Consumer complaint received 2017-10-31
Company: UMPQUA HOLDINGS CORPORATION
State: WA
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Struggling to pay mortgage

Complaint:
To Whom It May Concern, I am a single mom with an XXXX son with XXXX XXXX As a result of the multiple interruptions from school, numerous XXXX appointments, and general disruptions to my work, I lost my job of a year in XXXX of XXXX. I immediately contacted my mortgage holder, Umpqua Bank, to determine my options. XXXX XXXX, of Umpqua Bank was initially very kind and helpful and advised me to enter into a sixth month forbearance program to allow me to search for work. He advised me to not pay on my mortgage during this time and that once I had a job we would put together a repayment plan. 

In XXXX of XXXX when I secured a full-time salaried position I attempted multiple times to contact XXXX XXXX and determine what steps I needed to take in order to become current on my mortgage and resume payments. XXXX XXXX was unreachable. At one point I went into my local branch and had them email XXXX XXXX directly. However, I was never able to speak with him directly. 

Shortly thereafter I learned my file was reassigned to someone named XXXX. She was also very difficult to reach and could only be reached via phone, if at all. Eventually, XXXX informed me that she would work on a mortgage modification plan for me and that if that was not workable she would work on a repayment plan. At no point did she or XXXX XXXX advise me of the amounts I would need to earn in order to qualify for either option. During our phone calls I specifically asked XXXX if I should resume making payments on my loan. She advised me that I should not make payments because she was pursuing a modification. Therefore, relying on her advice, I did not make payments. 

On XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX called me to tell me that she was not able to obtain approval for either a modification or a repayment plan and that they were going to begin foreclosure proceedings. After an extensive conversation I learned there are certain income ratios that they need to meet in order to approve either plan. None of this information was provided to me previously and I was therefore completely taken by surprise and unable to put myself in a position to successfully repay my mortgage. Part of the problem is that the unpaid balance is too high to qualify for a repayment plan. Had I know this would be a factor in being eligible for a repayment plan I would have made at least some payments during the period of forbearance to keep this balance lower. 

I currently work two jobs and have the capacity to add time to my second job. I feel very strongly that I was given false and misleading information by Umpqua Bank and its representatives and that this information has caused me extreme financial hardship and emotional distress. Umpqua Bank was never transparent about the consequences of a forbearance and never encouraged me to continue making payments in order to ensure I could meet financial requirements for a modification or repayment plan. In fact, they did exactly the opposite in specifically telling me not to continue to make any payments at all. Now I am facing foreclosure of my own and destruction of my credit that I have worked hard to build back to a decent place after a disastrous divorce and resulting bankruptcy. The actions of this institution are unconscionable and can not be in accordance with laws and regulations.

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief