Consumer complaint received 2020-11-09
Company: WELLS FARGO & COMPANY
State: TX
Product: Payday loan, title loan, or personal loan
Sub-product: Personal line of credit
Issue: Credit limit changed

Complaint:
Approximately 8 years ago, Wells Fargo spontaneously offered me a credit line of {$34000.00}. I accepted it and for the past 8 years I have paid an annual fee to retain access to it. I used it only once, in early XXXX, to the tune of a few thousand dollars for about three months. I was planning to use it for a second time this month to maintain cashflow on a major refurbishment project that is approaching completion, after which I am planning to sell the property ( which I own outright ). Out of the blue on XXXX XXXX I received a letter telling me that this line of credit was cancelled. No discussion or negotiation, no notice, and not even reduced - just entirely and facelessly cancelled. 

I called them to ask them to reconsider, but they told me it was because I hadnt used it for so long. However, if this was the case, why didnt they cancel it in the years between XXXX and XXXX when I never used it? I suspect that they canceled it because of Covid, which is particularly egregious since this is the time when people need help. Indeed, they present themselves as being available to help with such things.

Or they may have canceled it because my XXXX credit score has gone down during the course of XXXX from XXXX to XXXX. This is only because Im using a high percentage of my available credit. It is worth noting, however, that the amount of debt I am carrying is far, far less than that of most people with higher credit scores because I have no car loan and no mortgage ( and no rent because I own my house outright ). I am still, as I have for the last 35 years, making all of my payments on time. But 35 years of perfect credit behavior, owning three houses outright, having paid off two student loans and three mortgages early ( 2 of which were with Wells Fargo! ) : these factors dont seem to count at all! 

I am still the same highly responsible, fiscally sensible, conscientious, person of integrity I was eight months ago, when my credit score was in the 800s. But 35 years of positive records seem to have been completely overshadowed by this score that has become what defines me.

Yanking access to my 8-year-old perfectly-maintained Line of Credit with no warning and no negotiation has left me in a huge bind. I am {$15000.00} short to finish my renovation, which will enable me to sell my house and pay off the other debt I have taken on to finance this. I was counting on using the credit line to finance this ; without it, I dont know what I am going to do. 

It is also worth noting that the reason I had to finance this with credit cards in the first place is because Wells Fargo led me to believe I could do a cash out refinance on my property and dragged that out for 6 weeks before they informed me that cash-out refinancing on multi-family properties ( my house is a duplex ) are illegal in Texas! They are a bank. Shouldnt they have been able to tell me that when I first requested a loan rather than dragging things out for 6 weeks, making me assemble all kinds of paperwork and even pay fees before they realized they had set me chasing after a mortgage that was illegal and therefore impossible?!? During which time, on the understanding that I could get this cash out refinance, I had embarked on the major refurbishment and done enough demoing that there was no way back. I will file a separate complaint about this issue as well.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief