Consumer complaint received 2020-08-24
Company: Freedom Mortgage Company
State: FL
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: VA mortgage
Issue: Trouble during payment process

Complaint:
InXX/XX/2020 - we were in the process on finding another Home Insurance provider - we secured another insurance company XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX - We secured the new insurance byXX/XX/2020 - the month in which Freedom Mortgage paid our insurance premium to the new company. The new payment was {$880.00} - compared to the old payment to XXXX XXXX of {$2300.00} - a {$1400.00} difference. Yet, out mortgage payment did not change - I called Freedom Mortgage to inquiry about this as we had received a NOTICE from them on Friday - XXXX XXXX - informing us that if we did not have Home Insurance - they would select one for us -and it could be at a substantial cost increase. Thus, I called today,XX/XX/2020 - to clarify that we had " new coverage '' that should have been informed of -via the new insurance company. They had been and their agent - XXXX ID # XXXX - assured me that they were sending another Notice out to us stating they had been informed and all is fine. I then inquired about the lack of change in our mortgage payment to reflect the change in our insurance premiums. She indicated she would put in an inquiry for me on a Mortgage Analysis and I asked why had such not been done when there was a substantial difference in what had been paid out from our Escrow account inXX/XX/2020 She could not answer that simply stating she would request the Analysis. She then went on to inform me that a Analysis had been done last year and our Escrow was {$120.00} short - which was added to our mortgage. My husband and I were not aware of that and did not authorize them to roll any additional amounts into our mortgage. {$120.00} - shortage we would have paid in one additional payment. She could not explain - how it was just added to our mortgage or Escrow account without our authorization as the clients. Additionally, I inquired if they ( FM ) can just add an amount to our mortgage or Escrow account without our permission, Then why is the opposite NOT true when there is an over balance in Escrow - as what would have occurred in XX/XX/2020 - since our taxes did not change and our home insurance was significantly less. Thus,. my complaint is that our Mortgage payment has not changed since XX/XX/2020 and there is or should be over! XXXX left in our Escrow account - since XXXX - It is not XXXX - XXXX payment is due and it has not been altered in any manner to reflect the adjustments to our Mortgage payments that should have occurred in XXXX or by the XXXX payment. Is there some ethical or legal obligation from the Freedom Mortgage to inform us and return the balance to us - when our Escrow account had an overage of over {$1400.00} and yet, the charge us {$120.00} + interest on what they claim is an under payment to our Escrow account. That does not seem ethical or legal that Freedom Mortgage can retain our excess Escrow payments without any notice to us - unless we request a Mortgage Analysis. The over payments are monies we paid and should be repaid to us with interest. And I still question the company 's ability to put a underpayment of {$120.00} against our loan payment - or Escrow payment without our consent.

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