Consumer complaint received 2024-01-21
Company: SELECT PORTFOLIO SERVICING, INC.
State: MN
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Trouble during payment process
Sub-issue: Escrow, taxes, or insurance

Complaint:
I was laid off from my job during the XXXX pandemic in XX/XX/XXXX. I had requested assistance from my mortgage company, Select Portfolio Servicing, as I was not able to make ends meet on Unemployment. I was approved for the Unemployment Program which granted me a temporary forbearance plan which allowed me to make a reduced payment in the amount of {$640.00} beginning on XX/XX/XXXX. I was not provided the details of this plan that I was only paying principal and interest and nothing was going to my escrow and I would have to pay all the escrow back. This caused a large negative balance in my escrow account. I received an escrow analysis from Select Portfolio showing my escrow was short and I would need to pay an additional XXXX each payment over the next 24 months to compensate the shortage and at the end of the year XXXX, my escrow shortage would be satisfied. 

In XXXX my payment was increased significantly, I divided my payment up into bi-weekly payments rather than a monthly payment which I had spoken to Select Portfolio about many times. I tried to set it up with them to automatically deduct my payments from my checking that way which I was told they could only do a monthly automatic payment from my checking account. I was then directed to set it up with my bank through Bill Pay which I did. My mortgage payment was {$1200.00} which {$600.00} went to Principal and Interest, {$470.00} went to the regular escrow account, {$200.00} went towards the escrow shortage. Please see attached documents I paid {$650.00} bi weekly which was a total of {$1300.00} per month which was more than what my payment was. When they would receive the first check in the amount of {$650.00}, they applied the {$600.00} appropriately to the principal & interest and the additional {$49.00} to escrow. However, when I sent the second half of the payment ( {$650.00} ), they did not apply the funds correctly and applied it to the principal and interest again and nothing to my escrow. This went on for several months before I was aware of the problem. When I called Select Portfolio at the end of XXXX to check to see if my escrow shortage was now satisfied, they told me I had a shortage of {$10000.00}. I knew there was a problem because I was paying and extra {$200.00} per month the entire year of XXXX to satisfy the escrow shortage so how can I now have even a bigger escrow shortage. 

I have asked Select Portfolio to fix this as this is their error for not managing my account correctly and I have not been able to get them to fix it. They just sent me a new escrow analysis which now my mortgage payment has climbed to {$1600.00}. This is a payment I can not manage monthly and need them to go back and disperse the funds as they were supposed to in the first place. In many months that I made payments they show the transaction history of no funds being applied or show it as an unapplied amount. 

Could you please help me address this with Select Portfolio as I have had nothing but trouble with this mortgage company since my loan was sold to them. I was previously with XXXX XXXX and I never had these issues.

Company public response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation