expense without your consent.

      And yes you would likely have to pay for the new appraisal but, DO NOT order the appraisal yourself. Any appraisal ordered by you would be tainted because you have a vested interest in the outcome of the report and although the same could be said about BB&T, I assure you that BB&T will not benefit from your $19,000 claim check nearly as much as you will. Therefore, the report, to be useable by BB&T would have to be ordered by BB&T via their appraisal management company who acts as a intermediate between the bank and the appraiser for the very reasons described.

  27. Thanks for responding!! I have excellent credit, am a Federal employee, never been late on a payment. Got the loan through my bank and they immediately sold it to BB&T. They granted us the exception said we could keep the money, then changed thier mind!!!

    • That sounds pretty typical of big banks; say one thing and then do another. You might be in luck. I happen to know a former BB&T employee who spent a number of years working at their main location in downtown Raleigh who recently left after being treated very poorly. I have asked her to respond to your question with any suggestions or tips that you might be able to use without having to employ an attorney. However, If that fails to produce fruit, I wouldn’t rule out the benefit of a well written attorney demand letter. Nothing gets a bank or creditor moving faster than a certified demand letter from an attorney!

      • THANKS SO MUCH!!! Looking forward to what she has to say! Hope you have a great “rest of the day” Raleigh Mortgage guy.

        >>> Raleigh Mortgage Guy 2/13/2013 11:45 AM >>>
        ricardocobos commented: “That sounds pretty typical of big banks; say one thing and then do another. You might be in luck. I happen to know a former BB&T employee who spent a number of years working at their main location in downtown Raleigh who recently left after being trea”

  28. Can some one please give me advice? How can I get my mortgage company (BB&T) to endorse my insurance check from a loss due to our barn burning down? It would cost around $55K to rebuild our barn, but was only given $19K due to being under insured. The person I origianlly got the loan with said they don’t even look at out buildings and would have given us the check. (they sold the loan to BB&T) I’m confident our home would still appraise the same now as it did with the barn. Is hiring a lawyer our only option? We had plans to pay off bills with that money and could really use it. It’s especially disheartening that after we sent them all the info they requested that 1st they granted us an exception telling us we can keep the money, then a few days later saying they changed their mind &endorse the check & mail it to us. Any advice is apreciated!

    • P

      Let me make sure that I get this straight.

      BB&T Mortgage made you a loan using your home as collateral, which presumably is on the same legal description (parcel) as this barn that burned down. However, like most lenders BB&T had the appraiser exclude the barns value from your appraisal when they made you a standard (conventional) home mortgage loan. This of course makes perfect sense because unless you happen to live an area where barns and outbuildings are the norm and houses without them are at an economic disadvantage it would make comparing your home’s value to others too difficult.

      Sometime after that mortgage was granted by you to BB&T, the barn, not the house burns to the ground and the bank doesn’t want to release your money so that you can be made whole for your losses that they didn’t even consider when they made your loan in the FIRST place?

      Is that about right? Are you now or have you in the recent 24 months been delinquent on your mortgage payments?

  29. Is it possible to refinance then once the mortgage company is paid, give your insurance agent the old payout check and have them write a new check without the old mortgage company on there? See above about barn fire.

      • WOW, no idea that would be fraud. Thought if they received the balance due on the loan (by refinancing) then they would have the money that is owed to them and that we could have our insurance check…..

        >>> Raleigh Mortgage Guy 2/13/2013 11:29 AM >>>
        ricardocobos commented: “It is possible but so is spending 5 years in jail for insurance fraud and I don’t reccomend either.”

        • Let me preface this statement by saying that I am neither a lawyer nor am I an insurance agent and this advice is coming from my own personal and professional experience as a lender for more than two decades.

          That said, it’s been my experience that the claim and loss payees follows the date of loss, therefore, even subsequent checks issued would still likely have BB&T’s name on it whether you owed them money after the fact or not. BB&T would still have to endorse the check.

          Therefore, it seems to me that refinancing your mortgage to avoid dealing with this issue would be more costly and cumbersome than it’s actually worth and to the untrained it could give the appearance of fraud. Given that a jury of your peers might see it that way too, and your government positions, it’s probably best to avoid that option altogether choosing instead a $200 demand letter from a lawyer.

          Please check back and let me and my readers know how you resolved this – It might prove useful to someone else in a simialr circumstance.

  30. Our barn burned to the ground 3 days before Christmas. We found out we were under insured and only received a third of what it would cost to rebuild. After faxing all info requested by our mortgage company we had a messageon our answering machine saying they granted us an exception to let us keep the insurance payout! Just a few days later they called and said “corporate” changed their minds and wanted us to endorse the check & mail it to them. They also were not going to allow us any money to repair damage done to the roof of our garage and well house. How disappointing! How can they just “change theri minds”?????? How can we get that check??

  31. My mortgage bank, IndyMac, got my advance nearly 7 weeks ago. after a month, they sent a third, pretending it was my actual proceeds. Since then, I’ve been told numerous times that the check is in the mail. the workers have done more than half the job, but had to stop because they’ve only received $10,000 of a $95,000 job. This a scandal of major proportions. If they’re doing this to a few thousand people, think of the millions they have to play with.

  32. After reading these posts, I feel like I am going to vomit. I, too, am a vicitim of Superstorm Sandy, in New York. I have been fighting with ML to get the full amount of my insurance advance, and they won’t release it in its entirety unitl I submit the insurance adjuster’s worksheet. I won’t have that document for another two weeks or so when they finish it, but I need the rest of my advance to keep the work moving. My life is being held hostage by the mortagage company! The whole process is just awful.

    • Keep up hope do not let them get you down, I almost gave up but I kept pushing and a week ago I got my first check after 6 months! They want us to give up and foreclose or let them keep our money for as long as possible! I must say I do not know if this matters or not but once I posted something here on wall of shame we got our check within one week. We still need the remainder 20% but we are just so happy we got something moving! Of course it is winter here where we live so can not do much roof repair in 15 degree weather but we ordered shingles and got a very good deal so things are looking up after very very much despair I had to go through with BofA! Hang in there!

  33. Stop talking to them – I wrote to my congressman, both my senators and some state and government agencies. The bank has changed their tune since hearing from them. It’s a lot of work, but worth it.

  34. My complaint is with Bank of America… I have been trying receive dispersement on $15,000 of an insurance proceeds check for over 2 years! In working with BAC home loans servicing department I have had a different officer “help” me with this issue and I’m currently at 6 different individuals that I have faxed the same requested info to. This is the worst experience I have ever had in dealing with a lender of any kind. Poor communication, re-faxing the same information repeatedly, talking to different agents each time I make contact and having to start from the beginning every time is absolutely ridiculous. I know Bank of America has had legal issues in giving customers the run around and I feel this in no exception. If you are looking for a lender DO NOT use Bank of America unless you really like poor service and being treated like an imbecile even though you hand them hundreds of thousands of dollars for the privilege…

    • We have been going through the exact same thing with Bank of America. It took about three months for us to get insurance adjuster to get a correct estimate and then finally in August we got issued the claim check from Insurance company. I called BofA to let ask them what we should do, they said we had to sign it and mail it to them because they had to sign it also due to our mortgage payment being late once over the past 12 months, okay thats understandable I regret that mistake. I mailed them the check with all necessary paperwork back in August 2012. Since August I have had to re-fax things over and over and then they tell me that they are awaiting vendor ID# which is something they had to get on their end and they say they keep sending in for it and it has been denied which this has been going on for about month and a half. I have called one to three times a week trying to stay on top of them. At this point I am disgusted I feel that there is always going to be an excuse. I called them this morning and they say once again the check process has been denied but they have no reason why. I said that this is just ridiculous “who does know what is going on there” and the woman said she is going to look into it and call me back on Wednesday. I said to her ‘yeah I have heard that before and I never get call back, I have to call back and then start all over with a new person.” I am fed up with it and all I want is to get a new roof, as of right now it leaks every time it rains which is causing more damage!! I just would like to know if anyone knows how to handle this further. I am exhausted and fed up with their excuses that are getting really old!

  35. IndyMac 4th largest bank failure in US history. One West formed by IMB Associates (guess who they are) owns IndyMac now. I make the checks out to IndyMac Mtge. Services, but One West owns the loan. It gets worse – if you look a little farther back, same guys founded Countrywide. They want to “monitor” flood insurance funds. Who’s monitoring them?

  36. My home was flooded 10/29 in hurricane Sandy. I have flood insurance. My home was inspected a week after the storm. Three weeks later, I called the adjuster to inquire about payment, as I’d already sent the contractor’s proposal. He was still seeing houses, but arranged an advance so that the work could get started. The check came 12/3. It was paid to me, Bank of America (home equity line), and IndyMac(mortgage holder). I took the check to a B. of A., where it was endorsed and returned to me. I then express mailed the check to the “loss draft” dept. at IndyMac. There it remains. Numerous phone calls and faxes, no result. They are aware that this check was an advance. The builders have gone to work without any pay, due to the fear of mold growth. I’ve been reading about IndyMac and it’s bad news. Just last week their shady execs were fined $169 million in California. I’m a senior citizen and grandmother. Where do I turn?

    • Cecily – IndyMac Bank was only the fourth bank failures of 2008 financial meltdown and as we now know, it wouldn’t be the last, but it was certainly one of the biggest failures because they were so heavily involved in buying of nob-conforming mortgages, especially in the area of new construction loans. However, what makes IndyMac Bank unique is that on July 11, 2008, IndyMac Bank, F.S.B., Pasadena, CA was closed by the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) and the FDIC was named Conservator. It’s one of those very rare cases where the FDIC actually took control of a failed bank because most instances On March 19, 2009, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) completed the sale of IndyMac Federal Bank, FSB, Pasadena, California, to OneWest Bank, F.S.B., Pasadena, California. OneWest Bank, FSB is a newly formed federal savings bank organized by IMB HoldCo LLC. whose name bears an uncanny resemblance to (I)ndy(M)ac(B)ank doesn’t it?

      The question I would ask is does IndyMac Bank Mortgage still even own your loan or has it been sold off to this new IMB Hold Co aka OneWest Bank?

  37. When you think about buying a tv or new car, we as consumers do our research. Check different websites for the best price and check the customer reviews. Maybe we need to start doing the same thing with mortgage companies. I have been dealing with the US Bank Loss Draft Dept all day today. I called this department 4 times in 3 hours and spoke with someone different. Again each time, they gave me something new that they were requiring they needed in order to endorse the check from State Farm. I did some research and printed out all their documentation on claims. I understand about wanting to protect their investment as the mortgage holder. This documentation wasn’t required when you were applying for the loan, where does it come relevant now. They stated that there were forms that my husband would need to fill out if he was going to be the one to pull the toilet up off the floor. Also, we would need to enclose a letter from a previous employer if he had previous contractor experience. He built our house. We did most of the labor ourselves so we did not have to borrow the total cost. I think that if his credentials were good enough to qualify for the low rate and the appraisal value was over 80% of the loan amount, he is quite capable of pulling a toilet up off the floor. This has got to be the most assanine red tape, I have experienced in my life. What is the worst is that this happened on December 3, 2012 and we are all walking around on plywood sub flooring and no heat pump. I have a 2 yr old that wakes up in the middle of the night saying she is cold because the edenpure heater is sufficient enough. Maybe State Farm should sue U.S. Bank for the structural damages that they would incur if my water line freezes inside the house. The low temps for the next three days are 22 aand 25 degrees. Who should pay the medical bills for us getting sick from the chill in the air? Come Christmas morning, my 4 yr old and 2 yr old along with us adults, will be sitting on plywood floors, unwrapping Christmas presents. Maybe we will leave the wrapping paper down as “new tile”. This is why we should do business locally. I threatened the Loss Draft Dept. with a video on You Tube of just what conditions they are leaving us in while they hold on to the $7400.00 ck that State Farm specifically for the HVAC company. Check that they finally decided after 2 phone calls and 3 representatives later, they would endorse and approve for overnight delivery. I mailed them an additional $9 to pay for the overnight delivery fee. Approve what? Of course, they still want you to continue paying your mortgage payment, while they control the disbursement of funds by your insurance company that you pay each year. While reading some of their pdf files, they even take the excess money and apply it to your mortgage. That money isn’t supposed to be used for that. No wonder insurance rates continue to rise. I am glad State Farm allotted 2 years to complete work, looks like we will need it. Once this is over, if there is ever an end, we will be moving to another lender. I will do my research on their business practices.

  38. Ok I have news. They endorsed the emergency check after four hours trying. They ask me for a adjuster letter explaining that the check is for an emergency. The adjuster talked to them, because they are not allow to release any kind of letter. Well, my adjuster was nice and call them with me on the other line and finally they endorse the check because I have children at home. Now the second process start. I have to collect thousand of papers to receive the other money.

    • Endry – that’s great news! It sounds like in order to collect your money you will have to perform like trained circus elephant, but I guess that’s why the bible says the debtor is slave to the lender. Thanks for sharing your success with us.

  39. I went to a local wells Fargo branch. The lady call the department in charge in order to get the approval, and now I have to send papers before they can release the money. After they received the papers they can only release a 1/3 of the money. I talk with the adjuster and he says that Wells Fargo has to understand that it is a emergency check to turn on the heat, and that the claim is for much more.

    • Endry – it sounds like you may be speaking with a low-level staffer at the bank. You need to find an operations center and get across the table form someone with VP title behind their name and get them to endorse the check for you.If you will tell me what town you are in, I’ll do a little searching through my network and see if I can get you pointed in a better direction.

  40. I received today the first check from my flood insurance after hurricane Sandy. The adjuster said that it is an emergency check, because we dont have heat, hot water, and the mold on the house is getting worse. The adjuster report was three weeks ago. You can imaging how the mold and the damages are now after three weeks waiting for the money to start fixing the problems. I went to wells fargo to see if they can endorse my check and the customer service representative call somewhere to inform me that i have to send the check by mail with other papers and that the release of the money will be in parts. The claim is for the amount of about $15,000, the EMERGENCY CHECK is $8,400 and i have to wait to start the repairs. Where is the emergency??? Since October 29 we are without heat, hot water, and the mold is getting worse. How can wells fargo understand that i really have the emergency??? I cannot wait more time and i dont have money to pay the 50% in front the contractor ask me. What can i do? I have a property in Atlanti City, NJ where the hurricane left more damages. I have to mention that i have a letter from wells fargo in which they approved me to dont paid my mortgage until January. This is a goverment program to help people on the zones devasted by the hurricane.

    • Endry – I’m so sorry to hear about your experience, unfortunately, as you can see from prior posts, your experience is nothing new. I do however, have a question, did you take the emergency check ($8,400) to a local Wells Fargo branch or did you mail it to their escrow department?

  41. Wells Fargo Property Loss Department.

    Will still not disburse funds from Hurricane Irene. More than a year later, we are still without a boiler, along with multiple other repairs necessary, and have young children in the house. Next stop is a combination of legal action, public exposure and taking the information to the State. I look forward to the class action lawsuit against Wells Fargo.

  42. WELLS FARGO – PROPERTY LOSS DEPARTEMENT
    On 11-6-2012 I started the process of being pissed off @ that company more that i would ever imagine ! On that day i faxed over all the necessary paperwork for the insurance claim so i can get the $$ back from them asap after they will receive the check from State Farm insurance I’ve sent them. First problem started with w9 form filled out too small in handwriting and they can’t read it … blah blah blah If i can read it from 3 ft away i think you can do the same ,+ WHY YOUR LINES ARE SOO SMALL ON THE PAPERWORK ??IF YOU CANT READ IT MAKE THE SPACE BIGGER WHERE THEY SHOULD WRITE ! The signed contract from my contractor … it came from my contractors and I signed it and faxed it over to the loss dept. After that i spoke with someone and i was told that this paper was not signed by my contractor ,but they will FAX it over to him so he can sign and return.. That was Wednesday the 7th of November . After calling them on thursday to ask if they do need anything else they told me NO ,”it looks like we have all the paperwork necessary and all we need is the check(it was on the way)” .Friday the 9th of noverber ,the check was delivered to OVERNIGHT mail dept @ 9:30am . On the same day i called around 2 pm to verify that.. They guy told me he’s gonna put a rush on the 1st check (1/3 rd) . Monday the 12th of November ,after calling to verify they are sending the check out i was told they DID NOT RECEIVE THE CHECK YET ! WTF ??!! Called again Tuesday the 13th , Asked if they have the check,yes they do, but there is a problem with Contractors contract not being signed by him and amount on the invoice did not match the check because of the deductible. WHY NOBODY DID ANYTHING WITH THAT PAPER SINCE WEDNESDAY LAST WEEK!!!!! ..So now he has to rewrite the whole paperwork send it in,they will “review” it between 3-5 days and then they will send the first check out. My 50% inspection is scheduled for this Thursday @ 6pm,by the way … I’m wonder how is this going to work .As soon this whole mess is over I AM GETTING OUT OF WELLS FARGO !!! DONE WITH THEM FOREVER , TERRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE . HOLDING MY $$ TO FIX THE HOUSE AS LONG AS POSSIBLE SO THEY CAN BENEFIT FROM IT !

  43. Leaving customers high and dry must be common practice for PNC bank. I was devasted when I lost my home due to a fire in March of 2012. The insurance settled the claim and I proceeded to hire a contractor. PNC advised that I needed to send the check and they would release a third of the money to begin construction. They did release the first third…that is the only honest thing they have said and done.

    For the past month I have been on the phone trying to get more money to finish the home. They are saying I have to have a 50% completion for the next 1/3 of the money however my build percentage is 33%. I dont understand how a process could be so unfair and screwed up. I hired a small contractor that relies on the money from the insurance to fund the build. Now it doesnt appear that I will be in my home for the holidays as I had anticipated. To make things even worse, my interim housing is going to run out this month So, now I will either be homeless or my mortgage that I still pay on time every month and have for the past 9 years will fall behind. I cant afford both rent and mortgage.

    PNC has no idea how emotionally devastating this can be. We both have an interest in the home. But, If I have no money I cant build. Recently, I started using my credit cards and any cash I could get my hands on including borrowing from family and friends (which is something I never do) because I believed first they were going to send another dispersement and/or second reimburse me for the money that I have spent thus far…I have spent/charged 25K and counting. Well neither of those two things have happened.

    I am on the phone with PNC on a daily basis getting a different answer to my questions each time….sometimes holding on the line for upto an hour while they pretend they are going to help me…Not! Only to have them come back to the line and say…that I need a higher percentage. I am very frustrated, It brings me to tears somedays when I have to repeat the same story day after day to a different customer service agent that doesnt care and cant solve the problem. But I call anyway hoping and praying that today…maybe someone will see what an injustice this is and really do something. I just want to get back in my home and settle in before the winter. I cant believe so many are experiencing the same issues. My heart goes out to all of you who are entangled in this bureaucracy.

    Is there any way to navigate this mess? -Greensboro, NC

  44. PNC Bank has left us high and dry! We were applying for a loan modification which was clearly dragged out on their part and in the meantime our house burned down! We completed all necessary steps with the insurance company and with the claims department of PNC Mortgage and now, a third of the way through building and PNC refuses to release the insurance funds until the modification is complete. We expect to begin the trial payment plan soon, which would mean at least 4 months until the modification is complete… Mind you this was expected to start some time ago but paperwork takes so long to travel through their processing department. PNC Bank has no right to keep us out of our home for longer than absolutely necessary for repairs, and that is what they are doing! Every time I call I am treated poorly, no one has any information except that it is out of their hands, and they left left me on hold for lengthy amounts of time. If they do not release the funds the build will sit over the next 4 months and get ruined and we will exceed our insurance benefits of a 12 month rental! So we’ll have to pay rent and return the rental furniture and all!! Not to mention we have a 2 year old son on the spectrum and our efforts could much better be served helping him. You never know what your future holds, you hope for the best and be prepared for the worst. In our case we thought the fire was the worst, losing everything you know of home, and a lifetime of memories…but nothing could have prepared us for the curveball PNC Bank has thrown, especially when up until this point we were very forthcoming with them and they claimed that the funds would be released within days! I pray that the funds are released so we can continue repairing and restore normalcy for our son, and ourselves. I also hope this information serves helpful for people looking for a responsive mortgage company.

  45. FLAGSTAR BANK – currently we are dealing with a claim for water damage to our kitchen. Our insurance co promptly released funds but then we had to send to Flagstar. It took 5 weeks total to get our 1st check from Flagstar. They only released 50%. Now we are dealing with a supplemental check which I am having to fight to get funds release so I can pay for countertops. Going on day 60. I have no kitchen currently. I have spoken to numerous people at Flagstar and they just really don’t care about their customers. It has been a nightmare. We are current on our mortgage and have never been late.

    Girard Gibbs LLP is a class action law firm that currently has a case against Chase for another issue. 1-866-981-4800
    I have contacted them as I feel a class action lawsuit is warranted. We need some protection from these banks.

    We are most likely going to have to get a loan to have the cash upfront to make these repairs happen and then pay it off when Flagstar decides to give us our money. It shouldn’t be this way but it is. We have insurance so we don’t have to pay out of our pocket…but thanks to Flagstar Bank we will have to do just that.

  46. Lenoir, NC nightmare: On July 2,2012 a neighbors tree fell on my property and totaled my garage, a car, and caused over $9,000 damage to a second car. Contacted my insurance company State Farm and they did a fantastic job on handling the car damages and getting a adjuster to appraise home damages. We didn’t have to wait much over a week before we received an insurance check in the mail (over $20,000). The day we received the check, July 16, 2012, we took it to Bank of America in Lenoir, NC and they didn’t have a manager, so we were sent to Hickory, NC branch where it was processed by Karen. We were told that the check had to be sent to Property Claims in Van Nuys, CA; after two weeks we were told the check wasn’t received and adviced to cancel check and get it re-issued. State Farm re-issued the check. We processed the check again through Bank of America in Hickory, NC and they sent it out to CA. Mid August a inspector came to our home and determined that we were at 90% with our garage rebuild. On Sept. 5th, we contacted Van Nuys Property Claims (Christina) and we told it would be processed in 48 to 72 hours and overnighted. It is now Sept. 9th and no check. A contractor started work the day we received our first check in the mail and after two weeks was forced to stop work because no funds were generated (prior to work stoppage it was estimated that our rebuild would be complete by mid August. My husband and I have been customers with Bank of America for over twenty years, they hold our mortgage and payments have always been on time. After reading numerous complaints on the internet isn’t there enough material to investigate and start a Class Action lawsuit? Are we entitled to receive interest on the check Bank of America is holding? Bank of America’s money didn’t pay for insurance on my home. I ask myself, as everyone who has had problems with Bank of America should: Is Bank of America holding insurance checks to generate funds through interest, on the backs of customers placed in hardship situations?

  47. I recently had a State Farm insurance claim for a burglary at a home I own. JP Morgan/Chase is the mortgage holder but they DO NOT pay the home owners insurance in escrow. I pay this yearly on my own and have proof. However, due to JP Mortgage-Chase being listed as a Day One(???) type mortgage lender State Farm advised me JP Mortgage’s name has to be on my claim reimbursement check. So after 6 weeks waiting on the claim check from State Farm, JP Morgan now has additional forms I have to fill out for them prior to their signing the check AND they will hold 50% of the check until they decide it’s time for reimbursement. JP Morgan gets to make interest off MY insurance check paid for by ME while I have to pay upfront my contractors to get work done by a robbery. To make it more confusing the JP Morgan Loss Draft Rep Patricia Williamson said JP Morgans name did NOT have to be on the check while State Farm told me it’s the law that they did. Another honest American get screwed by a mortgage banker. Can somebody just say “What can I do to help?” in America , PLEASE!!!!
    p.s.the JP Morgan rep hung up on me while explaining the process I have to go thru on http://www.mylossdraft.com pin CH001 to actually get my insurance claim check signed. And since there is no JP Morgan Chase bank within 200 miles of me, my check will have to be mailed.
    sign me, another American screwed over by Mortgage lenders, Mrs.Bonni L. Smiley

  48. Dealing with Wells Fargo Property loss department over a claim from flood damage due to Hurrican Irene on second home. House received minor cosmetic damage not requiring licensed general contractors to repair. Property value $350,000, loan $25,000, Damage $20,000. Wells Fargo dispersed 1/3 of insurance proceeds to pay for the cleanup that was done out of pocket and proceed with other repairs. Arrangements have been made with contractor to have repairs done but they are not completed. Wells fargo has called every two weeks with threating language and rude customer service in following up on the status. This behavior is unacceptable from a lendor to the customer. I feel that they have overstepped their boundaries. I have not denied them any rights due them through the deed of trust however there is no timeline for such repairs to be made and their name is not on the deed. Especially given that I could have not even filed an insurance claim in the first place…. then their collateral would have been in worse condition than when they lent the money. This view from Wells Fargo makes no sense to me….Given the fact that the house was not deemed uninhabitable by the government autorities, i could have just ignored the claim all together and Wells Fargo would have been the loser if I decided to default at that point.

  49. We owe US bank between $33,000 and $34,000 on the home mortgage, pay on time or ahead of time, have been good customers for years and years. On September 5, 2011 a tropical storm with high wind resulted in a tree falling on the home and catastrophic damage to the property in excess of $59,0000. A call was made to US bank and the first question was” do you want to use the funds to pay off the mortgage”. That was a clue of what was to come. US bank loss draft department has been a nightmare. Final inspection by US bank inspector completed 11/11/11 but final draw still not released. All paperwork sent UPS received by US bank 11/21/11 “lost” resent by fax 11/28/11. 12/5/11 US bank says still do not have documents but after further checking said we now have 2 accounts which they said they combined. Said all documents are now received and all funds will be released. On 12/6/11 US bank requested a “new” document that was sent by fax 12/7/11. Us bank “couldn’t find it” so refaxed it again 12/9/11. At this time the funds in excess of the remaining amount of the outstanding loan balance were requested. Figured a little money is better than no money. Told 12/12/11 all funds ($54,000-$55,000 remaining ) would be released. Received partial funds 12/17/11 ($21,389.34). Called US bank on 12/19/11 told need same papers sent 12/7/11 and again12/9/11.We mentioned the 2 accounts supposedly combined on 12/5/11 and they suddenly found the paper had all the papers they needed. Will be waiting tomorrow for the check to arrive by Fed X…..

  50. An update, I received the payment from Wells Fargo today via FedEx for Servpro. I am so happy to be able to pay them for the work they did on our home. i don’t exactly know what caused this, but I am glad that the funds have been released and payment to Servpro is on it’s way to them!

    • Kathy – I am delighted to hear that you have found some relief with your lender. Like I have said in earlier posts; don;t underestimate the power of a well crafted complaint posted on a public forum like this! As you can see from earlier comments, the lenders and their employees are trolling the web looking for issues – while we can’t be sure this was the case here, we can say it doesn’t hurt to name & shame your bank when they act badly! Thanks for sharing the positive outcome with my readers.

  51. INDY MAC Federal Bank! I had a flood during Hurricane Irene. It has taken MONTHS to get my check. My mortgage lender has a 1/6th interest in my home and they want to HOLD MY INSURANCE CLAIM!!! It is now DECEMBER and they’re telling me they will only disburse the money as I have things fixed. This is INSANE. I’m going on four months now after having 4 inches of saltwater through my home and all they keep doing is making things virtually impossible for me!!! I have been paying the flood insurance, not them.

    Barbara Schaefer, West Islip, NY

  52. Wells Fargo Property Loss processing is a nightmare. Our home was damaged by Hurricane Irene in August. It was categorized as a major loss by the insurance comapny. Yes, we have insurance and we also pay our mortgage. I will cite one example of how Wells Fargo holds funds sent to them and will not pay bills these funds were sent to pay. Servpro pf Pitt/Greene Counties came to our home and performed mitigation services (removed walls, flooring, mold prevention, etc). They did a great job. Once their services were completed they sent their bill to the insurance company. The insurance sent the funds in a check to us and Wells Fargo. We sent the funds to Wells Fargo as directed. The Insurance Adjuster sent a letter explaining the funds were to pay Servpro and the work was completed. This letter was sent with the money on October 26, 2011. I have made numerous phone calls to Wells Fargo, the Insurance Adjuster has called several times, I have sent documentation and here it is December 12, 2011 and guess what, Servpro still hasn’t been paid and Wells Fargo still has the money. I am at my wits end in trying to get anything done with Wells Fargo. They are absolutely the worst to deal with in a disaster situation. This is just the beginning as we still have many many repairs to our home and the big obstacle of Wells Fargo. It took me five weeks to get Wells Fargo to send the payment to the Tree Removal Company. They held those funds all that time too.

  53. Wells Fargo Home Mtg. The absolute worst to deal with. Incompetence runs rampant. I have been trying to get my check released for 3 months. At first they told me I could not self contract. I filed all the papers for a contractor to do the job and checked daily to make sure all T’s were crossed and I’s were dotted. After a month of delays they tell me I can self contract and now I HAVE to put those papers in. It has been so long my insurance co has stopped paying living expenses. The lawsuit is coming…….soon!!!!

  54. Three words BANK OF AMERICA! had a fire 1year ago on November 10 been fighting with them to become reimburst for money spent to rebuild what i lost have done everything they have asked spent over $300 in mailings fed ex proof checks and misc things they needed all for them to say my ins chec wasnt endorsed properly # times seriously so when asked to resubmit it they said it was sent back to ins company when it didnt show up i called back and well to my surprise they lost it and now they have check number 4 but cant release it because i didnt have an inspection yet bull! i have had 4 inspections

    Stay away from BANK OF AMERICA they lie

  55. FOUR WORDS …………..WELLS FARGO HOME MORTGAGE!!

    I have followed your advice and their instructions to the letter.

    Once I began calling daily to check on my reimbursement for my out of pocket expenses on materials for my property they went back and brought up last years wind claim which they failed to closed nor did they order the final inspection.

    WOW! Will they do anything to keep the insurance check to enrich themselves?

    I thought the insured was not to be enriched was the whole purpose for the clause in mortgage contracts and to make sure the property is restored!

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.