This could happen to you, too, so read carefully.
Wells Fargo Home Mortgage refused to turn my girlfriend's 15 year mortgage into a 30 year mortgage after she became disabled and her husband abandoned her.
She had an income of 1300.00 from disability. Her mortgage was 1265.47 under the 15 year note and was impossible for her to pay on the note, obviously.
The inevitable happens, foreclosure proceedings are initiated. She tries to have the courts force the deadbeat ex pay his half of the debt, no way says the judge. He did, though, order 800.00 per month in support. I talked the ex into signing over his interest in both properties they jointly owned. (don't ask)
She is given notice of default and intent to sell property by trustee sale. After the usual period of time, 2-3 months, as the last days to reinstate the loan are quickly approaching, she has finally made arrangements to sell her home through a real estate brokerage.
Four days before the cut off date, contact is made by the real-estate office to the lawyers for wells fargo, Loanstar Mortgagee co., an extension is asked for, in order to close escrow and pay off the debt.
Did I mention it two weeks to get the reinstatement fee information from Loanstar? Or that it cost an extra 4,000.00 for those two weeks? I had little confidence in their ability to obtain the extension for us, and said so.
Let's skip to the last day, after being repeatedly told that word was expected any time from wfhm, my girlfriend and I said to each other... Hey, they are going to try to sell the house out from under us!
The real estate agent who, we found out, worked for the brokerage that had delivered the notice of trustee sale and nailed it to our door, tried to reassure us all was well. She had assured us that if the extension was not made available to us, her broker would loan the money to us to cover the reinstatement fee.
We hadn't told her we had the reinstatement fee already. We would rather have the extension, and save the money for any emergencies.
An honest operator at wells fargo home mortgage told us that the lawyers NEVER EXTEND TIME UPON NOTICE OF SALE. So, it was a lie, the r.E. Agent had no intention of paying a cent. They played us for fools. I believe they played a part in trying to make us lose the home at the upcoming trustee sale.
After that, my girlfriend went to Wells Fargo Bank, reinstatement fee in hand, to have the money wired to the lawyers for wells fargo. Guess what? They would not accept a wire transfer from the parent company of the company that had hired them to collect the debt in the first place. The bank manager, personally, appealed to them to accept the transfer.
The s.O.B.'s tried to say they had no means of accepting an electronic transfer! Get real, this is the 21st century. I had told my girlfriend that she still had a shot. The sale was 6 days away, this was a Friday, and she needed to send the payment, via overnight mail, to the lawyers.
In California, if your cut off day is on a weekend, you get until the next working court day to make your payment. If, on the 5th day preceeding the sale, you have the funds available to the persons who demanded payment, even though it is a saturday, and they are not there to receive the payment they have demanded be made on that date, they cannot claim payment was not timely made, even if they tell you Friday is the last day, it is not.
Tuesday morning, after memorial weekend, wfhm tried to say the funds were being returned and the sale would continue. I told them if the chose to do so, they would be making a huge mistake, one that would cost them dearly. Not only would they owe my girlfriend the money for the home and damages, the press would have a field-day with the story and public opinion would cause them untold grief.
I explained the exact circumstances of the payment being there, in Texas, on the date required, and that the lawyers had failed to arrange for someone to be there to accept the mail, as required, when they have demanded that payment be made there 5 DAYS BEFORE THE SALE.
Several hours later, we were notified that the checks were accepted, the loan was reinstated, and the sale was off. That was today, by the way.
I still have to appear at the courthouse steps tomorrow, check receipts in hand, recordings of the wells fargo operators stating the reinstatement was made, and the Loanstar operators saying the same thing on tape.
If the trustee is there, I am sure he/she will be swayed to not go forward. After all, he loses, if he has reasonable doubt, and continues with the sale. It's his butt that is on the line then.
Long story cut somewhat short? Don't ever allow yourself to be suckered in by anyone promising to handle YOUR BUSINESS.
Talk is cheap, actions count, and I am going to take action against every one of these entities in any manner available. I'm done now, I wish you all the best in whatever mess you find yourself in with these parasites.
Chuck
el cajon, California
U.S.A.
0 comments