Consumer complaint received 2017-11-09
Company: REGIONS FINANCIAL CORPORATION
State: MO
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: Home equity loan or line of credit (HELOC)
Issue: Applying for a mortgage or refinancing an existing mortgage

Complaint:
I applied for my first mortgage against a home in XXXX XXXX of XXXX. This was the first mortgage I had applied for, and the first mortgage that was going to be placed against my home. I needed to do some home renovations and updating. I filled out the application online with Regions Bank. I had XXXX existing accounts and a credit card with them, and had zero problems with them prior to this. 
I applied for a home equity load and within the week, and my fiance and I went into one of the local branches off bernedette to sign the application paperwork so I could get the process beginning. I had been preapproved for {$40000.00}, had a credit score of almost XXXX on my transunion report and a flawless payment history. I was told there was about {$80000.00} in equity in my home, the title was clear, and elected to take out a loan for {$35000.00}. I looked over the application and noticed it was for a home equity line of credit, and questioned this with the " personal banker '' XXXX XXXX. He said that a HELOC and home equity loan applications were the essentially, same process ect. He said the difference included a variable interest rate, that I did n't have to take out the full amount all at once and the draw/payment process. He said that at any time I could roll it over into a traditional home equity loan with a fixed rate and structured payment set. I signed and was out of the office in 10 minutes. He did n't give me a time frame on the amount of time it would take but a rough estimate of 3-4 weeks. So I waited. 
After 4 weeks, I had herd nothing from them so I called the XXXX number for online applications and inquired. I was told that I was approved pending paperwork, and was told that the local branch would be in contact with me to process this. I schedule some concrete work that needed to be done before winter came, assuming that I was approved. After another 2 weeks, now 6 weeks after applying, I still had herd nothing on signing the paperwork so I called again. Initially, they could n't find an application on me at all. I called the following day again and did some checking, they researched it, found it, and had me contact a loan XXXX at a different local branch in town off XXXX XXXX. I called and scheduled a time to meet a day or 2 later. When I met him, he explained to me that the previous banker that had helped me sign paperwork was let go a week or so after I had gone in to sign paperwork. He already knew that I had been approved, it was just pending signing paperwork and with the shuffle of terminating the previous employee, my paperwork got lost. I explained that I had been waiting over 6 weeks and needed to get some work done on the exterior before it got too cold outside to do it. He told me to take out a personal loan, and then when the paperwork for the home equity loan went through that they would just pull money from that to pay back the personal loan and it would n't adversely affect my credit. I agreed to the personal loan. and he said he would be in touch with me in the next day or two to sign home equity loan paperwork. By the end of the week I had n't herd anything back. I contacted again the local branch off XXXX again, he said he would check into it and call me back. 
The following week he called and said that the only loan XXXX that was available for me to sign had lost his daughter and wife in an accident the prior week, but the loan XXXX was going to come into the office on bernedette that day to sign paperwork with us. I met him over my lunch break went in and waited to meet. We sat for and waited almost an hour before he called us back to his office. He had the paperwork sat out told us to look over it, initial and sign where it was highlighted. He was stoic, and did n't ' explain much of anything. We asked about an insurance and taxes on the house he said we had to pay the insurance but the taxes would be paid out of the loan. We asked about the refinancing and said that we could refinance and take out more if needed, and as long as it was with regions there would n't be any charge backs for closing costs. We signed he said we had 72 hours to call and cancel, but then followed up that if we did cancel, we would be responsible for the {$8000.00} personal loan to be paid back in full by the end of the month. 
We ended up needing to use almost the entire balance of the HELOC to do the remodel, I started to get tax notices in the mail that needed to be paid. I called in XXXX about the tax notices, they said that it sometimes happens with new loans that the address does n't get updated and the notices get sent to us She gave us an address and a fax number to send them to and told us it would be taken care of and if we got anymore to just forward them on. My fiance had an accident at the end of XXXX and we had to get a new vehicle. In XXXX, we found out we had to pay sales tax on the new vehicle, I wanted to refinance my credit cards and we needed to finish renovations, so I called to refinance the heloc. I was told that I had to wait 6 months before reapplying for the finance. I though this was strange that I had to reapply as I was told I I could just refinance with no problems, but waited a couple of weeks to apply again. I called again a couple of weeks later to apply, did so over the phone and was denied. And was told it was because heloc was so new and not established yet. I was let go from my job about 4 weeks later in XXXX XXXX of XXXX. I scraped, not once falling behind on any of my bills and finally was able to regain employment the end of XXXX. I decided then try reapplying with another company, XXXX loans in XXXX. I filled out my application, and spoke with them. They denied me because I had n't been with my employer for at least 6 months ... 
In XXXX of XXXX, I recieved a notice that my house was going to be put up for Tax Auction later that year in XXXX for nonpayment of taxes. So I called regions to figure out what was going on. The representative told me that I was responsible for the taxes and insurance on the home and that with any HELOC, there is not an escrow nor did the bank pay them because they 're placed as XXXX mortgages on the home. And the primary mortgage had the escrow account that paid the taxes and Regions was n't responsible. I explained that it was the only mortgage on the home, and there was n't a primary she said it did n't matter and suggested refinancing it into a traditional mortgage. I waited the 6 months like quicken had said to do and in XXXX of XXXX, I needed to get some of my debts consolidated and pay the almost {$2000.00} in back property taxes now owed. My XXXX XXXX was dropping and refinancing looked to be the best option to relieve this. 
I called Regions again to refinance, explained the situation and was sent to the XXXX XXXX XXXX department. I told him my situation, that I needed to refinance the XXXX, get my credit cards paid off and explained the tax situation. I asked for an additional {$10000.00} on top of the {$32000.00} for the credit card debt and taxes. He told me that it should n't be a problem, with over half the equity still available and he could help. That it should n't take long for the credit report to come back and for him to speak with the loan officers on staff, and I waited on hold. He then came back on the line, and said that I had been denied, that my revolving balances on my credit accounts, including the regions HELOC was too high, and my income of {$40000.00} a year and credit score of XXXX was too low to refinance. I panicked. 
In XXXX I saw a commercial for an FHA backed refinance that was suppose to be for people with lower credit scores and income. I called XXXX XXXX, explained the situation, and they claimed they would be able to help. Went through all the paperwork and they order an appraisal of the house. I waited about XXXX weeks after applying and getting the paperwork for the appraisal, and he came out and accessed. XXXX XXXX came back after the appraisal that there was an unfinished bathroom, some places where drywall needed to be repaired and the house needed flooring, all in all about {$6000.00} total to finish the work before they could proceed. I did n't have any way to finish the repairs so I canceled the refinance. 
Shortly after canceling the refinance, I received another notice of the tax auction paperwork and called regions corporate office in XXXX of XXXX. I explained my situation to a lady in the department that deal 's exclusively with properties up for tax auction. I explained my story from beginning to end to her. She apologized over and over again for the situation Regions had put me in and decided to talk to somebody higher up to see what we could get done. 
I was contacted in XXXX by XXXX XXXX, a regional XXXX for the XXXX 's in my area. He had gotten the complaint and wanted to meet with us to make sure he understood everything right. I called and explained the situation of what happened and he elected to meet with us. We met with him XXXX XXXX at a local branch off XXXX. We once again explained the situation from beginning to end, and he apologized for all of the trouble we 've been having and wanted to see what he could do to make things right. The only thing we asked for was a refinance with cash out to pay off some debts so I could get my finances back under control. They were spiraling out and I did n't know what else to do. He mentioned that he recalled the loan XXXX losing his family, and the one employee being let go. He said that the HELOC 's are handled by a different part of Regions all together. There was a XXXX Mortgages and a Regions Bank. The HELOC was through the bank, and it should have been a home equity loan through the mortgage side. He said the only hangup now was the minimum XXXX being required on my credit score. He had us meet with a mortgage office, XXXX XXXX at the location off burnedette who pulled my credit score and it was at XXXX. He said there was n't anything he could do but he would relay the information on to XXXX and he would be in touch. XXXX called the following day and said that we needed to get some of the credit card debt paid down. That would bounce my credit score past the XXXX to refinance. He said he could n't do any form of debt consolidation loan for us and refereed us to a gentleman at XXXX XXXX giving us his name and number. 
I contacted onemain in XXXX of XXXX and got a plan together to get my credit cards paid down through a loan with them. We took out {$6000.00}, enough to pay the taxes and half my credit card debt, and paid them down. I took out the loan thinking it was going to be a short term loan and would turn around pay it off with the refinance. I waited for my credit scores to bounce back, and in XXXX of XXXX I contacted XXXX again. He had me meet with XXXX as before and I filled out another application. I was denied again, this time because my credit score on my equifax report was XXXX. My transunion report showed XXXX and experian showed XXXX, but the mean score was just below what they said was required. This still baffles me because this was shortly after it was released that equifax had the huge data breech. None of my accounts had updated on equifax since the Spring. I had also found a new job with a starting salary of {$48000.00} and still have perfect payment history. 
On top of all this, I 've had to call XXXX XXXX since XXXX of XXXX because they keep billing me for an 90 day insurance policy costing {$1600.00} on my home. My homeowners insurance has never lapsed and I 've been continuously insured since I got the home in XXXX of XXXX. I have faxed the paperwork as has my insurance agent. They will take it off, and then I see it charged again the following month. 
I 'm at a loss now as what to do ... I fear for losing my home as I 'm struggling to make ends meet as is. I did everything I was suppose to do, listened to what each representative from Regions was telling me to do followed through with what they were suggesting. Now on top of everything I have an additional {$270.00} a month loan payment with the additional credit card payments and the heloc. I was n't budgeting for all these, because it was suppose to be paid off They threatened in XXXX to close my credit card account, that of which has never been past due for a payment and only at 50 % credit utilization. It 's my longest open credit card account and would have damaged my credit every further had it been closed. I had to fight and fight to get them to keep that open. 
Bottom line, I followed the rules and researched, applied for a home equity loan, took the advice from the banker under the impression that it could be rolled over into a traditional home equity loan at any time with no problems. I was explained nothing by the mortgage office, who in my opinion should n't have been allowed to sign any paperwork with anybody under his personal circumstances, and pressured to not to reconsider under the 72 hours reconsideration time frame because of the personal loan I had taken out. I was told that the property taxes were going to be taken care of and they have n't been. Even after finding out I had to reapply, I tried reapplying 4 different times over the course of 18 months, but was denied because of the factors directly related to the HELOC. Called corporate and met with a regional XXXX who apologized for everything and wanted to make things right. Followed his advice, took out a different loan that I 'm now stuck with because, yet again, I was lied to and told incorrect information. 
My fiance is XXXX and I 'm barely keeping my head above the water and I do n't want to lose my home.

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 explanation