Consumer complaint received 2015-05-07
Company: Ocwen Financial Corporation
State: MA
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: Conventional fixed mortgage
Issue: Loan servicing, payments, escrow account

Complaint:
Over four years ago I was laid off from my job. I contacted my mortgage company, who first told me to apply for a HARP program, and that I could hold off on my mortgage payment until I got an answer, as the mortgage amount would be rolled into my new mortgage. I did not do this, I paid my mortgage on time. I was then told I did not qualify for HARP, but that they had some internal refinance programs I might be eligible for, had me go through the entire application process again ( twice, they " lost '' my first application ), and I was again told I could skip my mortgage payment while a determination was made. I did not skip the mortgage payment, and I was not given a company refinance plan either. I attended one of those mortgage conferences ( XXXX ) where lenders from all the different mortgage companies are there, and was told by a representative from Ocwen that the lender was not going to modify my mortgage and give me a lower interest rate. This was because with the amount of equity I had built up in the property it was more financially advantageous for them to wait and foreclose, even if it took a year! Finally, the mortgage company allowed me to pay an abated amount for three months while I searched for a job. I made these payments in full every month on time. At the end of the three months they sent me a bill for almost {$4000.00}, with a letter stating if I did not pay foreclosure proceedings would be instituted! In addition, they put a 30-60-90 day late note on my credit reports. I borrowed from family to save my home, and have paid my mortgage payments since. They did " modify '' my mortgage after that, from 6.625 % to 6.2 %, for 30 months, which has since expired as well. However, both the late payment marks, and the " modified '' mortgage note shows up on my credit report. I have repeatedly requested these be removed, by calling the lender directly and by requesting through the credit bureaus, and have been denied since they are " within their legal rights '' to keep these on my credit report. I went back to school and got a degree in accounting. I am afraid this type of black mark on my credit report might affect my ability to get a job in this field as they now run credit checks. It has been three years since these " late '' payments which to my way of thinking were not late to begin with, why will they not remove them? I was not told at the time that they would be treated this way on my credit report either. My original mortgage was not through Ocwen, I was sold twice before I made my first mortgage payment to the original, and then an intermediate mortgage broker, finally ending up with them. It was not because of bad credit, or because of missed mortgage payments, but simply rolled into a block of mortgages bought by this company. They have been a nightmare ever since, with poor communication, " lost '' paperwork, inability to manage escrow accounts, etc. Please help me, this severely impacts a credit report that would otherwise be quite good.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation