Consumer complaint received 2017-05-24
Company: PLANET HOME LENDING, LLC
State: GA
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: FHA mortgage
Issue: Trouble during payment process

Complaint:
Loan # XXXX A tree fell on through my home in late XX/XX/XXXX causing a large amount of damage. As is customary, my insurer issued the claim check to planet home, my wife, and me. The draw process in its " loss draft '' department appears to be intentionally designed to withhold funds as long as possible. I believe Planet Home Lending ( the Company ) is engaged in a scheme to perpetrate a fraud, misappropriate funds, harm its borrowers, and deceive its stakeholders. At best, I believe the company is engaged in willful misconduct and gross negligence. As further described, the company 's loss mitigation ( related to insurance losses and remediation ) creates undo burden on its borrowers at their most vulnerable time. I have brought to light my concerns directly with the Company multiple times in phone calls and emails from which the Company has extensive records. I have offerred commercially reasonable resolutions at every point of contingency. My efforts have been entirely rebuffed. One staff member of the Company has been better than all the others, XXXX XXXX. Should this complaint result in negative consequences for staff, I strongly assert that she should be excluded from such consequences. Her hands are simply tied by the policies and processes of the company, and she has no authority to act in a more reasonable manner. My experience with the Company 's " loss draft '' department has led me to conclude that the only remaining reasonable explanation for their ineptitude is to withhold funds as long as possible. The Company appears to operate with intentional inefficiency, both in action and negligence, and I ask that steps be taken by its regulators to cause the company to immediately caese and desist its harmful behavior, be formally penalized by its regulators, remedy this process, and compensate me for excess costs and other damages I have incurred as a result of their actions and negligence. Regulatory Issues : While I 'm not certain as to whether my loan is FHA, XXXX XXXX, or otherwise government-backed, I believe the company 's loss mitigation draw process is in violation of several XXXX XXXX requirements both in spirit and letter. I have not gone further in my research on other XXXX XXXX requirements, but I will. XXXX XXXX requires that servicers deposit funds from loss claim checks in an interest bearing, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX account. In the Company 's " Claim Procedure Packet '', there is no mention that this is done. Further, the funds are required to accrue at a market rate and be remitted to me and my wife following completions of the repairs provided the servicer receives appropriate documentation of completion and release of liens. This appears to be intentionally omitted from the Company 's Claim Procedure Packet. These facts have also never been mentioned in conversation with any staff with the Company, which appears to intentionally avoid an expectation of such, no matter how trivial the amount. XXXX XXXX requires that for loss claims over {$2500.00} : servicer must release an initial disbursement of insurance loss proceeds of 25 % of the total insurance loss proceeds but no more than {$10000.00}, and must disburse the remaining funds in increments not to exceed 25 % of the insurance loss proceeds following inspection of the repairs. My initial draw amount exceeded {$10000.00}, thanks to the speed of my contractor. The Company attempted to make me feel like they were doing me a huge favor in doing so, as a rebuttle to my assertion of how ridiculous their check cutting process is. The process of putting the check in the mail takes a minimum of 3 days. This does not include the two days following receipt of the inspection report. I was told that the company approves the check on " day 1 '', cuts the check on " day 2 '', and puts the check in the mail on " day 3 ''. I was further told that the Company did not have the ability to wire funds, in spite of my willingness to cover the costs. This was a clear lie. The company simply chooses not to do so, presumably so as to ensure maximum float on the check. The first draw amount was a violation of at least one XXXX XXXX  requirements ( admittedly, to my minor benefit ). My second draw over 25 % of the total amount, was another violation. I was told at the outset that any claim damage amount over {$10000.00}, requires the company to issues draws as repairs progress and after periodic inspection. As a XXXX, I understand that this is reasonable. What is egregiously unreasonable is that there are only TWO draws allowed. Once at 50 % completion and once at 98 %.  The Company 's " loss draft '' procedures state that draws are generally done 1/3 at a time. I understand the nature of the word " generally '', but the company has flatly stated its absurd " 50 %, 98 % '' policy multiple times in conversation. Undo Harm and Refusal to Make Commercially Reasonable Efforts to Resolve Disputes : When I challenged the company on how somebody without means to front repair costs, I was told that they try to work with those who ca n't. They have not. I have had to exhaust my credit lines in order to fund these repairs. Borrowing the money has caused me to incur interest charges. I 've been given every excuse possible for the absurdities of the process, and have had to front up to approximately {$20000.00} of my own money prior to reimbursement. Further, I 've been required to pay additional fees for the company 's own inspections. I 've been forced to pay for overnight delivery of reimbursement checks, which, to my detriment, was not followed through on by the company with the most recent draw. I had to escalate this problem to a manager twice, was promised it was taken care of, lied to about the company not having the ability to wire money, found ( after a lack of follow up from the manager ) that the check had gone out regular mail in spite of promise to the contrary, argued with about the need to immediately stop payment on that check and overnight a new one, then lied to again about the arrival date of the overnight. Both checks ( the one on which a stop payment was placed and the overnighted check ) arrived within one day of each other. I have been at 96 % completion for three weeks, and the Company has made no effort to contact me proactively to issue my final check. They are also currently withholding my check for the depreciation portion of my claim. I was assured that they would reach out soon after the last draw, and they have not. This whole process, begun around the beginning of XX/XX/XXXXwith FULL required paperwork provided to the Company, has caused my contractor to slow because of my inability to continue drawing on credit lines to fund him. My credit score has declined significantly as a result of line usage, and one of my card issues has reduced my credit line. These are long-lasting, damaging effects of the Company 's process over and above the additional monetary costs. Potential Criminality : The process is so obstructive that I can think of no other reason that Planet Home is using liquidity provided by the loss claims checks to bolster and perhaps leverage its own balance sheet. I have incurred costs as a result of the Company 's willful misconduct including interest on credit cards, damage to my credit score, extreme delay in completing repairs, costs of overnight envelopes, emotional damage, and legacy effects as a result of decline of my credit. On XX/XX/XXXX, I utilized the Company 's complaint section on its website to lodge a formal complaint. I felt compelled to do this because I was not offered a way to do so over the phone. After requesting such and waiting on hold 10 minutes, I decided the company likely did not have an adequate process in place ( in spite of it being regulatorily required ), and that I and the Public would be better served putting it in writing. Though this complaint is far more extensive, much of the wording accusing the Company of criminal behavior and potential civil and regulatory action should have caused it to reach the highest management levels. I should have also received an immediate response if for nothing else than to state that it was being reviewed. I have received no response Sometime in the last week ( XX/XX/XXXX ), I received a sales call from the company asking if I wanted to look at refi options. I declined and told them I had filed a formal complaint with the company, received no response, and asked that the agent raise the issue up. I have still received no follow-up. Coincidentally, in XX/XX/XXXX of this year, CFPB issued an enforcement action against the Company naming it a party to an illegal scheme that sounded eerily similar to the sales call I received ( and have received several times in the past ). XXXX XXXX XXXX I am not an attorney, and I have not yet involved one. I seek reasonable resolution to my personal losses and damages caused by the company. I also seek injunctive action from its regulators and further investigation into the reason it operates in this manner. I believe there is a strong likelihood of criminality at the core of my seemingly small problem, and I hope that this will be handled appropriately.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation