Consumer complaint received 2021-10-01
Company: WELLS FARGO & COMPANY
State: VA
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Closing on a mortgage

Complaint:
This complaint centers around the recent mortgage process through Wells Fargo Bank, which I have been a customer of since XXXX. This is the fifth mortgage that I have been through with Wells Fargo and has absolutely been the most frustrating and now has inflicted significant financial pain to me in the process. My wife and I were in the process of buying a home in the spring of XXXX, which was an extremely busy time period for both sales and purchases in the XXXX Florida area that we were looking for and we planned months in advance with Wells Fargo for a mortgage approval given our long-standing history with this financial institution. 

To recap this comedy of errors, we initially notified Wells Fargo Bank, with whom I have both a Private Mortage Banker and a Private Investment Counselor, in XXXX of XXXX. I was very concerned about the frenetic housing market in XXXX Florida  and our need to be able to move very quickly with a solid offer. We began the mortgage application process in XXXX and Wells Fargo was provided with all requested documents within a day or two of their requests, and their underwriting unit completed the review and approved our mortgage on XX/XX/XXXX. We advised Wells Fargo of the contract on the house we had located in XXXX XXXX, FL  on XX/XX/XXXX and indicated that the settlement would be the first part of XXXX, and confirmed the exact closing date of XX/XX/XXXX to Wells Fargo in a XX/XX/XXXX email. We were subsequently advised that Wells Fargo had scheduled the appraisal for XX/XX/XXXX, over a month later, and when I questioned the timeframe relative to the closing, Wells Fargo indicated that the appraisal was due back on XX/XX/XXXX. ( Given that six weeks had passed since the contract, the owner had moved all of his belongings out of the house and departed FL, without leaving a key to a locked pool half bath on the outside lanai area. We subsequently discussed this issue ad nauseam as it related to the overall appraisal and value of the house, and Wells Fargo ( WF ) ultimately granted a waiver on the outdoor pool half bath issue given that it was immaterial to the overall appraisal value. ) The appraisal report was then slated to be received by WF on XX/XX/XXXX, which it was not ; and then XX/XX/XXXX, which it was not ; and then XX/XX/XXXX, which it was not ; and was ultimately received on the evening of XX/XX/XXXX. Per our further recent exchanges with Wells Fargo regarding this appraisal, given the mandatory three-business-day review period under federal law, the closing was not able to occur as planned on XX/XX/XXXX. The seller had other offers pending and had advised that any extension of the closing date was not going to be granted. This debacle ultimately required a cash purchase of the house that was accomplished via an " 11th-hour fire drill '' by liquidating a portion of my IRA 's and diluting a portion of my PwC Partner Deposit Account that yielded me approximately {$16000.00} per year in interest, not to mention the loss of the mortgage interest deduction. To further exacerbate this situation, on the Friday before the ostensibly scheduled closing, I was informed that WF now required further revisions by this appraiser and the appraisal was being sent back to him. Given this appraiser 's stellar track record of incompetence and non-responsiveness, we absolutely would not get this back in time for the closing date, which was the following Monday, XX/XX/XXXX as mandated by the seller. So, to add insult to injury, Wells Fargo has now refused to refund me the {$690.00} fee that I prepaid for this appraisal, which was never received in time for the closing. This continuing disaster has caused immeasurable pain, frustration, financial hardship, and XXXX XXXX to my wife and me. I have tried, multiple times, to resolve this issue through the Wells Fargo complaint process, with absolutely no resolution whatsoever, and not even an interview of me to get my side of this unmitigated disaster. I have never been more disappointed in a financial institution in my entire life than I am with Wells Fargo. Although my history with this bank may be irrelevant, I have been a loyal WF customer for over 42 years, with their legacy institutions since XXXX, and have successfully obtained and paid off six different mortgages, while maintaining multiple high balance accounts and a nearly {>= $1,000,000} investment portfolio. I would also be remiss if I did not tell you that our realtors in both the XXXX and XXXX areas, along with several friends that had recently used Wells Fargo, strongly advised us against using Wells Fargo for a mortgage as, in their words, " they are the absolute worst in the entire industry. '' Naively, I assumed that all of the pre-work that was done for this mortgage as well as my long-standing relationship with Wells Fargo would count for something and that I would not be " victimized '' by Wells Fargo , but clearly, I was wrong. I will also be filing a detailed letter of complaint to WF CEO XXXX XXXX and WF CEO of Consumer Lending XXXX XXXX and look forward to their responses as to the callous indifference that Wells Fargo has displayed in this matter. I truly feel as though I have been an outstanding financial client for over four decades but am being dismissed by a big financial organization and would ask for your help in this matter. Very truly yours ... ... XXXX XXXX

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