Consumer complaint received 2018-06-20
Company: M&T BANK CORPORATION
State: VA
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: Home equity loan or line of credit (HELOC)
Issue: Struggling to pay mortgage

Complaint:
Re : M & T Bank HELOC Loan HARP Loan Modification Wrongful and Intentional Denial Complaint of Unfair Practices with Malicious and Intentional Actions to Foreclose To Whom it may Concern : Please accept this letter and the attached documentation to the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau as an official complaint against M & T Bank for wrongfully and intentionally denying me a HAMP loan modification and refusing to offer me any other options in order to expedite a foreclosure of our home located at in  XXXX, VA. 

Based upon the conditions in order to qualify for a HAMP Loan Modification, the following supports my qualification for a HAMP Loan Modification : a ) After over three years of being unemployed, liquidating and utilizing all my financial assets for living expenses and filing for personal bankruptcy in XX/XX/XXXX and falling behind more than 3 monthly mortgage payments on both the first and second mortgages, clearly this satisfies the hardship requirement to qualify for a HAMP Loan Modification. 
b ) I provided paystubs from employment beginning in XX/XX/XXXX to support a modified payment. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, M & T sent me a letter of denial of loan modification stating that your income shows you can support your current mortgage payment. The letter also said that if I was interested in additional options for my property to call the M & Ts Homeowner Assistance Center at XXXX. The letter is attached as part of this complaint. 

The following history and facts provide proof that M & T had no intention of approving me for a HAMP Loan Modification. Clearly, it is M & T Banks intention to force me into a foreclosure. Their actions support their unfair practice of dual tracking, pursuing foreclosure at the same time they are acting like they are considering you for a loan modification and once they deny your application, the 30 day wait period begins and they will take foreclosure action immediately. 

Immediately after receiving the denial letter, I called their Homeowner Assistance Center on XX/XX/XXXX and they could not find my file or loan. I called three times and spoke with XXXX at ext XXXX. During both of the first 2 calls, she said she could not find my file after providing both my social security number and loan ID number and would place me on hold. Both times, I had thought she was trying to transfer me to another department but each time she disconnected the call but no call back from her. The third time I called, I asked to speak with a manager and was placed on hold for a long time and then disconnected. Again, no call back. M & T had no intention on assisting with other options other than foreclosure. 

Prior to my Chapter XXXX bankruptcy dismissal on XX/XX/XXXX : a ) M & T filed a motion of relief from automatic stay on XX/XX/XXXX. The motion requested the bankruptcy court to permit the foreclosure process to begin. M & T stated that due to the bankruptcy, the loan terms changed from an interest only loan to a principal plus interest loan. M & T, required by bankruptcy law to communicate all actions or changes of the loan terms with my lawyer, made no attempt to communicate this with my lawyer before filing the motion with the court. Therefore, I was required to find several personal sources to lend me money to have the motion withdrawn. M & T retroactively required principal and interest in the amount of {$4500.00}. {$3000.00} was paid on XX/XX/XXXX and the remaining {$1500.00} on XX/XX/XXXX. They also knew that based upon my situation, it would be extremely difficult to come up with a lump sum of cash in that amount and their intent was to foreclose. They also refused a loan modification at that time because I was still unemployed. 

b ) Once the bankruptcy was dismissed on XX/XX/XXXX, I contacted M & T Loss Mitigation groups several times to discuss a loan modification. They continued to tell me that they were unable to speak with me directly due to bankruptcy laws and could only communicate to my lawyer. Unfortunately, my lawyer charges $ XXXX/hr and coming out of bankruptcy, I could not keep incurring legal fees. 

c ) I contacted M & T Loss Mitigation on XX/XX/XXXX and finally was able to speak ( they confirmed the XX/XX/XXXX discharge and agreed to have direct communication with me ) with XXXX to let them know I found employment and would resume payments and told them I would pay {$500.00} every 2 weeks to begin catching up and also would like to negotiate a loan modification. He  could only inform me that a lump sum was due immediately and the loan was in foreclosure status. He did tell me to contact my account rep, who was XXXX and gave me her direct phone number of XXXX x XXXX. I immediately called her on XX/XX/XXXX but spoke with XXXX. I told XXXX I was calling to discuss loan medication to stop the foreclosure proceedings. She gave XXXX the message and XXXX later called me back to inform me that she was sending me a loan modification application. 

d ) I informed XXXX that XXXX, who is the primary mortgage lender on the home, spoke with me on XX/XX/XXXX and agreed to a loan modification over a 15 minute phone conversation and provided a fixed 4.5 % rate but required 3 on time payments in order for the loan modification terms to take effect. Her  response was that M & T took a more thorough approach to approving a loan modification. I responded by saying that a bankruptcy discharge just took place and M & T was privy to all the documents and information regarding the bankruptcy, so a loan modification should be quite easy and quick as financial hardship was evident. She did not respond. 

e ) I completed a very lengthy application requiring bank statements and sent it to M & T on XX/XX/XXXX. M & T responded to me on XX/XX/XXXX by letter that requested additional bank statements which was my daughters college bank account with very small amount and my wifes account, which also had a very small amount. 

When I started working a contract accounting job in late XXXX, I contacted M & T Bank and told them I will begin sending payments of {$500.00} every two weeks along with filing for a loan modification. To date, I have submitted  {$2700.00} to M & T Bank beginning XX/XX/XXXX. To date, they have cashed all 5 checks and have returned {$1500.00} back to me stating that they are unable to accept further payment. I have called the XXXX noted on their letters and have spoken with XXXX XXXX several times. His direct number is XXXX. I first called him on XX/XX/XXXX. 

We spoke several times during the loan modification application evaluation period as I wanted to know why it was taking M & T so long to arrive at a decision. He informed me that the loan officer had 30 days to make a decision on the loan and it was due on XX/XX/XXXX. I told him several times that the hardship qualification was clearly met because I just had a bankruptcy discharge on XX/XX/XXXX. I told him since my discharge just occurred, the decision-making process should be very easy and straight forward. I also told him that I felt as though M & Ts intention was to ultimately foreclose and that is why they were returning my payments made over the past 2 months. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, XXXX XXXX assured me that that was not the banks intention. I asked to speak with the person who was reviewing the loan modification application and he said he would have that person call me to discuss the application. That loan application officer never called me back. I also informed him that I left messages with XXXX, my account rep, and she never returns any of my calls either. XXXX XXXX stated that M & T is a very large bank and he is not responsible for other departments returning phone calls to me. 

Overall, XXXX XXXX never provided me with any other options for a loan modification. I again called him when I received the loan modification denial and he had no response for me other than to tell me I needed to pay a lump sum of approximately {$3900.00} to avoid foreclosure. 

I told him that M & T intentionally denied my loan modification and strung me along with the clear intention of proceeding with foreclosure. I told him that I was going to file a complaint with the CFPB immediately. 

To close, I have made an earnest attempt to start making payments once employed. M & T has clearly refused to assist in providing me with a HARP Loan modification even though I have met the requirements. I can only hope that the CFPB intervenes in this unfair practice in which M & T intends to foreclose on my home. As stated before, XXXX accepted a loan modification over a 15 minute phone call back in XXXX. My request in this complaint is for the CFPB to stop the foreclosure process immediately and have M & T provide a fair loan modification for this delinquent loan.

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 non-monetary relief