Consumer complaint received 2018-04-21
Company: REGIONS FINANCIAL CORPORATION
State: AL
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Closing on a mortgage

Complaint:
I was a first time home buyer with very limited knowledge on the many variables of buying a home so all my trust and guidance came from the professionals. My mortgage loan originator XXXX XXXX XXXX # XXXX was amazing in guiding me throughout this journey but made a costly ( for me ) mistake. While we were going through the process to finalize on a home I noticed on a cost estimate that she sent me was significantly higher than what we originally agreed upon. I immediately emailed her asking for an explanation to which she called me on her personal cell to assist. She explained that the previous owner did not have the home listed as homestead so the property taxes were at that time double. I grew very apprehensive and was going to back out of the deal but she assured me this was an easily resolvable matter. At that time she explained to me that all I had to do was simply file for homestead once I purchased the home and send regions mortgage servicing department that documentation ; by doing so my taxes would immediately be adjusted to to reflect half the amount it was currently showing. Regions serving department would then adjust my loan payment and refund me all funds that were paid in excess due to the taxes being doubled. She explained this process may take up to three months but I could expect for my payment to be reduce well before that year was out. I asked her at least three more times on different occasions to confirm what she told me and each time she said the same. My realtor will attest to the fact she witnessed XXXX verbally tell me that my taxes would be adjusted in XXXX and I would be for reimbursed over payment. I closed on my home XX/XX/XXXX. The day after I moved in I went to my county tax assessor, filed homestead and faxed that documentation over to expedite the process. After waiting several weeks with no response I reached out to Regions for a follow up and was told that document provided nothing for them to adjust my rate and that they needed a form with " numbers ''. I asked for a clearer explanation for what they needed but was not provided any assistance. I called several more times throughout XXXX speaking to several different reps and each time no assistance was provided. I was spoken to like I was ignorant when in fact I was just very misled. Each time I spoke to an agent they assured me once I submitted a form with my new tax number on it I would be reimbursed for the double tax that I had been paying all of XXXX. It wasn't until XXXX when the county reassessed taxes that I was given a new number to send in. I faxed that over to Regions XX/XX/XXXX and asked when I could expect my refund for the previous year and it wasn't until then that their story changed. It was finally explained to me how property taxes work and how the rate at the time of closing was accurate and I would not receive a new tax rate until the county analyzes once a year. There is no way I would have agreed to this home knowing that I would have to go a full year paying doubled taxes. I spoke to a manger, filed a formal complaint explaining where the initial miscommunication from my loan originator caused me a major financial burden. They found no fault in their representative but instead insisted that fault was in my comprehension. They made no attempt to understand how I was misled. I knew not to question what I was told because like I stated this was a first time experience for me. The entire time I was speaking to the representative to gain a resolution she over talked me and kept re-explaining the process of property taxes. The issue is simple : had the loan originator clearly explained the process in the beginning and not lead me to believe that my monthly rate would be adjusted in XXXX to reflect me filing homestead I would not be out of almost {$800.00}. At the time of closing in XXXX the property taxes were {$1800.00}. When the taxes were reanalyzed for XXXX they are adjusted to XXXX. When I closed on my home, my monthly mortgage payment was {$1000.00} and was adjusted in XX/XX/XXXX to {$940.00}. That is a difference for {$79.00}. Consider that I payed that amount fromXX/XX/XXXX-XX/XX/XXXX that is {$790.00} that I fully expected to receive back.

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