Consumer complaint received 2021-02-23
Company: Ocwen Financial Corporation
State: CA
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Struggling to pay mortgage

Complaint:
PHH Mortgage Services ( formerly Ocwen Loan Servicing ) and investor XXXXXXXX XXXX  have denied my affordable home loan modification application a number of times. I am applying for an affordable home loan modification because of financial hardship. However, I have the monthly income to cover an affordable home loan modification. 

PHH denials to my application occurred in XXXX, XXXX, XXXX, XXXX, and the most recent one in XXXX of XXXX. They assert that I do not qualify for this affordable home loan modification due to my debt-to-income ( D-to-I ) ratio. 

My current D-to-I is 1 %. If I had an affordable home loan modification monthly payment and included my two existing monthly credit card payments, my D-to-I would be 33 %. 

When I finish paying off my credit cards and pay only an affordable home loan modified monthly mortgage payment, my D-to-I would be 29 %. 

According to published accounts, the D-to-I ratios I cite above are highly acceptable to mortgage lenders since they are smaller than 36 %.

Several weeks ago, PHH emailed me offering to explain their calculations for arriving at an unacceptable D-to-I ratio for me. I immediately responded asking PHH to send me those calculations. As of this writing, I have not received them. 

My Ocwen Mortgage monthly payment in XX/XX/XXXX was {$3400.00} a month. Due to my financial hardship, I wanted to extend that affordable home loan. I made my first affordable home loan modification application in XX/XX/XXXX. The original home affordable modified loan was to terminate in XX/XX/XXXX. 

However, Ocwen declined my application. I kept on applying but was continually rejected/declined. And then, Ocwen started invoicing me for a {$10000.00} a month mortgage payment, which I could not make due to my financial difficulties. 

As Ive continued to apply for an affordable home loan modification and been turned down, Ocwen/PHH has continued to invoice me to the point the back payments PHH alleges a total of over {$380000.00}. This amount includes past monthly payments, penalties and escrow. 

This {$380000.00} that PHH alleges I owe is ridiculous and they are only playing a game with me because they are to blame for not helping me to obtain an affordable home loan modification. 

In truth, I feel I owe only for back payments of {$3400.00} per month mortgage ( see attachment ) and escrow at {$890.00} a month. Total amount I feel is back owed is : {$82000.00} for mortgage back payments and {$21000.00} for escrow for a total of {$100000.00}. 

My original principal balance on my mortgage is {>= $1,000,000}. 

Based on PHHs home loan modification promotions, I feel PHH can provide me an affordable home loan modification based on the existing principal balance of {>= $1,000,000} with the addition of {$100000.00} for a total principal balance of {>= $1,000,000}. 

I strongly believe, and sense PHH Mortgage Servicing and Deutsche Bank are either using predatory lending practices or imposing housing/racial discrimination and have used the increased mortgage payments as a tool to intimidate me and to deny me an affordable home loan modification. 

To support my allegations, please XXXX has PHH Mortgage and XXXX XXXX been accused of racial discrimination. See following links : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX These instances involving XXXXXXXX XXXX, Ocwen , and PHH deal with generic XXXX discrimination and people of color. I fall into this category since XXXX Americans are people of color and definitely not white. Therefore, these published accounts add strength to my belief that PHH Mortgage and XXXX XXXX  are applying either predatory lending practices or racial discrimination to discourage my request for an affordable home loan modification application.

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