Consumer complaint received 2016-01-18
Company: WELLS FARGO & COMPANY
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: Conventional fixed mortgage
Issue: Loan modification,collection,foreclosure

Complaint:
I bought a house in XX/XX/XXXX. At the time my income was from XXXX insurance which would end the next year. Despite knowing I had insufficient income for the mortgage payments, Wachovia gave me a predatory loan at 6.5 % interest rate, much higher than other people. I could n't afford to keep paying the mortgage, so I moved in with family and rented the house out to pay for the mortgage. I always paid the mortgage on time, until the last tenants left the house in XXXX, without paying their last month 's rent, and leaving approximately {$10000.00} of damage. Thus, I could n't pay the mortgage without getting rent, as I used the last of my savings to make the repairs. This meant that my mortgage went into arrears. Within a few weeks of not making my mortgage payment, I contacted Wells Fargo, to inform them of my situation and to ask about a refinance or home modification. I explained that I did not have the documents available to me at that time, and that my priority was getting the house repaired and re-rented - and then I would have the income to resume my mortgage payments and to focus on a home modification. Since then, I have repeatedly asked Wells Fargo to provide me with an email address as an easy method of communication, given that I reside XXXX, and there is a huge time difference and cost for phone calls to Wells Fargo. They have repeatedly ignored my requests to facilitate the home modification application by providing me with email contact. I began receiving rent again and was in a position to resume the mortgage payment but I was not willing to resume payments if WF had already started the foreclosure process. At this time, they are communicating with me by snail mail to XXXX, which takes 2 weeks to reach me. Therefore, if they state in a letter that the foreclosure process has not been started, it is so out of date by the time it reaches me, that the foreclosure process may have been started in the weeks that the letter took to reach me. I have had letters from them ( one of which appeared to be a form letter ) that state that I was not interested in a home modification, yet I have repeatedly stated both verbally and in writing that I wish to pursue a home modification. If my predatory loan interest rate of 6.5 % had been a normal rate over the past 10 years, with what I have paid, I would have paid off at least half of the mortgage by now, and not facing this horrible situation. Also, according to the terms of the National Mortgage Settlement, Wells Fargo was required to reach out to borrowers who were up to date with their mortgage payments and offer modifications, but WF never did this. 
One of the letters from XXXX XXXX at WF, was contradictory about appointing a single point of contact, at one point saying it was not possible, but later saying the person would be XXXX XXXX. I contacted her, but my call went to VM and I have not been called back. 

Previously I had a condo mortgage with WF, and due to tenant damage, I again had problems paying the mortgage, but because WF owned that loan ( not merely servicing it ), they did provide a single point of contact, and she not only emailed me regularly, but also called me at my home in XXXX, and a suitable resolution was reached. WF sold my mortgage to " investors '' ( in a tranche of toxic mortgage assets ) and failed to inform me, under the requirements of the Truth in Lending Act. Now it seems that WF prefers to get the fees from a foreclosure than to assist me to keep my property. By refusing to provide me with a fast, efficient means of communicating, by email, they have cost me several additional, unnecessary late fees. 

I want the late fees for the past 4 months reversed, and I want WF to provide me with the email address for XXXX XXXX and instruct her to assist me, via email, with a home modification. WF has acted in bad faith and this must stop.

Company public response: Company chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation