Consumer complaint received 2018-06-25
Company: JPMORGAN CHASE & CO.
State: MO
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Struggling to pay mortgage

Complaint:
COMPLAINT FORM STATUS Complaint No. XXXX Business Name Chase I previously contacted the Consumer Protection Division of the Office of Attorney General in regard to a complaint. The matter has not been settled to my satisfaction. The value of property I received or the amount of my indebtedness canceled is : $ NONE, in fact, the new predatory modification extended our terms to a predatory FORTY YEARS, has a predatory rate of 5.65 % ( compared to a fair market rate of 4.04 % when we first applied ) a PREDATORY total repayment of {$350000.00}!!! Prior to the predatory modification, our principal balance was {$130000.00}, after, {$140000.00}! 
If the matter has NOT been settled, please briefly explain the current status of your complaint. 
It is NOT settled : 1. On XX/XX/XXXX we received a creepy voice-mail message from XXXX XXXX at Chase that they are getting close to the actual figure and are a few number of days off in getting the figure, but they have confirmed the actual formula. They will definitely call us back when they figure out the number and again emphasized they were still a few days off of a concrete correct calculation. This is after nearly two months of requests of Chase trying to locate the claimed {$1600.00} in delinquent interest. WE HAVE RETAINED THE RECORDING. 
2. On XX/XX/XXXX we received a call from XXXX XXXX at Chase. 
In this RECORDED call, he confirmed the following : The interest was current for the payment made XX/XX/XXXX. Prior to modification. 
There was no crediting of interest/principal/escrow on the initial modification payment posted on XX/XX/XXXX. He concurs that it is in a slush fund, he termed it as going to unapplied funds. He confirmed that there was no credit for interest. Nothing to principal. Nothing ever applied. 
The interest was current for the payment made XX/XX/XXXX. 
The interest was current on the payment made XX/XX/XXXX. 
The interest was current on the payment made XX/XX/XXXX. The first modification payment. 
3. FBI Mortgage Fraud division notified. If Chase is skimming a few thousand dollars on average off each modification and calling it an interest charge, it would add up to a multimillion-dollar scheme. It is small change for Chase, as they usually deal in billions. 
4. In their XX/XX/XXXX response, Chase claims that there was {$1600.00} in past due interest. The account is XXXX. The last payment prior to the modification credited {$240.00} in interest to the account. The problem is that they claimed that there was no principal and interest paid on the XX/XX/XXXX payment, a fact carefully concealed. The second trial payment credited {$240.00} and the third {$240.00}. All trial payments were paid as scheduled or earlier. No payments were missed during the process. Chase has taken another predatory action, concealing {$1600.00} and adding it to our account. 
5. We were told to pay the trial payments for the modification before we could see the terms. A predatory action. Using the market rate of 4.04 % that was available when this process started in XX/XX/XXXX, Chase had the option of offering a payment of $ XXXX/month for the predatory term saving us a potential {$70000.00}. More importantly, they had the ability to offer a fair market adjustment for 360 months saving us {>= $1,000,000}. The best, fairest plan, would have been to offer 300 months at $ XXXX/month. This would save us {$130000.00} over the term of the loan and offer them a still fair profit of {$83000.00}. Instead, they chose the predatory route. Chase now claims rate offered going into the modification was 5.4 %, final rate 5.65 % resulting in another {$11000.00} over charge. 
6. Chase noted that after an apparent cursory review, that we had received refinance pre-qualifications and /or inquired about refinancing but took no action. If they had taken the time to review the first mortgage we had with them at the time, they would have noted many other attempts dating to late XXXX or early XXXX. They claim we did not respond and send in the documentation. The fact is that when we inquired, we were informed that because the property value had dropped significantly we did not qualify. After we paid off the Chase first mortgage and tried again, the property value was still too low. Chase claimed that we could not participate in any of the government sponsored programs because they held a second-mortgage. They did not care that it was the only mortgage on the property and by definition a first mortgage. 
How a loan is originated does not define its position. Another predatory action by Chase. They also claimed that we could not use the programs because the loan was not held by XXXX or XXXX. While this is true, as late in the process as the day before we signed the modification, Chase representatives were still confused about if they owned the loan or not. Predatory incompetence. 
7. It has been determined that Chase owns the mortgage. They also claim that they were mistaken when they claimed that pre-qualifications exist. They now claim they were merely inquiries. False statements to Federal and State agencies as well as officials. 
8. If Chase would have offered a simple streamline mortgage in XX/XX/XXXX when originally requested, on a 15-year term using 3.44 as the average rate over the last 15 years, the balance would be {$65000.00}. The predatory actions by Chase have cost us {$74000.00}!!! 
9. Chase has been approach countless times to adjust the due date. A simple change that would also have saved us thousands. Chase refused, another predatory action.

Chase owns the mortgage. We made the mistake of paying the mortgage, if we had not, there would apparently been many more Chase options available to us. Chase has overcharged us through their predatory actions {$74000.00}. The predatory modification can only be described as ridiculous by charging {$110000.00} more than a fair market offer. The answer is a principal reduction of {$74000.00}, leaving a balance of {$65000.00} to be paid back with a term of 9 years and a payment if $ XXXX/month. Predatory lending is still going strong at Chase, it is far past the time to demand a change. 
Address : XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXXXXXX, MO XXXX XXXX XXXX Advocate : XXXX XXXXXXXX Chase Account : XXXX cc : Senator XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation