In 1999 we considered refinancing our home to make improvements, and went to many sources to obtain a loan. After several attempts, we were contacted by The Money Source and were able to refinance. We were told that it would be in our best interest to obtain a debt consolidation loan. This would allow us to use more of the equity built up in our home (our home was less than $7000 away from being fully paid for) and we could use whatever is remaining for the improvements we wanted to make. Decision One Mortage Company, LLC in Charlotte, NC assisted us in the loan and closing. The balance of the original mortage was paid as well as credit card and car loans that were outstanding. We borrowed $53,100 and received $11,215.95 toward our home improvement project.
The cost of the addition to our home exceeded the amount we borrowed against the equity of our home, and we were left with the shell of a room that we were unable to complete. We contacted the Money Source again in hopes of obtainining a loan to complete the project. Our second mortgage was prepared by Bank One of Columbus, OH. This loan was for $77,430 of which we received $18,776.44. We completed the addition to our home in 2001 and paid our mortgage payments without any problems. About a year or two into the loan, it was transferred to Ocwen Bank. During this time our income changed, and we were 45 days or more behind in our mortgage. It was during a review of a bill that I was informed that the loan agreement that we signed was a simple interest loan. At the second closing, it was not clearly explained the impact a simple interest loan has on the loan principle. When Ocwen attempted to forclose on our home I become aware that after making payments over the past four years that more than 70% of our mortgage payments were being applied to interest. It was also then that I discovered that nearly $1200 in fees due to the forclosure proceedings was attached to our monthly bill.
We are unable to pay more than the monthly bill. Because we can not pay the fees, we are unable to bring the account current to take advantage of the simple interest function of the loan which would allow us to pay off the principle of the loan early. We have been unsuccessful in our attempts to refinance for better terms due to the amount of the balance of our present loan (nearly $70,000) and because of our current credit beacon scores.
Until today I had been unaware of the action being taken against this lender. I have always believed that we were victims of preditory lending, but had no avenue of recourse. I don't expect to recover anything financially; I just want to be able to keep my home. I share my story in an effort to help as many as possible. Even if our situation does not change, maybe it could prevent others from finding themselves in the position we are in.
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