Consumer complaint received 2017-12-26
Company: Core Mortgage Services, LLC
State: WV
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Closing on a mortgage

Complaint:
Our issues with these companies started on XX/XX/XXXX and continued through until XX/XX/XXXX. All supporting documentation is attached in the form of PDF files. I started to mark up the email document with important items in RED and my notations in Green but did not finish all 342 pages ... .. 

First and foremost it is our sincerest desire to stop Core Mortgages and XXXX from continuing to harm others in the future as we have been harmed. We believe at the most basic level they should be held accountable for the deceptive practices they engage in and the undue stress and anxiety that they placed on us as a result. Their breach of fiduciary duty and negligence, not to mention the unethical and illegal tactics and actions of XXXX/Core Mortgages, should at an absolute minimum result in a 100 percent refund of all of our closing fees as well as the removal of PMI from our loan, and a refund of the entire rate lock extension fee. They put us through two ( 2 ) months of XXXX and if it was not for my wife 's exceptionally detail oriented analysis as gained by a XXXX XXXX, of XXXX XXXX numbers game/con, he would have made us a victim without recourse just as I am certain they have perpetrated on countless others. They should be held accountable and punished to the fullest extent allowed by law for the fact that they could easily destroy a persons financial solvency or financial potential with a bad 30 year mortgage contract. Not many people could have done what my wife did to protect us, and I suspect there is a long trail of victims if his files were investigated. In hindsight, while reviewing all 342+ pages of emails, it is evident that XXXX XXXX knew the potential repercussions of his actions based on his continual timely insulation of himself from the proceedings underway via quips of " if you are not comfortable I suggest you go elsewhere '' as a response to an official document request or an explanation of math problems errors in his emails. He knew very well that the level of investment that he had pushed us into at the date of that statement was so immense and the carrot of XXXX interest rate he kept dangling in front of us was great that it would mean that we were too committed to walk away. This is the response of a highly skilled manipulator to questioning. 

They forced us into a rate lock extension fee and simultaneously fabricated a parcel issue which the XXXX/Core then spent most all of the additional time that were paying for to decide if they would accept our property for a loan. At the end of our rate lock extension time frame is was presented to us that we were very fortunate to have received approval and we should hurry up and choose or the lender will charge you yet another fee. Oh and by the way we are changing the terms of your CD, sign the new CD quickly or else .... Their veritable gun to our heads. 

From the first interaction XXXX XXXX ( Core Mortgage Services LLC ) set us up for a bait and switch interest rate. Firstly he fabricated a property value of {$410000.00} in order to show us a better than realistic interest rate when our application stated an expected appraised value of {$370000.00} maximum. 

He refused to provide us an industry standard LOAN ESTIMATE and would only give us a " Fee Schedule '' which did not allow us accurate and reliable information to rate shop other vendors. We asked many, many times for this and all he would ever send us was a Fees Worksheet. He even had the audacity to tell us on the phone What are you afraid of? I sent you the Fees Worksheet, its the same thing? Of course, he being a master manipulator and con-artist, would not have put that into an email though he snuck an official estimate in via the electronic esign site which we were inundated with notifications for early on but were not told what these were for. We asked no less than 12 + times for an official estimate over the next 30+ days. He finally, nonchalantly point out that he did send us a LOAN ESTIMATE via the electronic disclosures website. Conveniently we never signed it and he never once pointed to it in all of the dozens of request for this document. In reality we never knew it existed until in the end, when we threatened legal action against Core Mortgages and XXXX, demanding that ALL electronic documents that were locked an un-viewable, be sent to us. 
He masked this document and hide it from us by an information dump of emails from the esign site which when logged into subsequently was not able to view any previous documents, only sign new. So that each and every time we logged in to sign yet another document we were never able to view the last document and therefor understand that they had issued an official estimate with inaccurate numbers previously. He knew we would have caught his false numbers and he would be forced to correct or explain it away. We were unable to rate shop apples to apples with XXXX XXXX or any other alternative vendor because we were told by our current mortgage servicer ( XXXX XXXX ) that we " must get an official loan estimate ''. Furthermore we sent what XXXX XXXX was sending us and told he can not do this. He MUST give you an official LOAN ESTIMATE. 

The day following the application submittal we were inundated with demands for large amounts of documents, letters, and other info for them to process a loan approval. It is important to note that we had not committed to using Core Mortgage, on the contrary we had many, many questions to ask at that moment instead. They were setting us up to commit ourselves to using them due to a large amounts of time and effort investment. Our email chain shows the skilled manipulation of the XXXX XXXX to invest us without answering our questions. They diverted attention from what they as subject matter experts knew would have given us the ability to make an informed decision. We have, through exhaustive research, during and post loan process uncovered the beginnings of the illegal and fraudulent handling of our loan with XXXX XXXX XXXX and XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. 

The over 342+ pages of emails ( in short form too ) which we painstakingly assembled into a single document one by one, with Core Mortgages documents a clear pattern of mis-information, altered numbers, dismissed and unanswered questions regarding the numbers, overly complicating answers with screenshots of rate charts for the day and long written math problems designed to confuse customers even though we continually asked for official documentation that we could easily compare to past information that he provided and not his " screenshots and math problems ''. We were relegated to reviewing hundreds of emails with Core Mortgages in order to attempt to capture a picture of what the true numbers were or might be. 

He altered our Closing Disclosure several times without a valid Change in Circumstance. We signed one such CD on XX/XX/XXXX and were told a week later that they must issue another because PMI was not on the signed version. It is important to note that the appraisal was back and all numbers were know at the time of this CD issuance. There was not a valid reason for them to force us into a new CD as there was not a valid reason for issuance of a CIC for the PMI. If this was an error on the part of the XXXX XXXX, one of a countless number of errors in reality, then that single fact alone does not justify the CIC or the subsequent new CD and changed closing numbers. We point blank, in no uncertain terms, told him and XXXX in writing that this was illegal and they were bound to the signed document. There was not a CIC on our part. It was a lender / underwriter / mortgage broker error. We were finally forced into signing a new CD with extra PMI included as well as a reduced lender credit to us. We were told " you have 2 options '', you pay for PMI OR it will be lender paid PMI, either way the previous CD was not valid anymore. Simultaneously we were under threat of a rate lock extension fee and told to choose quickly or it will cost you even more to close. A veritable gun to the head tactic to get what they wanted, without any regard for the Fiduciary Duty of Core Mortgages to Us, the Customer. 

Additionally we incurred a previous rate lock extension fee due to the inability of Core Mortgages to answer questions clearly and timely. They would not provide the documentation we asked for so we kept trying to attain " legally binding '' document ( s ) for what we were being told by XXXX XXXX. In the end. We paid for the appraisal based on the statement by Core Mortgages that no " legally binding document '' would be available until after the appraisal came back. If he was transparent and truthful about the hidden legal document that he had previously issued, an official loan estimate then he could have simply said so and pointed to that hidden document and we would have gone forward with the appraisal weeks earlier, therefor not incurring the fees for a rate lock extension. There was ZERO good faith in what we were being told by Core Mortgages and that became very clear as this process drug on for weeks and months longer. XXXX XXXX in many instances made references to " not being in the office '' in order to avoid providing timely answers to our questions, yet a simple XXXX search shows that he works out of his home. His intent is evident. 

In summary, upon reviewing all of the attached supporting documents it will be clear that Core Mortgages and XXXX are both culpable and liable for violating our rights, breach of fiduciary duty, and/or negligence. 

Both organizations MUST be held accountable so that they can not continue to harm others.

Company public response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation